Appleton Bilingual School’s “Other Side of the Story” – an
informative supplement to the Wisconsin School Report Card.
What is Different About ABS?:
Wisconsin’s School Report
Card
Each year the State of Wisconsin
Department of Public Instruction (DPI)
produces a “report card” for each school
within the state. These report cards are
based on academic priority areas and
student engagement indicators
(attendance, participation, etc.).
Measures such as daily attendance rate
and absenteeism that the state uses to
develop the report card for Appleton
Bilingual School are relevant and
meaningful since this is a factor that
significantly influences student success
regardless of the school model for
curriculum and instruction. Students must
be in school to do well. Appleton Bilingual
School’s student engagement indicators
are all well within the range of what is
expected by the state and zero deductions
were taken in 2013-14 for this measure
and ABS “Meets the Expectation”.
Other measures such as student growth
and achievement are based exclusively on
the Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts
Examination (WKCE) given at a certain
point during the school year beginning at
the 3rd grade level. This is a measure that
compares student performance in the
areas of reading and mathematics in
ENGLISH ONLY.
Appleton Bilingual School’s instructional
model, however, has a different focus
(heavy emphasis on instruction in Spanish
during the primary years and a gradual
transition to level instruction in English
and Spanish in the intermediate years.
The State Report Card can be a useful
tool, especially where English is the
primary language of instruction. However,
there are better tools that can be used to
produce a more accurate picture of the
true learning and progress that is
occurring at Appleton Bilingual School.
Research indicates strongly that in a dual language
environment student progress cannot be measured
like that of students in traditional schools. It takes
time, and patience, but the gains become
exponentially significant in later years.
The warm colors of the ABS logo represent a rising sun
signifying dawn and a new beginning, the cooler hues
represent healthy roots and signify a strong
foundation, and the five silhouettes represent
welcoming outstretched arms that signify unity and
respect.
The Aprenda 3
Appleton Bilingual School students are
measured annually for academic
performance and progress with a test called
the Aprenda 3 (nationally normed, WKCE
equivalent).
According to the Aprenda 3, 3rd Grade results
from the year 2013-14 ABS as a school fell
into the following percentiles (compared to
the national norm of bilingual schools in this
country):
Reading: 63.55% (percentile)
“Dual language programs lead to higher student
outcomes when they are provided for a period of at
least six years” (Lindholm-Leary, in press)
“Students in bilingual programs equaled or
surpassed the academic achievement in English-only
classrooms” (Genesee, Lindholm-Leary, Howard,
Sugarman, and Christian 2003)
Students are provided instruction in Spanish & English
according to the following ratios as they grow at ABS:
Kindergarten
1st Grade
2nd Grade
*3rd Grade
4th Grade
5th Grade
6th Grade

80% Spanish & 20% English
80% Spanish & 20% English
70% Spanish & 30% English
60% Spanish & 40% English
50% Spanish & 50% English
50% Spanish & 50% English
50% Spanish & 50% English
WKCE is given at the 3rd Grade Level. This
is also the level that core instruction (tested
by WKCE) begins in math. The WI State
Report Card reflects ABS 3rd grade WKCE
scores in reading and in math to determine
the assigned level of proficiency.
Math: 51.5% (percentile)
This data would suggest that ABS
performance is directly on par or slightly
above the national average with regard to an
“apples to apples” comparison of testing
data.
If the State of Wisconsin were to use the
Aprenda 3 (nationally normed, WKCE
equivalent) results to determine proficiency
in meeting expectations the ABS Report Card
would read much differently.
“Bilingually schooled students were found to
outperform their peers who were educated
monolingually in English in all subjects after 4-7
years” (Thomas and Collier, 2002)
What implications does this have when it comes to
traditional school report cards?
At ABS, Some students are building capacity in a
second language (native English speaking students)
and others are developing from a strength-based
approach (native Spanish speaking students (ELL)) as
they are receiving instruction in their native language.
In a traditional school “ELL” Students would be
provided remedial support in content areas. In either
case, students are building capacity that is expected
to result in rapid intellectual development as students
enter their intermediate years.
The Bottom Line: The State Report Card is an “apples to oranges” comparison of Appleton Bilingual School’s performance to traditional public school
performances and expectations. Students and teachers at Appleton Bilingual School are among Appleton Area School District’s BEST. They are high
performing, high achieving, and the quintessential example of charter school excellence!