1. ElS - Rights lead to success
March 16, 2016
Marie Salazar Glowski

2. AGENDA Laws/Policies Impacting ELs
Federal (OCR, USDOE, DOJ)
State Level
State – CT Bilingual Statute (10-17 e – j inclusive)
CSDE Position Statement and Guidelines
District
Denotes material is on state website (English Learners)

3. Federal Level Brown v. Board of Education 1954
ELs cannot be fully separated from other students.
Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VI
No person shall on the grounds of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from any activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

4. Federal Level
May 25, 1970 Memorandum (Department of Health, Education, and Welfare)
“Where the inability to speak and understand the English language excludes national origin-minority group children from effective participation in the educational program, the district must take affirmative steps to rectify the language deficiency in order to open its instructional program to these students.”
*Memoranda were also posted by the Office for Civil Rights (U.S. Department of Education) with policy and policy updates in 1985, 1990, and 1991.

5. National Level Lau v. Nichols, 1974 (U.S. Supreme Court)
Chinese American students in San Francisco
“There is no equality of treatment merely by providing students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum.”
This treatment alone does not allow for meaningful participation.
The decision also stated that there must be a policy in place to educate Limited English Proficient (LEP) students. This policy/plan is referred to as a “Lau plan”.
“sink or swim” vs. ensuring all ELs have the right to access instruction

6. National Level Equal Educational Opportunities Act, 1974
No state shall deny educational opportunity to an individual on account of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin. An educational agency shall take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation by its students in its instructional programs.
Lau is strengthened by this act to help ELs overcome language barriers that impede equal participation in instructional programs.

7. State Level Rios v. Read, 1977(U.S. District Court of New York)
It is not enough simply to provide a program with bilingual teachers. The program shall be designed to assure as much as is reasonably possible the child progresses in English language acquisition. An inadequate program is as harmful to a child who does not speak English as no program at all.
Cintrón v. Brentwood, 1977, 1978 (U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York)
The goal is instruction by competent bilingual teachers in the subject matter of the curriculum while at the same time teaching ELs English.

8. Federal Level Castañeda v. Pickard, 1981 (5th Circuit Court)
The court’s decision states that the burden of proof is upon the district that the instructional program designed for an EL provides the English language skills of comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing necessary for learning and achieving in English-only instruction at a level equivalent to pupils whose primary language is English.
Three pronged approach includes:
ESL programs must have a foundation from educational theory
Effective program implementation
ELs acquire language within reasonable time

9. Federal Level Plyler v. Doe, 1982
The Supreme Court ruled that public schools were prohibited from denying immigrant students access to a public education. Undocumented children have the same right to a free public education as U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Undocumented immigrant students are obligated, as are all other students, to attend school until they reach the age mandated by state law. Public schools and school personnel are prohibited under Plyler from adopting policies or taking actions that would deny students access to education based on their immigration status.

10. Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)1965
English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement Act – Title III, Part A
Goal: students in age-appropriate grade with access to grade level curricula and equal opportunity to graduate
Title III grants to State Education Agencies (SEAs)
SEA Title III grants to Local Education Agencies (LEAs)
Title III Grant Assurances
Funds are to supplement not supplant
LEA programs and activities must comply with law

11. Title III & NCLB 2001 Act
LEP – Limited English Proficient, deficit view
Program, Strategies, and PD must be researched based
Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives (AMAOs)
Accountability (year 1, 2, 3, 4 and beyond)
Parent AMAO communication notification
ELP Standards (ELL Frameworks/CELP)
ELP Assessment LAS Links (ELPA 21)
SBAC (3 – 8), SAT (11), Science 5, 8 & 10

12. NCLB (Reauthorization) – ESEA Flexibility
States will:
adopt common academic standards
adopt English language proficiency standards
provide PD to implement standards
develop and administer teacher evaluation plan
administer rigorous English language achievement test
adopt common state academic achievement test

13. ESEA Flexibility CT
All recently arrived ELs participate in all content areas of the state assessment (two state tests within 24 months)
Scores will be included in the accountability system
Year 1 – Baseline score established, school’s achievement status calculations unaffected
Year 2 – Growth measure established when comparing Year 2 scores to baseline
Year 3 – Student scores used in school’s academic achievement measure and the school’s growth measure
EL student scores will be included in 95% participation

14. The Every Student Succeeds Act December 10, 2015
Replaces AYP – now statewide accountability system
Allows flexibility in state test selection
Continue math and reading state assessments in grades 3 – 8
Science test administration three times between grades 3 – 12
High school assessment only once – SAT or ???
States will identify low performing schools & set accountability
States do not have to adopt common core standards
States do not have to implement teacher evaluations
Resources will be available to support ELs to achieve exit criteria
Allows school choice for parents
Competitive funding will be available to support critical programs
Expect no changes at this time at the district level!

15. Common Civil Rights Issues
Areas which are frequently found noncompliant in districts:
Proper and timely identification
Program Implementation
Staffing & knowledgeable administrators to evaluate
Equal opportunities for ELs
Annual parent notification
Unnecessary segregation
IDEA violations
District responsibility for ELs who opt out
District monitoring and evaluation of EL students & programs
District Policy governing ELs

16. CT State Laws/Policies
Bilingual Statute
Bilingual Education Programming
Dual Language Programs
Language Transitional Support Services (LTSS)
Bilingual Q & A
CSDE Position Statement and Guidelines
Data Bulletin
Administrator’s Handbook for ELs

17. Bilingual Statute
Schools with 20 or more ELs who have the same native language must provide a bilingual education program
Bilingual education program is typically a transitional or developmental program.
Makes instructional use of both English and the native language with increase of more than half of instructional time in English by the end of the first year.
May include the participation of English proficient students if the program is designed to enable all enrolled students to become more proficient in English and a second language.
Dual Language Programming may continue throughout academic career.

18. Bilingual Statute vs. ESL
English as a second language program means a program that uses only English as the instructional language for eligible students and enables such students to achieve English proficiency and academic mastery of subject matter content and higher order skills, including critical thinking, so as to meet appropriate grade promotion and graduation requirements.
ESL services for secondary students enrolling with under 30 months to graduation

19. Bilingual Legislative Changes
Changes took effect July 1, 2015
30 month increase with state approval
May request TESOL due to Bilingual teacher shortage
ESL Pilot Programs (Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport & Windham)
State Academic Test in multiple languages
RESC Survey to identify needed services
RESCs provide services
CCSU Resource Center & Evaluation Study
CSDE monitors and reports annually on Bilingual Ed
Seal of Bi-literacy under consideration by CSDE

20. Identification Updated state guidance – available on state website
Notice to parents within 30 days – ID and placement
During school year within two weeks – notification, ID and placement
Translation for parents
HLS: What is the language that the student first acquired, what is the language most often spoken by the student, what is the primary language spoken in the home, regardless of the language spoken by the student
ELP assessment – listening, speaking, reading & writing
Kindergarten students – pre-reading & pre-writing

21. Program Model No specific guidance available - staffing, model, etc.
ESL/ELD pull out or ESL/ELD push in
Sheltered English Instruction (SEI) – EL only and/or with non-ELs, uses an approach to make academic content understandable
Co-teaching
Transitional (Developmental) Bilingual Education – TBE
Dual Language Programming – Two Way and One Way
SWIFE program – Newcomer Program
Structured Immersion (SI) – EL in mainstream with trained teacher
Literacy Experts/Tutors/Paraprofessionals????!!!!!

22. ELs and Special Education Identification
Districts must provide special education services to ELs who have been identified as children with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or who qualify as students with disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Identified ELs with a disability may receive ESL and special education services/supports
“SRBI for English Learners” & “ELs and Special Education” manuals
And for more….it is another presentation!

23. Questions & Thank YOU More questions?????
Contact information:
Marie Salazar Glowski – CT Association of Schools
203 –