Multilingual Learners
WIDA ACCESS is a test administered to students in grades K-12 who are identified as English learners. An English learner is a student who is formally identified as needing language supports to successfully engage with academic content in English. WIDA ACCESS measures students’ English language skills in Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing.
Resources
Enrollment and Screening for English Proficiency
Upon enrollment in GCPS, all parents answer Language Background questions. When newly enrolled students have a primary home language other than English (PHLOTE), they are screened for proficiency in English, even if English is one of the languages they speak. The WIDA Screener for Kindergarten is the assessment used for students through the first semester of first grade. The WIDA Online Screener is used for students in the second semester of first grade through twelfth grade.
Students who are not yet proficient in English are considered to be Multilingual Learners and are eligible for language support services until they meet the exit criteria set by the Georgia Department of Education.
Programs for ML Students
GCPS provides ML students with language assistance tailored to their individual English language development needs through a variety of research-based models. All schools are staffed with English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) endorsed or certified teachers. Multilingual learners may receive direct instruction from an ESOL teacher working with the teacher in the classroom, instructional support in the classroom provided by a teacher who holds certification in the academic content and ESOL, instruction through a separate ESOL class taught by the ESOL teacher, or a combination of services.
Priority is given to meeting the needs of students in the classroom while ensuring that students develop strong literacy skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing in English. Having strong literacy in English provides a firm foundation for long-term academic achievement in language arts, math, science, social studies, career and technical subjects, fine arts, and health and physical education. ESOL instruction also introduces MLs to key American cultural concepts needed both for success in school and civic engagement. Students are also encouraged to value and draw upon their first language and culture to support their academic success.
The ML Program Office also provides support and professional learning for classroom teachers, so that they can actively engage their ML students in learning grade-level academic language, content, and skills.
Assessing Progress Toward and Attainment of English Proficiency
ML students’ level of proficiency in English is assessed every year to ensure that they are making progress toward proficiency in social, instructional, and academic English. The assessment that students take is called ACCESS for MLs. It measures their proficiency level in listening, speaking, reading, and writing in English. When they attain proficiency and are prepared for academic language tasks across the content areas of language arts, math, science, and social studies, they exit language support services. Students are then actively monitored for a four-year period to assure that they continue to experience academic success without extra language support.