Integrated ELD vs Designated ELD: What's the Difference?

Throughout the day, English learners (ELs) are required to learn English (both conversational and academic) and content knowledge simultaneously. Integrated and Designated ELD are both critical parts of an English Learner's daily instruction. They both involve direct language instruction and help students to make connections between ELD and content standards in every core subject. Both types of ELD provide scaffolds for students to meet academic and language needs, yet remain intellectually challenging, interactive, and engaging.

Language awareness (learning about English works, not simply how to translate their words) is the main focus of the CA ELD standards because when students become conscious of how particular language affects meaning, they are able to develop more advanced levels of English. For example, learning about shades of meaning and code switching can be ways in which ELs can extend their understanding of how English works. This gives them more resources to be able to fully express themselves, make meaning, and have full access to the curriculum and opportunities to achieve their dreams.

Integrated ELD happens DURING each core subject and Designated ELD happens on it's own time, with an ELD teacher. Whatever content area you teach in, you are responsible for providing integrated ELD throughout the course of the week.

As a comprehensive approach to ELD, the English Language Arts/English Language Development (ELA/ELD) Framework for California Public Schools states:

"ELs at all English proficiency levels and at all ages require both integrated ELD and specialized attention to their particular language learning needs, or designated ELD" (p 119).

Even English only (EO) students benefit from direct language instruction!

How is Designated ELD unique?

• Focus on ELD Standards and connect to content standards.
• It is a protected time to develop language skills, building into and from content instruction.
• Instruction focuses on meaning, forms, and functions of the English Language.
• Uses frequent formative and corrective feedback for language development, not content learning. Content is secondary, and supports the language, but is not the primary objective.
• Focus on providing extended opportunities for students to use English to interact in meaningful ways. The class should be full of opportunities for extended discourse.

How is Integrated ELD unique?

• Focus is on content standards. ELD standards are integrated and connected to content.
• ELD is provided throughout the day and through ALL diciplines (Humanities, STEAM, PE, etc.)
• Instruction focuses on content learning and the academic language necessary for successful learning of the content, as well as transmission of that learning to others.
• Focus on providing multiple opportunities to master the content learning.

Chapter 6 of the California ELA/ELD Framework provides "snapshots" of how Integrated and Designated ELD can work in the content areas in grades 6, 7, and 8, with a particular focus on ELA, science, and history/social science.

What's ELPAC?

Guess who's back?

Hopefully it didn't take you too long to guess :)

I'm back with the freshest info on English Language Development and English Learners for you. It's ELD for You and Me!

Today's topic is California's ELPAC. What is it? What happened to CELDT? Why are they changing it? When are they going to start using it?

ELPAC stands for English Language Proficiency Assessments for California and it is replacing the California English Language Development Test (CELDT) as the new way of assessing English Learners' abilities in the domains of reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

There are a couple of reasons that a change was necessary for this particular assessment.

• The California English Language Development (ELD) Standards were adopted back in November 2012, but the CELDT wasn't changed to reflect the proficiency level descriptors used in the new standards. Instead of five levels of proficiency  (beginning, early intermediate, intermediate, early advanced, advanced) there are three: Emerging, Expanding, and Bridging. The new test will reflect this.
• The ELD Standards were changed to provide: fewer standards (those most necessary and essential), clearer standards, and higher standards (more closely alligned with CCSS)
• The CELDT test was administered at the beginning of the school year. By the time we received scores, they would often be almost half a school year old. This was a problem because at the beginning of the year, for placement purposes, we were using scores from the beginning of the previous school year. Scores would be over a year old and not an accurate reflection of a student's language ability. The ELPAC will be administered as a summative assessment (window from Feb-May) and we will be able to use more recent scores for placement purposes.

Basic administration facts about the ELPAC:

• Paper-pencil assessment
• Two separate assessments each year: Initial Assessment (IA) and Summative Assessment (SA)
• IA shorter than the SA
• Seven grades/grade spans: kindergarten (K), 1, 2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–10 and 11–12
• One-on-one administration for students in K and grade 1
• Four domains: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing
• Group administration for Listening, Reading and Writing at grades two through twelve (2–12)
• Read-aloud by test examiner in the Listening domain at K and grades 1 and 2; recorded audio in the Listeningdomain at grades 3–12
• One-on-one administration of Speaking items to all students; real-time scoring of Speaking items by a trained test examiner
• All constructed-response items in the Writing domain (no multiple-choice items)

For more information, visit the ELPAC website at http://www.elpac.org.

California's Long-Term English Learners

In this video by Colorín Colorado, Janet Davis describes who California's Long-Term English Learners are, what their characteristics are, and what kind of supports they need to be more successful in our schools.

The California Seal of Biliteracy

Part of motivating our Long-Term English Learner (LTEL) population is helping them to see the value and importance of their primary language. Often times, due to subtractive schooling and other societal pressures, LTELs begin to devalue their primary language, shunning it for English. This can happen at any age, but most often happens in the primary grades, when students begin to realize that they are different and are wanting to fit in.

If we begin to put a higher value on biliteracy - fluent, academic reading, writing, and speaking of another language, in addition to English - students will in turn place a higher value on their primary language. This has multiple benefits. "Academic skills, literacy development, concept
formation, subject knowledge, and learning strategies developed in the first language will
all transfer to the second language" (Collier, 2005). In addition, changing the perception of the primary language for a student can help foster positive associations with their primary language, resulting in a desire to maintain and further their cognitive development in their primary language.

In 2009, Californians Together introduced the Seal of Biliteracy. The following is from their website:

"The Seal of Biliteracy is an award given by a school, school district or county office of education in recognition of students who have studied and attained proficiency in two or more languages by high school graduation. Appearing on the transcript of the graduating senior, the Seal of Biliteracy is a statement of accomplishment for future employers and for college admissions."

The Seal of Biliteracy can help to motivate students to maintain their primary language, to learn a second language, other than English, and can help prepare our students to be competitive in the global economy. In a world where students in most other countries know two or more languages, American students are at a distinct disadvantage. The Seal of Biliteracy not only promotes fluency in two or more languages, but adds prestige and intrinsic value to an English Learner's primary language.

To learn more about the Seal of Biliteracy:

Seal of Biliteracy Information and Implementation Booklet Download - Californians Together

State Seal of Biliteracy - California Department of Education

NEW English Language Development Standards for California Public Schools

A couple of resource links for you on the new ELD Standards for California... Just some light reading ;)

ELD Overview and Proficiency Level Descriptors

English Language Development Standards for Grade 7

English Language Development Standards for Grade 8

We will continue using CELDT (California English Language Development Test) as an assessment until the ELPAC (English Language Proficiency Assessment for California) is made available (2015?).

California English Language Development Standards - Implementation Plan (Sept. 2013)