New English Language Development
and Common Core State Standards
Institute
Long Term English Learners in the era
of the Common Core Standards
June 28, 2013
English Learners
“There is no equality of treatment
merely by providing students with the
same facilities, textbooks, teachers
and curriculum…for students who do
not understand English are effectively
foreclosed from any meaningful
education…”
Lau v. Nichols, Supreme Court
Research on
EL
Civil Rights
Families,
Community
District
Initiatives
• Growing Gap
State & Federal
• Declining progress
Accountability
towards English
Reforms
• New barriers to
access
Capacity
Prof. development,
teacher placement,
credentialling,
Politics
The task:
To get them to English proficiency
To ensure access to curriculum while
A more
learning English
rigorous
target under
the
Common
Core
_______________________________________________________________________
Standards
Proficient for
Current
Academic
standards work

No
Englis
h

Need for explicit attention to ELLs
• English Learners face specific language
barriers to participation and access, and
have special needs.
• Most general school improvement efforts
in the past have inadequately addressed
the achievement gap for English Learners.
• The California Common Core Standards
(CCSS) are a major reform of public
education that does not explicitly state
how English Learners needs should be
addressed.
• The CCCS roll-out is proceeding without
adequate attention to the ELD
standards or ELL needs
• Our ELL outcomes are inadequate even
for current less rigorous standards
• The foundation of EL programs,
capacity and practices to build upon is
weak
• The promise is enormous; the dangers
significant
Entering era of converging
forces
Long Term
English
Learner
Research
English
Learner
Research
The
Common
Core
Standards
185,000 English Learners each year
Starting Kindergarten
Long Term English Learners are
created…….. a K-12 issue
Strugglin
g
Students
K/1
gr.5
gr.8
Long Term
EL
gr. 10
HS grad
English Learner Typologies
• Newly arrived with adequate schooling
(including literacy in L1)
• Newly arrived with interrupted formal
schooling - “Underschooled” - “SIFE”
• English Learners developing normatively
(1-5 years)
• Long Term English Learner
Reparable Harm research:
Californians Together Survey (2010)
• Data from 40 school districts
• Data on 175,734 English Learners in
grades 6 - 12
• This is 31% of California’s English
Learners in grades 6 – 12
• Districts vary in EL enrollment, size
and context
Across all districts
59% of secondary school ELs are long term
(103,635 in sample)
Differs significantly from district to district (21% - 96%)
Their double challenge – our legal
responsibility
“English learners cannot be permitted to
incur irreparable academic deficits during
the time in which they are mastering
English. School districts are obligated to
address deficits as soon as possible, and
to ensure that their schooling does not
become a permanent deadend.”
Definition (AB 2193):
An English Learner who…..
Continuously or cumulatively enrolled in US
schools for 6+ years
Not met reclassification criteria
Evidence of inadequate progress
Is struggling academically
Annual Expectations for
English Learners
Years in
US
1
year
2
3
years years
4
years
5
years
6
years
CELDT
BEG
EI
INT
INT
EA
ADV
CST
ELA
FBB
FBB
BB
BB+
Basic+ Prof+
Indicators of Risk
• After 5 years – haven’t reached
CELDT proficiency
• After 5 years – stalled at
Intermediate Level III on CELDT for
more than two years
• After 5 years – scoring at FBB or BB
on CST-ELA
By fifth grade
• Almost half of students who enrolled in
Kindergarten as English Learners are
redesignated
• 52% are still English Learners
• Half of those have not yet reached CELDT
proficiency
• 1/3 have been stalled at Intermediate level
for MORE than two years
• ½ are scoring at FBB or BB on CST-ELA
Action Items

• Adopt a clear definition
• Develop expectations for progress based on
number of years of enrollment
• Use those expectations to identify students
at risk of becoming Long Term English
Learners
• Disaggregate achievement data by number of
years in U.S. schools
Pair-Share
• Are Long Term English Learners an issue in
your school?
• Do you see students at risk of becoming
LTELs in your school/district?
• Any sense of the magnitude?
• Do you currently have a way to identify
English Learners at risk of becoming LTELs?
(definitions, benchmarks specific to ELs,
typologies, etc.)
The voice of one LTEL…….
Typical behavioral profile
• Learned passivity, non-engagement,
• Don’t ask questions or ask for help
• Tend not to complete homework or understand the
steps needed to complete assignments
• Not readers
• Typically desire to go to college – high hopes and
dreams but unaware of pathway to those dreams
• Do not know they are doing poorly academically –
think they are English fluent
Distinct language issues
• High functioning in social situations in
both languages – but limited
vocabulary in both
• Prefer English – are increasingly weak in
their home language
• Weak academic language – with gaps
• Are stuck in progressing towards English
proficiency
The continuum:
learning English as a second language
1
–
3 years
5 - 7 years
LTELs STUCK
HERE
_______________________________________________________________________
No English
I
II
Oral,
social
English
III
CST Basic
CELDT
Proficient
IV
V
Proficient for
Academic
work
Big discrepancy between CELDT
Proficiency and Basic on CST/ELA
Percent English Learners attaining these benchmarks statewide
Annual Measurable Achievement Objectives
• AMAO #1 – progress towards English proficiency
measured by CELDT levels (target 56%)
• AMAO #2 – attainment of English proficiency which
is defined as “CELDT proficient” (overall Early
Advanced, no domain less than Intermediate) (target: 45.1% those >5yrs)
“MET” or “NOT MET” is not an adequate indicator of
how well we are moving English Learners towards
English proficiency
Which levels on CELDT are meeting
growth target AMAO #1
(Santa Clara County)?
% meeting growth target of 1
level
Beginning (I)
72.2
Early Intermediate (II)
70.2
Intermediate (III)
51.9
Early Advanced (IV)
26.5
Advanced (V)
65.6
To get this data for your site….
www.cde.ca.gov
Dataquest
Level (county)
Subject: English Language
Development Test (CELDT)
• Select county and submit
• Click: CELDT results by prior proficiency
• Select the district; and then the site
•
•
•
•
Santa Clara Co. selected K-12/high school districts
AMAO #1
District
A
met
58.4%
AMAO #2B (5+
yrs)
Not met 39.5%
District B
met
62.1%
Not met
44.5%
District
C
Not met
55.4%
Not met
39.7%
District
D
met
68.3%
met
47.3%
Action Items

• Examine AMAOs for adequate growth and
patterns
• Conduct walkthroughs and observations,
shadow students to monitor active
participation and engagement
• Build staff understanding of CELDT and data
and normative expectations
• Celebrate progress
HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?
No services - mainstream – for several
years
• Three out of four spent at least two
years in “no services” or mainstream
• This trend has increased in California
schools in past decade
Trend: Towards the weakest EL Program
Models
Other contributing factors
Inconsistent program placements
Inconsistent implementation within programs
Social segregation and linguistic isolation
Transnational moves – transnational schooling
Unintended consequence of Corrective
Action: narrowed curriculum
• Unintended consequence of RTI: placement
into interventions that aren’t adequate or
appropriate for ELLs
•
•
•
•
•
CONFUSION
???
English
Language Arts
• Universal
Access
•
Preview/Review
English
Language
Development
(ELD)
Reading Support,
English
Intervention
Classes
The National Literacy Panel
“Instructional strategies effective with
native English speakers do not have as
positive a learning impact on language
minority students….. Instruction in the
key components of reading is
necessary but not sufficient for
teaching language minority students to
read and write proficiently in English.”
In secondary schools….. (from the
Californians Together survey)
• 3 of 4 districts have no approach to
serving Long Term English Learners
• Majority of CA districts place their Long
Term English Learners into mainstream
• Three CA districts place Long Term
English Learners by English proficiency
level with other English Learners (in
NYC, this is the common placement)
Typical program placements
for English Learners
SDAIE
Intensive or strategic interventions!
Still English Learner, but in Mainstream
1 –
3 years





_______________________________________________________________________
No English
I
II
Oral,
social
English
III
CELDT
Proficient
IV
V
CST Basic
Proficient
for
Academic
work
Placements NOT designed for them…..
• Placed/kept in classes with newcomer and
normatively developing English Learners – by
CELDT level
• Unprepared teachers
• No electives – and limited access to the full
curriculum
• Over-assigned and inadequately served in
intervention and reading support classes
Do these exist in your school?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Weaker forms of English Learner programs?
No ELD?
Just ELD and no other special instruction or services?
Mainstream placement?
Reliance on core E.L.A. program for language
Supposed to be “SDAIE” but doesn’t really happen?
Inconsistent program placements or implementation?
Narrowed curriculum?
Use of interventions that aren’t designed for ELs
Agenda…from the LTEL research
• Clearly defined EL program models (ELD plus
access), consistently implemented
• Consistency in placement and EL language
approach (no ping-pong)
• Importance of full academic curriculum
• Strategies that promote student engagement as
active learners
• Importance of scaffolding instruction
• Need for interventions designed for ELLs
Three converging forces
Long-term
English Learner
Research
The Common
Core Standards
X
English
Learner
Research
#1: Early childhood education
makes a difference
• Early years of development (cognitive,
linguistic, social) are crucial
• Quality preschool lays the foundation for
better outcomes
• Preschool reduces disparities and
longstanding achievement gaps between
groups
• Most powerful language policy/approach for
preschool is primary focus on home
language development
So…..
• Begin with preschool programs
• Active outreach/recruitment to English
Learner communities
• Attention to supporting the transition
from preschool into kindergarten
• Articulation, alignment between the
two systems (preschool and K-12)
#2.
Importance of rich oral
language development
Importance of rich oral language
development
• Producing language encourages learners
to process language more deeply than
when just listening or receptive.
• Verbal interaction is essential in the
construction of knowledge
• Oral language is the bridge to academic
language associated with school and the
development of literacy --
National Literacy Panel
finding
• Oral language development and proficiency
is critical to literacy… and is often
(increasingly) overlooked in instruction
• It is not enough to teach reading skills alone
to language minority students; extensive oral
English development must be incorporated
into successful literacy instruction
• Oral proficiency and literacy in the first
language facilitates literacy development in
English
So……
• Multiple and frequent structured
opportunities for students to be engaged
in producing oral language should be
features of classroom instruction
• The amount, type and quality of student
talk that is generated is a mark of good
instruction
• Emphasize complex vocabulary
development
• Model rich, expressive, amplified oral
language
#3:
Academic Language is essential
– complex, precise language is
essential
• Social, oral fluency (BICS) takes less time to
develop than academic proficiency
(CALP)
• Academic language and literacy for ELs
develop most powerfully where
background knowledge is also being built
– and in the context of engaging with
academic content
• Learning a second language for
academic success requires explicit
language development across the
curriculum - ELD alone is not sufficient
SOCIAL ACADEMIC
CONTEXTS CONTEXTS
SIMPLE, BASIC,
FUNCTIONAL
LANGUAGE
RICH,
COMPLEX,
PRECISE
LANGUAGE


X
X
So…….
• Identify key academic vocabulary and
discourse patterns – and explicitly
teach them
• Monitor the rigor and complexity of the
language used in text and instruction
• Set a high bar for sophisticated,
complex, precise language in both
social and academic domains
#4.
Language develops in context
So……
• Intentional language development
across the curriculum
• Full curriculum – including rich science
and social studies
#5.
To access the curriculum, English
Learners need specially
designed instruction
SDAIE works when……
• Materials are designed for maximum
contextual cues, etc.
• Teachers understand which strategies
are meant for which levels of
proficiency
• Students are grouped by level
• Instruction is paced appropriately - key
power standards focused upon
• L1 is used as a support
So……
• Language objectives for content lessons
based on analyzing the linguistic demands
of the content
• Identify key academic vocabulary and
discourse patterns and explicitly teach
them
• Professional development related to
making content accessible to English
Learners
• Home language support
• Home language instruction when possible
#6:
ELD instruction can advance
knowledge and use of English – and
they need ELD through high levels
of proficiency
Daily dedicated time
Leveled by proficiency
#7:
Development of the home
language is important
The home language plays a significant
role in development
• The best foundation for literacy is a rich
foundation in language
• Children have more extended and complex
vocabulary and language skills if their home
language is developed
• English Learners make more academic progress
when they have the opportunity to learn in both
their L1 and English
• Systematic, deliberate exposure to English +
ongoing development of L1 = highest
achievement in both languages
Comparison between EL groups over time
And, there are benefits to
bilingualism…… so…..
• Home language instruction and
development whenever possible to
high levels of proficiency
• Transfer focus and contrastive analysis
• Native speakers classes through to
Advanced Placement
• Create a climate that honors and
affirms the value of bilingualism
Yet, common belief system
• Sooner and more fully immersed in
English, the better
• Good teaching and standards-based
curriculum work for all students and are
sufficient for ELLs
• English is the most important subject for
ELLs – the more hours, the better
• Home language holds students back
Action Steps

• Know the research
• Determine which aspects of the
research are most important to make
known at this point in to order to clarify
myths/misconceptions that may be in
the way of delivering a strong EL
research-based program
The Common Core
standards, implemented on a
foundation of myths and
misinformation about English
Learner research, will (as with
most past reforms) leave
English Learners behind.
65
DISCUSSION
• Do you see evidence that this research
is known and guides programs and
services for English Learners?
• How strong are the myths and beliefs
that run counter to the research?
• What aspect of the research is most
needed to be understood?
• What practices do you see going on
that seem most to fly in the face of
research?
The Common Core
Standards:
New opportunity or new
barriers for English Learners?
The answer lies, in part, in the
new ELD standards.
67
Common Core ELA: Four Shifts
1. Language development across the
curriculum
Major Shift #1:
From Old Paradigm
Learn
English
then
Academic
content
OR
Language
Academic
vocabulary as
overlap
Academic
Content
To new CCS Paradigm:
language is central to all academic
areas
MATH
SCIENCE
Language
*•
LANGUAGE ARTS
Social
Studies
instructional
discourse
• expressing and
understanding
reasoning
Shift 2: Increased focus on
Speaking and Listening
 Comprehension and Collaboration
Day to day, purposeful academic talk one
to one, small group and large group
setting
 Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
Formal sharing of information and
concepts, including through the use of
technology
for all students, across the curriculum
Shift 3: Focus on more complex,
rigorous text (+ incr. in informational)
• ELLs will need background knowledge to
comprehend and critically engage with
academic text in CCCS.
• Practices of a narrowed curriculum and years
spent in English and math interventions,
support classes and instruction (little or no
science, social studies, arts) have resulted in
gaps in ELL students’ essential academic
background knowledge.
Shift 4: Active engagement in
collaboration
• The CCSs recognize that students need
to develop skills to collaborate in
academic work – skills for teamwork,
active and skillful participation in
discussions, and inquiry-based
collaboration.
(Anchor standard: Speaking
and Listening #1)
CCSs alone do not address a
pathway towards English
proficiency for ELLs
• New English Language Development
standards aligned to the CCSSs
(adopted November 2012)
• New adoption of materials in 2016; new
ELD assessment for 2015-16
• Implementation of CCSSs must be
accompanied by full implementation of
the new ELD standards
New ELD Standards – related to
academic curriculum
Dedicated ELD + ELD across all academic
areas
MATH
SCIENCE
ELD*
LANGUAGE
ARTS
SOCIAL
STUDIES
New ELD Standards
Different Focus
• Language development focused on
making meaning, collaboration,
comprehension, communication – with
content integral to language learning
Six Key Shifts
• From lock-step linear  spiraling,
dynamic and complex social process
• From focus on accuracy  collaboration,
comprehension, communication
• From simplified texts and activities separate
from content  use of complex texts and
content integral to language learning
• From English as a set of rules From English as
a set of rules to meaning-making and
language choices
• From central focus on grammar, syntax to
grammar and structure within meaningful
context
• From Literacy Foundational skills as one size
fits all to targeting varying profiles of ELs
and tapping linguistic resources
THE ELD STANDARDS….
• Guide for all teachers to support access to
academic content and participation in
academic classes for diverse ELL students
along continuum towards proficiency
• Guide for all teachers to focus on academic
and discipline specific English – what it is, how
it works
• Guide for dedicated ELD instruction
• Guide for collaboration between ELD and
content teachers
ELD is no longer wholly
disconnected from the
academic work students are
doing in the rest of the
curriculum, but it remains the
vehicle for English Learners to
FOCUS on learning English
LTEL needs, EL research and the
Common Core
• More focus on structured, rich oral language
• More focus on writing
• More emphasis on academic language and
informational text
• More emphasis on language in and through
social studies and science – a full academic
curriculum
• More focus on interaction, collaboration,
discussion
• ELD, language development and academic
learning are understood as more connected
than they have been
Some gaps….
• The new ELD standards do not
adequately describe or guide
instruction or curriculum for newcomers
• The new ELD standards do not
adequately focus on basic,
foundational, communicative and
expressive language development
outside of academic language
82
OUR TASK
Build programs, curriculum and
instruction that meet the needs of
LTELs and prevent the creation of
new LTELs
See to it that implementation of
the CCCS goes hand-in-hand with
the new ELD standards – and are
both implemented with an eye to
EL research
Three converging forces
Long Term
English 
Learner
Research

The
Common
Core
Standards

English
Learner
Research 
Reparable Harm Recommendations
• Specialized ELD or LTEL language class
(aligned to new ELD standards PLUS)
• Clustered in heterogeneous classes
mainstream academic classes with
differentiated SDAIE and scaffolding
• Explicit language/literacy development
across the curriculum
• Emphasis on engagement, oral language,
writing, academic language, study skills, rigor
• Native speakers classes (through AP)
To prevent the creation of LTELs
• Intentional, rich, rigorous, academic language
development across a full science- and social
studies-based curriculum plus high quality ELD
• Emphasis on active engagement
• Coherent, articulated ELL program
• Clear expectations & monitoring for progress
towards English proficiency, identify students
and provide EL specific support
• Primary language development to degree
possible
Make the promise of the
Common Core a reality for
English Learners, not a new
barrier to access and
success!
An aligned approach!
• Know the standards
• Align LTEL work with Common Core work
• Roll out initial implementation of CCCSs with focus on
high leverage areas that overlap (ELL research, LTEL
research and CCCS mandates)- with speaking,
listening and collaborative practices central
• Don’t forget the ELD standards
• Continue to build the understanding, skills, capacity
and foundation for strong ELL programs
• Reinstate social studies, science, full curriculum to
build background knowledge and as the context for
academic language development
• This means changing the instructional minutes
tyranny that divides academic subjects to thematic
curriculum at elementary level
• Preparing curriculum for language development
across academic areas
• Collaborative planning time, support for standardsbased planning
Support professional development and
appropriate materials….be the voice!
• Now ALL teachers will need to support language
development
• The Common Core calls for a change in teaching
pedagogy from teacher-directed and primarily
teacher talk to student talk, discussion, inquiry,
collaboration
• California teachers using existing adopted
curriculum and pedagogies have not been using the
strategies that are called for by the Common Core
Standards
Three imperatives!
Long Term
English
Learner
Prevent Research
the harm!
English
End the
Learner
creation of
Research
LTELs
The
Common
Core
Realize the
StandardsPromise;
Enact what we know
works!
Guard
against
new
barriers!
Beyond the Common Core
a California Vision requires Biliteracy
•
•
•
•
Demographic reality of our state
Global opportunities of the 21st century
Benefits for our English Learners
Benefits for all students
• Primary language assessments to
support bilingual/biliteracy, duallanguage programs
• Ensure materials for bilingual/biliteracy
and dual language programs
• Policies to facilitate growth of dual
language and bilingual/biliteracy
programs
• Seal of Biliteracy and pathway awards
SEAL OF BILITERACY RECIPIENTS
A vision of students prepared for the 21st Century!
Because without
education, they do not
have access
and without the power of
language, they do not
have a voice!
Thank you
Laurie Olsen
lolaurieo@gmail.com
Title of Presentation