Student Supports

MLL Program Mission

Students in the Multilingual Learners Program will be able to:

• Have support based on their unique needs to equitably access an EL education school’s curriculum.
• Flourish in an environment with a growth mindset that cultivates them for college and career readiness.
• Experience an environment of “wow and wonder” while honoring linguistic and cultural identities
• Engage in self-discovery and have a forum to express and communicate it in multiple linguistic mediums.
• Feel empowered and heard in a diverse crew.
• Participate in, lead and advocate for a Better World in their communities
• Have families consistently engaged in the school community and be supported by the entire crew.

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MLL Program Vision

The Multilingual Learners Program will create a crew experience for students in English Language Proficiency Support and Bilingual Programs that provides them with equitable access to the curriculum in an EL Education school while promoting their cultural and linguistic identities.

Contact
Elizabeth Terrazes, Bilingual Resource Teacher, eterrazas@emsacharter.org 
Paru Heer, Multilingual Resource Teacher, pheer@emsacharter.org

Types of Services:

English Language Proficiency Support Services (ELPS)

• Co-taught (in some cases, pull out) services for students who are part-time Spanish bilinguals or Multilingual Learners that speak a language other than Spanish.
• Moderate Services: 5- 9 Periods Per Week (1st to 8th Grade Students with 
• WIDA scores between 3.5 and 4.5)(KG students with WIDA scores between 4.0 and 4.5) 
• Low Services: 3 Periods Per Week (Students above 4.5, but still qualify for services) 
• Support  (from EL certified teacher who is not the classroom teacher) can happen in (by order of priority) Module ELA lessons, Skillsblock, or Math dependent on student needs.
• Students are placed in general education classroom with other Multilingual students in a classroom cluster receiving the same type of support.
• ELPS Teacher will co-plan content with classroom teachers to provide access to general education curriculum for Multilingual Learners.

*This is not an intervention program. The goal of this program is to give Multilingual Learners equitable access to general education curriculum.This is a service that is required by article 14C in federal school code and Section 228 in Illinois School Code.

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Spanish Bilingual(Bilingual Services)

• Bilingual services for students who are full time Spanish bilinguals
• High Services: More than 9 Periods Per Week
• Support from Spanish Bilingual teachers and bilingual staff that provide students access to Module ELA lessons, Crew, Math, and Explore concepts.
• Students are placed in a general education classroom that has a full time Spanish speaking staff member (Bilingual TA) that is co-teaching with the classroom teacher throughout the day during Crew, Math, Skillsblock, and Explore. Additional required support is provided from a certified Spanish bilingual teacher who will provide students with access to the Spanish ELA standards and bridge to English during ELA modules. Students will receive foundational literacy skills in English during skillsblock.
• Students are placed in the general education classroom that has a bilingual cluster of Spanish speaking students in the classroom.
• Spanish bilingual teacher, Bilingual TA and general education teacher will co-plan content to provide access to full time bilinguals to the general education curriculum. At times this may be a pull out program.

*This NOT a dual language program. The goal of this program is to give Full Time Spanish bilingual students equitable access to the general education curriculum. This program is only open to students designated as English Learners by state and federal code who are native Spanish speakers. This is a service that is required by article 14C in federal school code and Section 228 in Illinois School Code.

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Language Designation

English Language Proficiency Support Services (ELPS)

• KG: Spanish speaker with WIDA Model Score Above 4.0  and below 5.0 or no prior history of Spanish bilingual education.
• 1st-8th grade: Spanish speaker with WIDA Screener/ACCESS score of more than 3.5 and below 4.8 (ACCESS) or 5.0 (Screener) or qualified for services but does not have prior Spanish education the year before or does not demonstrate Spanish proficiency. 

Student language designation is not English or Spanish… i.e. Lithuanian, Mandarin, etc.

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Spanish Bilingual(Bilingual Services)

• KG: Spanish speaker with proficiency level below 4.0 and has had pre-kindergarten in Spanish/comes from a Spanish speaking household. 

1st-8th grade: Spanish speaker with WIDA proficiency level on ACCESS or Screener below 3.5 and has demonstrated Spanish proficiency and has had prior schooling in Spanish. proficiency level on ACCESS or Screener below 3.5 and has demonstrated Spanish proficiency and has had prior schooling in Spanish.

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Entrance Requirements

English Language Proficiency Support Services (ELPS)

• Spanish Speakers:  Answer of  “Yes” on either question on Home Language Survey or Spanish entered in SIS in prior school and Score above 4.0 on WIDA Model and below 5.0, Score above 3.5 on WIDA Screener/ACCESS and below 5.0 (Screener) or 4.8 (ACCESS)
• Non Spanish Speakers: Yes on either question on Home Language Survey or A language other than English entered in SIS and Scores on WIDA Model/ Screener or ACCESS that qualifies them as needing support. Model Score below 5.0, ACCESS score below 4.8, Screener Score below 5.0.

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​​​​​​​Spanish Bilingual(Bilingual Services)

• Spanish Speakers: Answer of “Yes” on either question on Home Language Survey with Spanish as the designated language. Student must have a proficiency level below 4.0 on WIDA MODEL or below 3.5 on WIDA Screener or ACCESS and demonstrated Spanish proficiency and has had prior schooling (grades 1-7) in Spanish.
• Must score sufficient grade level score in Spanish- Skillsblock benchmark and Spanish MAP assessment.

WIDA Can Do Descriptors are used to guide support in listening, speaking, reading, and writing to help students reach English Proficiency goals. Visit WIDA’s website to review this here. When needed, teachers also utilize the Spanish ELA standards to support Spanish bilinguals. Visit WIDA’s website to review this here.

English Language Arts:
Multilingual teaching staff uses guidance from EL Education along with Spanish scaffolds to support the Spanish to English transition to support instruction of Bilingual Students. Guidance from EL regarding Multilingual Learners is here. As an EL education school, we work to give all students access to the EL Education K-8 ELA Curriculum.

Mathematics:
Multilingual staff support students during mathematics using the Eureka Math Curriculum seen here. Teachers utilize Eureka math resources in Spanish to support Spanish bilinguals. Additionally ELLevation Math seen here to support students in grades 3 and up in comprehending the language of Math.

1. Fall

After students have taken their Fall MAP assessment, Multilingual teachers and students will review WIDA Sceener or ACCESS data.  From the data on the WIDA assessments, teacher and student will work together to create goals that coincide with the WIDA Can Do descriptors one proficiency level about a student’s Screener or ACCESS scores. MAP data will be used to inform reading and writing goals. For grades K-2, team will also factor Skills block benchmark testing into the goals.  They will also brainstorm strategies on improving the domain. They will also practice speaking about these goals for the MPAC celebration of learning.

2. Winter

Teacher will check in with students regarding winter data. They will review ELA Module assessment data and MAP data.  From there, an analysis of language domain goals will happen with the teacher and the student.  They will either brainstorm more strategies for improving the students’ domain goals or edit the student’s goals.

3. Spring

Teacher and student will review MAP data, ACCESS data (scores come out in early May) , and ELA Module Assessment/Skillsblock benchmark data.  They will draft next steps for the Fall. There will also be celebrations!

 

Identifying Students for Services

See ISBE Process For Identifying Students for EL and Bilingual Services Here

For New Students Entering the Charter

***“New Students” are defined as students who have not attended an Illinois public school.

• Home Language Survey is administered through school powerschool.  
• If families answered “yes” to one of the questions, the Director of Language and Equity Programs will correspond with the family. Then, students will be screened for services using the following:

1. WIDA Model assessment for Kindergarten and grade 1 (first semester)
2. WIDA Screener assessment for grades 1 (second semester) – 8th grade
3. NWEA MAP Assessment is Spanish is provided for all students who have WIDA scores below 3.5 and are identified as Spanish speakers

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Screeners must be administered  by a certificated teacher. 

Student classifications as follows:

1. WIDA Model: Students must score below 5.0 to qualify for services.  For first grade first semester, if a student scores below a 5.0 with less than a 4.2 in reading and writing, they will qualify for services.
2. WIDA Screener assessment:  Students scoring less than a 5.0 will qualify for services.

• Once a student qualifies for services, the Director of Language and Equity will enter their data into Powerschool.  They will assure that the student is classified as LEP and proper services are designated. Teachers will complete the enrollment form.
• A parent notification packet must be sent home within one week of assessing and entering a student into Powerschool. 
• The Multilingual Team will correspond with parents and provide a language and schooling history to the classroom teacher.

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Identifying for Services as they are Transferring from another Illinois School District

***Out of state transfer students are considered “new”

• Home language survey is administered. 
• Director of Language and Equity checks SIS for LEP status and assessment history.
•  If needed, Director calls other school district for the following:
  • Student Data History
  • Program Placement
  • Language of Instruction
  • Director reports back findings to teachers.
• Teachers and Director make program placement decisions together on a case by case basis.
• Once a decision is made ,the Director will enter student data and enter data in Powerschool. They will assure that the student is classified as LEP and proper services are designated. 
• A parent notification packet must be sent home within one week of assessing and entering a student into Powerschool. 
• The Multilingual Team will correspond with parents and provide a language and schooling history to the classroom teacher.

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In the Case of a Parent/Guardian Refusal

• Teacher sends a Parent/Guardian Notification packet home with the student.
• Parent(s) solicits a meeting to discuss recommendations – written requests or phone call.

• The Director of Language and Equity meets or calls parent(s) to review data and clarify program goals for the recommended placement along with Academic Progress- MAP, IAR (if applicable), Language Proficiency Growth – ACCESS, MODEL or Screener, EL Education Bench Mark Assessments (if applicable)

• If parent(s) refuses services or recommended program placement, a handwritten letter from the parent is sent to Director 
• Director will re-enter students in SIS as a parent refusal (if they are new to services) or withdrawn if they have had services in the past.
• The Director will send confirmation of refusal/withdrawal to parent(s).
• If the student does not have a MLL Folder, the Director will create a folder following department guidelines.
• The Multilingual Learning team is responsible for maintaining a MLL Folder until the student meets exit criteria. 
• If parent(s) decides to change the student’s enrollment status after a refusal, the teachers will edit the program enrollment form. Parents must provide a letter requesting their child receive services again.  Director will be notified by teachers through email of program change. 
• Families will receive a yearly refusal letter asking if they would like to participate in services.

• Students will still receive Multilingual Learning progress reports and be monitored by Multilingual  staff.
• Students will still partake in ACCESS assessments.
• Students will still be exit monitored once they complete exit criteria.

See ISBE Policy on Parent Refusal for Programming Here

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Multilingual Progress Reporting

Multilingual Progress reports will be issued once a quarter. They will be processed through the ELLevation system with collaboration from both the Multilingual teacher and the General Education teacher. This will be administered for all students in the program in order to report the progress of growth in the four domain areas of reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

• A copy of the progress report will be sent home to families with report cards for students in the Multilingual Program. Students who are enrolled in the school’s bilingual clusters will have a native language copy of the progress report sent home as well.  Another copy of the report will be filed in the student’s MLL folder.
• At the Multilingual Parent Advisory Crew sponsored Celebration of Learning that happens two times a year, parents will also be provided with a copy of the students Can Do descriptor based Language Goal. Students will also be able to present their performance tasks to parents in native language.
• Additionally, parents who request translation in Spanish are given the student’s report card in Spanish.  
• Progress Reports will be proceeded through Multilingual Programming Documentation in ELLevation with benchmarks and student/teacher created Language goals informed by the WIDA Can Do Descriptors.

Program Exit
The WIDA ACCESS assessment is administered through the State of Illinois every school year. To exit a Multilingual Program, students must score a 4.8 composite score on this assessment per Illinois State School Code.

Exit Monitoring
Students who have exited the Multilingual Program will be monitored for four years to ensure their progress after exiting the Multilingual Program. This monitor will be through tracking NWEA MAP data, IAR data (if applicable), EL Education Benchmark Data (If applicable), Module Assessment Data (If applicable), and teacher observation. All exit monitoring will happen through the ELLevation system. This will happen at the end of every school year during the four year period. All documentation will be placed in the student’s temporary file and MLL file.

Multilingual Parent Advisory Crew

The Multilingual Parent Advisory Crew is a support crew for parents or guardians of Multilingual Learners. Here parents learn more about the school community and have a space to have their voices elevated. 

Goals: 

• Let multilingual parents have a voice in the EMSA community.
• Have a forum for parents to have say in ELPS/Bilingual services
• Create a community that is inviting and supportive to all families
• Support social events that celebrate EMSA’s diversity

Meeting topics:

• Literacy and Language Learning
• Multilingual Program Models
• ACCESS Testing
• Bilingual Service Planning
• Digital Learning
• Understanding EMSA’s Campus
• Multilingual Celebrations of Learning
• Understanding Anxiety in Young Children
• Planning of Events i.e. Pieces of Me