Week 1- Phillips, Kerry

Reclassification Requirements for English Language Learners

It is no surprise that California, with such a diverse population, would consist of a high number of

public school students that are still developing their English abilities. The California Department of

Education states, In the 201516 school year, there were approximately 1.374 million English learners in

California public schools (CDE, 2017). This number is significant and is justification for the statewide

goals: to provide support to English Language Learners so that they may attain parity with their native

English speaking peers and that they may demonstrate competency of the same rigorous grade-level

academic standards that are expected of all students.

According to the California Department of Education website, the California English Language

Development Test (or CELDT), allows schools to identify students who need to improve their skills in

listening, speaking, reading, and writing in English (CDE, 2017). This test is designed to measure

English ability in the 5 domains listed and is administered yearly to assess development and growth.

I currently work in Mt. Diablo Unified School District, which in addition to administering CELDT

testing and providing Systematic English Language Development instruction, has adopted and

implemented an online curriculum that assesses student performance level and provides personalized

instruction targeted to students unique areas of needs. This iREADY program provides adaptive

diagnostic testing, which pinpoints student needs down to the sub-skill level, and offers ongoing progress

monitoring to show whether students are on track to achieve end-of-year targets.

Mt. Diablo Unified School District has a mission to provide rich, meaningful, and highly effective

programs for all English Language Learners so all students in the district are successful. Specific,

intentional, and explicit instruction is what supports the acquisition of English to these language learners.

At the Elementary Level, Systematic English Language Development (ELD) is provided to students, in

addition to the supplemental program- Grammar Gallery. Elementary students that require this
intervention meet with an ELD Teacher 175 minutes per week. Students are also receiving targeted

instruction in areas of need through an adaptive and personalized education plan online through iREADY.

In conjunction with these programs, teacher and peer support assist students in developing their English

proficiency and attaining academic success.

It is through both CELDT testing and iREADY performance data that my district determines

Reclassification qualifications. In order for an English Language Learner to be Reclassified as

Fluent/English Proficient in MDUSD, 4 criteria (with sub-criterion) need to be met. The 4 areas, which

determine reclassification qualifications, are: CELDT scores, Teacher Evaluation (report cards), iREADY

data, and Parental Approval. The specific Reclassification criteria can be found below:
I have included a close up image of the Reclassification Criteria for the grade I currently teach (4 th) below:
 To further understand the iREADY Reading score requirements, I have included a breakdown of
the reading placement data scores below:
I have included a close up image of the Reading placement scores for the 4th grade below:

As depicted in the (above) resources, for an English Language Learner (ELL) in my general

education 4th grade classroom to qualify for Reclassification, they must: receive an Overall score of Early

Advanced (score of 4) or Advanced (5) with none of the subtest scores earning less than Intermediate (3),

have marks on their most recent Trimester Report Card of 2 or 3 in ELA and Math, earn a score of at least

530 in the 4th grade iREADY Reading assessment, and have been granted parental approval. If I had a

student that met all of these requirements, they may be R-FEPd or Reclassified as Fluent/English

Proficient. After being reclassified those students would continue to receive progress monitoring to

ensure adequate growth and academic development continues.

RESOURCES:
California English Language Development Test (CELDT). (2017). Retrieved July 10, 2017, from
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/el/

iREADY: K12 Adaptive Diagnostic | K8 Instruction (2017). Retrieved July 10, 2017, from
http://www.curriculumassociates.com/products/iready/diagnostic-instruction.aspx

Standards & ELD Curriculum. (2017). Retrieved July 10, 2017, from http://www.mdusd.org/S&C