California English Learners Raising Achievement From The Bottom
Research Study
California English learners continue to score extremely low on state standardized tests – two out of five at the sixth grade level scored below basic in English Language Arts in 2009, and more than half did so in math. But the trajectory is improving, and the growth significant, especially at the lowest levels of achievement.
For instance:
• Sixth grade English learners scoring below basic in English declined 14 percentage point from 2007-09, a much larger gain than made by English-proficient students.
• Statewide, the 10.8 percent of English learners successfully reclassified as English proficient in 2008-09 represents a 30 percent increase over those reclassified five years earlier.
Meanwhile, a newly-established environment where accountability for results for English learners holds consequences for their school districts, and test scores for all children matter regardless of the language they speak at home, has produced an important new focus on early English learning. This includes innovative new programs around the state that offer reason for optimism that the academic progress underway for this crucial population can continue, and accelerate, to meet the urgent educational needs of the state’s 1.5 million English learners. Details follow.