Initial Identification and Redesignation Criteria

Initial and New Student Identification and Assessment
 

All students enrolled in the district must be screened for their primary or home language with the home language survey (English version or Spanish version). Any student identified with a primary or home language other than English, who is not presently receiving ELD services, will be assessed.

Any checklist response indicating any of the following will identify a student as PHLOTE:

The first language learned is other than English.
The language used in the home is other than English
The district will assess each newly enrolled PHLOTE student for proficiency using the WIDA Screener within 30 days of enrollment. Testing thereafter happens on a 12-month basis. Spring tests or tests after October 1 can be counted for the following year. Post testing must occur on a 12-month basis.

The district will administer the WIDA Screener according to publisher directions. Use the CDE guidance for program eligibility and determining NEP/LEP.

Language Proficiency Definitions
 

NEP: Non-English Proficient - A student who speaks a language other than English and does not comprehend, speak, read, or write English.

LEP: Limited English Proficient - A student who comprehends, speaks, reads, or writes some English, but whose predominant comprehension or speech is in a language other than English.

FEP, Monitor Year 1: Fluent English Proficient - A student who has spoken, or currently speaks, a language other than English, but who is able to comprehend, speak, read, and write English on a level comparable to his or her monolingual English-speaking peers. A student in Monitor Year 1 should have been redesignated based upon assessments and a body of evidence from the previous school year.

FEP, Monitor Year 2: Fluent English Proficient - A student who has spoken, or currently speaks, a language other than English, but who is able to comprehend, speak, read, and write English on a level comparable to his or her monolingual English-speaking peers. A student in Monitor Year 2 should have been redesignated based upon assessments and a body of evidence and have been in Monitor Year 1 during the previous school year.

FEP, Exited Year 1- A student who has spoken, or currently speaks, a language other than English, but who is able to comprehend, speak, read, and write English comparable to their monolingual English speaking peers. A student who is coded as Exited Year 1 should have been coded as Monitor Year 2 in the previous school year and determined to be exited.

FEP, Exited Year 2 - A student who has spoken, or currently speaks, a language other than English, but who is able to comprehend, speak, read, and write English comparable to their monolingual English speaking peers. A student who is coded as Exited Year 2 should have been coded as Exited Year 1 in the previous school year and determined to be exited.

FELL: Former ELL - A student who previously received language instruction in the reporting district or another district who has been exited from an EL program for two school years. Students who transfer from another district and test as fluent should not longer be automatically coded as FELL. Instead they should continue with their spot in the FEP progression.

PHLOTE - A student, new to district, who has a Primary or Home Language Other Than English (PHLOTE), has never been served in a language instruction education program (i.e. ELA, ESL, Bilingual) and after initial screening and review of the body of evidence is determined to be proficient in English. No monitoring is needed, no services are offered, and they are not put into ELD in any way.

Language Proficiency Designation Criteria (See also - CDE Redesignation Pathways)
 

These are guidelines for ELD teachers to use in conjunction with their professional judgement of each child’s needs. Teachers (general ed and ELD) should use the guidelines as a starting place to determine the most appropriate language designation for a child.

Follow-Up Monitoring of Reclassified Students
 

A student goes to monitor year 1 when reclassified as an FEP.

Former LEP students are monitored for two school years to ascertain their academic performance. The building principal, ELD teacher, or designee will review the student’s academic grades at least once annually following exiting from the English assistance program. All exited students must have an exit form completed and in their file.

A student who receives a less than average grade in any academic course during the follow-up period will be subject to review by the ELD teacher or the intervention team. If the ELD teacher or the intervention team finds that the poor academic performance is not related to English language difficulties, the student will receive assistance in the academic area(s) of need through remedial or tutorial services available for other district students.

Parent Notification of Language Proficiency and Right to Refuse Service
 

Each parent will be sent a letter notifying them of their student’s recommendation for ELD placement and recommended services within 30 days of enrollment.

If parents refuse ELD services, the principal and ELD teacher should consult with parents in their primary language and provide them with an explanation of the program objectives and the possible impact upon the child by not receiving ELD services.

Parents must complete and sign a Refusal of Services form before placement is changed or services are discontinued. Place the signed original form in the student’s permanent records folder.

The building principal or designee will be responsible to ensure that appropriate staff develops an Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) for each LEP/NEP student whose parents refuse placement in the formal ELD program. The services to be provided will include English language development with support in the core academic curriculum.

Continue to monitor and support students whose parents have refused ELD services.

ELD Program Services
 

All students identified as LEP or NEP will be placed promptly in and continue to receive the ELD services specified in the ELD Program for that grade level, unless a parent or guardian requests in writing that such services be discontinued.

The placement of LEP students into ELD services is based on the criteria explained above for each individual and not on the allotment of instructional resources such as qualified teachers, instructional materials, and classroom space.

ELs and Special Education
 

Prior to a special education referral, PHLOTE students shall be assessed for English language proficiency and native language proficiency in accordance with Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Re 2 uses Response to Intervention (RtI) to identify an EL as needing special education services.

When the Special Education intervention team or designee finds the language assessment procedures or standards in Part B to be inappropriate for a particular student because of the nature of the disability, the district shall employ appropriate alternate procedures and standards for assessing English language proficiency. After determining the best method of assessment, the student shall be tested, as soon as possible, utilizing the alternative selected. The Special Education Intervention team or designee will document in the student’s records the rationale for the action.