English Language Development

The ELD program is designed to provide academic services to English language learners while they learn English in our schools. The district receives funds to serve these students through the State Transitional Bilingual Program, as well as Federal Title III funds. Our goal is that students will meet challenging state standards and develop English language proficiency in an environment where language and culture are recognized as valuable resources for learning. 

 

 

More than 50 different languages are spoken in the homes of our students. The most common languages in CVSD are Spanish, Russian, Marshallese, Vietnamese and Arabic. Currently, there are over 500 active students, K-12, enrolled in the ELD program, and approximately 100 more who have attained proficiency within the past two years.  

 

As part of online registration, families complete a Home Language Survey and answer the questions “What language did your child first learn to speak?” and “What language does your child use the most at home?” If the answer to either question is a language other than English, one of the ELD Specialists administers the WIDA English Language Proficiency Assessment  Screener. This test is typically administered to potential English learners upon initial enrollment in a Washington school. This is an online assessment that measures proficiency in the four language domains of reading, writing, listening and speaking. 

 

Students continue in the program as long as they need additional assistance. The WIDA ACCESS Summative Test is given annually (February/March) to measure students’ growth in English language knowledge and skills in reading, writing, listening and speaking. Results from this test determine which students are eligible to continue receiving ELD services. The WIDA Alternate ACCESS Test may be given in place of the WIDA ACCESS to ELL students with significant cognitive disabilities, as determined by the IEP Team.

 

Students successfully transition from the program when they meet the exit criteria of scoring Levels 4 and 5 in all domains on the WIDA ACCESS annual assessment, at which time they are considered “Proficient.” ELD Specialists and teachers continue to monitor and provide additional academic support to students for two years after they score Proficient. Families, teachers and counselors are encouraged to contact one of the ELD Specialists to review the Proficient student’s academic progress and needs for additional services. 

 

Our ELD Specialists are all ESL/EL endorsed and highly trained with many years of ELD teaching, cross-cultural and language learning experience. They serve in a variety of roles, including instructors, advocates, consultants, trainers and co-learners. They are able to support students and families in English, Russian, Ukrainian, Spanish and French. Whenever needed, they are able to access interpretation/translation for the home languages of our families through regional contacts, community agencies, universities, other school districts, or through LanguageLine® phone interpretation services. 

 

ELD Specialists work closely with classroom teachers and families to ensure all are knowledgeable about the students’ funds of knowledge, academic history and strengths as multilingual/multicultural learners.  Individual ELD Academic Plans take into consideration students’ levels of English language proficiency, as well as critical factors influencing their overall progress with academic growth and acculturation. The ELD Academic Plan is intended to be a living document to guide collaboration between teachers, ELD Specialists and families. Supplementary resources are also provided for students and their teachers, such as access to bilingual picture dictionaries and Imagine Learning®, which is a comprehensive online language and literacy program.

 

Ongoing, job-embedded support is the aim of our ELD Professional Development. Workshops and trainings focus on addressing the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students and families (including immigrants and refugees), language acquisition processes, differentiation using the WIDA ELP Standards, culturally responsive practices, and research-validated instructional strategies, such as the Guided Language Acquisition Design (OCDE Project GLAD®) instructional model. Follow-up coaching and continuous consultation are provided by ELD Specialists. Book studies and guest speakers are occasionally offered based on feedback from staff.