English Language Learners

Contacts

If you have any questions regarding ELL, please contact the District/School ESL Coordinator: Ms. Gretchen Tucci at 412-221-4542 x 415 or [email protected]

South Fayette School District's ESL Teachers are:

Mrs. Marcia Fink (Grades K-2) 412-221-4542 x 602 or [email protected]

Ms. Sarah Cabonor (Grades 3-5) 412-221-4542 x 710 or [email protected]

Mrs. Cynthia Nix (Grades 6-8) 412-221-4542 x 719 or [email protected]

Mrs. Kimberly Springer (Grades 9-12) 412-221-4542 x 659 or [email protected]
 
Program Goals and Objectives

The South Fayette Township School District  K- 12 English as a Second Language (ESL) Program at the South Fayette Township School District provides English Learners (ELs)  with the language skills they need to participate successfully in content area classes. ESL instruction is designed to address the Pennsylvania state academic standards in reading, writing, speaking and listening in order to comprehend in all subject matter.  The emphasis placed on various benchmarks is adjusted to the needs of the individual EL. 

An underlying objective of the ESL program is to provide support as the EL seeks to understand and adapt to his or her new cultural and academic setting.  ESL teachers work to develop an appreciation of their ELs’ strengths within the school setting and to ensure full access to the range of educational opportunities available in the school.  The ESL Teacher also works with the ELs’ content area teachers and all instructional staff as well as with the families to assist with the academic and cultural transition to foster the EL with success. The South Fayette Township School District’s mission is to have ELs participate in all areas of the school culture and become contributing members of the school community.

As part of enrollment procedures, all parents/guardians are required to complete a Home Language Survey (HLS) through the online enrollment process. Please see Appendix A as an example of the questions asked on the HLS through the online enrollment process.  If another language is indicated through the online Home Language Survey then a family interview is conducted by the ESL Teacher or ESL Coordinator to determine if the student is potentially an EL.  An interpreter is used if necessary.  Answers to the questions at the interview will determine if the student should be screened or undergo a student record review  (see Appendix B) to determine if the student will need English as a Second Language services. If the student needs to be screened, the purpose of this screening is to assess the student’s English language proficiency and to recommend appropriate ESL instruction.   

Students will be screened using the WIDA Screener,  which is aligned to the state required annual State English Language Proficiency (ELP) assessment.   The scores on the screener, along with content area teacher input, and a review of available educational records will determine the placement in an ESL program.   The District may choose to use other assessments for additional information, but identification and placement must be based on the WIDA Screener.  Instructional placement of ELs must be age and grade appropriate. Additionally, ELs must be given equal access to all educational programs, opportunities, and extracurricular activities in the same manner as for all students. 

Once the English proficiency level of the EL is established through the screening process, a schedule is developed for the EL by the ESL Teacher in collaboration with the respective school counselor. At the secondary level, the ESL Teacher works collaboratively with the guidance counselors with scheduling and class placement in order to help the ELs acquire their necessary graduation requirements. If necessary, interpretation and/or translation services will be made available to the parents so they have an understanding of their child’s schedule as well as the ESL services their child will be receiving. At the same time, the parents are notified in writing via a Parent Notification Letter of their child’s English language proficiency level based on the results of the WIDA screener and if their child qualified for ESL services. It should be noted that parent permission to assess is not required per Pennsylvania Department of Education guidelines.

At the beginning of each year, a PHOLTE (Primary Home Language Other Than English) list via a spreadsheet is maintained by the ESL Department which reflects students who are in need of ESL instruction and those students who were screened and determined not to need direct ESL instruction.  Once the schedule is established for the EL,  the ESL teacher contacts the appropriate content area  teachers to discuss the needs of the students at each grade level.  Accommodations and modifications are discussed with the content area teachers that can be used with ELs  in all content areas.  A resource packet is available and provided to all teachers outlining best practices and strategies.  Part of the resource packet contains a list of ESL accommodations/modifications that are available for use in the classroom setting (see Appendix C).

Parent Orientation / Advisory
At least two parent orientation/advisory meetings will be held annually in the District to inform parents about District activities and upcoming community events. Also, updates pertaining to the ESL Program will be shared.

The ESL Program Coordinator shall maintain a list of interpreters or translators in various languages as the need arises in the District to serve the needs of the parents and/or guardians.  If parents and/or guardians require documentation to be translated to their preferred language, all attempts will be made to use the AI Transperfect website or the use of Global Wordsmith.   The District also has access to translation services through the use of Google Docs and Talking Points. Additionally, the District has services available for translation through PDE Translation Library.  With regard to interpretation services, the District uses Global Wordsmith which has on-demand phone interpretation, virtual interpretation,  as well as in-person human interpreters as necessary. Also, the District has two Instant Language Assistants (ILAs) to use on demand as well with parents who are in need of interpretation services. Please let your child’s teacher or office staff know if you are in need of interpretation and/or translation services and arrangements will be made for these needed services.

Refusal of English as a Second Language programs and/or services indicates an informed, voluntary decision by the parent to not have their child placed in any separate, specialized English as a Second Language instructional program. A "waiver" must be completed indicating a desire by the parent to waive the child from participation in all or some of the ESL programs or services offered by the District.  The parents are required to come to the school to meet with the child’s content area teachers, ESL Teacher, Principal or designated administrator to discuss the opt out procedures. They will be required to complete the state required English as a Second Language Program Parental Waiver Form ( Appendix D).  The student will still be required to participate in the annual state required WIDA ACCESS assessment to determine their English language proficiency each year until they meet the state exit criteria and are reclassified.  If the student is struggling in the general education class, the parents are notified and the student can be recommended for ESL services. Parents can be presented with the English as a Second Language  Program Reinstatement Request Form if they wish to opt their child back into the District’s ESL program and services ( Appendix E). 

ESL instruction is provided by highly qualified teachers who hold a valid Instructional I or Instructional II Certificate and is a Program Specialist in ESL from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Students are grouped by appropriate age and English proficiency levels..  The total number of hours of ESL instruction varies according to the ELs’ English language proficiency needs.  Research based techniques and models for adapting instruction are utilized.  

Levels are defined by the Pennsylvania English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS).

At the elementary level, all ELs participate in their special area classes such as Art, Arts Alive, Music, Library and Physical Education instruction within a regular classroom.  They also participate in the Learning Lab, which includes STEAM activities.   In kindergarten ELs have the opportunity to participate in EXPLORE activities. Each EL student is placed in a grade appropriate home room, as well as participates in lunch and  recess with their grade level peers. Additionally,  ELs participate in all special events and field trips with their grade level peers.  

Elementary ELs receive ESL services through a pull-out or push-in program in Reading and Language Arts.  Instruction in Math, Science, Health, and Social Studies is received in their content area classrooms.  The ESL Teacher regularly consults and collaborates with the content area teachers.  Instruction is modified and adapted to the English language proficiency level of the EL.

At the intermediate level, all ELs participate in their special area classes such as Art, Arts Alive, Music, Library, Physical Education, and STEAM instruction within the content area classroom.  Each EL student is placed in a grade appropriate home room, as well as  participates in recess and lunch with their peers.  EL students participate in all special events and field trips with their grade level peers.  

Intermediate level ELs receive ESL services through a pull-out or push in program for Reading and Language Arts.  This mainly depends on their level of English language proficiency.   Instruction in Math, Science, Health, and Social Studies is received in their content area classrooms.  The ESL Teacher is regularly available for consultation and collaboration with the content area teachers.  Instruction is modified and adapted to the English language proficiency level of the EL student.

ESL services are provided through a pull-out and push in program during English/Language Arts classes in Grades 6 – 8. The ELs participate in Math, Science, and Social Studies with their grade level peers.  Students in Grade 8 participate in the Microsoft course as part of the core program.  All instruction can be modified and adapted to the English  language proficiency level of the EL by the content area teacher in collaboration with the ESL Teacher.  Foreign Language programs are available at the beginning of 6th grade, as well as a variety of exploratory courses in fine arts, technology, STEAM, business technology, family and consumer sciences and physical education.  

At the high school level, EL students are assigned specific classes with the ESL Teacher based upon their language proficiency level. The high school ESL Teacher provides instruction for one or two periods a day.  Instructional time in the ESL classroom is used to build English language skill acquisition. ELs participate in all other subjects with their peers. Instruction can be modified and adapted to the English language proficiency level of the EL through regular collaboration with the ESL Teacher and content area teachers.  At the high school level, ELs have the option of taking vocational technical classes at Parkway West Technical School-CTC for a portion of the day. ELs also have access to all elective courses offered at the high school level.  All ELs are encouraged to participate in clubs, sports, and any available extracurricular activities that take place after school hours. 

Technology is an important component in all levels of the ESL Program.  Many resources are made available to our ELs.  They have one to one Ipads at the Elementary for grades 1-2.  For the rest of the grades 3-12 students are supplied with one-to-one laptop computers.  Technology is used as a resource for learning and skill development at all grade levels..  Software is chosen to specifically enhance the acquisition of the English language and aligns with the  Pennsylvania state standards and ELD standards.  

The PSSAs in the English/Language Arts areas as well as in Mathematics are administered as required by federal law to students in grades 3-8.   The PSSA for Science is administered in the 4th and 8th grade only. The Keystone Exams are administered at the secondary level as required by federal law.  The PSSA and Keystone Exams provide allowable accommodations for ELs as necessary.

ELs also participate annually in the state required English language proficiency assessment, the online WIDA ACCESS.  The ESL Teacher administers the assessment to the ELs, which is an online format for grades K-12.  The state required annual assessment measures the students proficiency in the areas of listening, reading, speaking and writing.  The test is usually administered in January and February and the results are usually available in June.  

An EL must demonstrate the ability to access challenging academic content and interact with other students and teachers both academically and socially in an English language setting in order to be considered for reclassification.  Evidence of this ability is demonstrated by the student on the annual English language proficiency assessment (WIDA ACCESS) and two rubrics completed in collaboration by the ESL Teacher and content area teachers. Typically one rubric is completed by the ESL teacher and the other rubric is completed by a content area teacher. The rubric measures the student’s English language proficiency within the curriculum. (Appendix F)

Using a point system, the online WIDA ACCESS scores, along with the teacher rubrics collectively together, produce a single score.  If that score exceeds the state-defined threshold, then the EL is eligible to be reclassified and in turn can exit ESL services to a “monitoring” status. 

Active monitoring is done for the first two years after reclassification.  This is to ensure that exited ELs do not struggle academically due to a result of language barriers.  Students are monitored by tracking progress in all content area classes and soliciting feedback  from the content area teachers.  The ESL Teacher is required to complete a state monitoring form each quarter on the exited or rather former ESL in order to closely observe and monitor their educational progress (Appendix G). 

Additional monitoring period – third and fourth years after reclassification the District is required to continue reporting monitored ELs to the state in a data management system for an additional two years after the active monitoring period. Districts are not required to actively monitor the progress and academic achievement of the ELs in the general education program during these years. At the end of the fourth year after reclassification, ELs are regarded as Former ELs – no longer monitored for the remainder of their time in school.  

In the South Fayette Township School District, ELs may also be eligible for special education services.  The IEP Teams consider the need for ESL instruction as the student’s needs relate to the provision of a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).  In determining the ELs needs, the IEP Team must consider both special education services and ESL instructional services at the same time as determined appropriate by the IEP Team.

All ELs with disabilities must still take the online WIDA ACCESS.  However, there is the Alternate ACCESS for ELs to assess English language proficiency for students in grades K-12 who are classified as English learners who have significant cognitive disabilities that prevent their meaningful participation in the online WIDA ACCESS assessment.  

The ESL Teacher will participate in ongoing appropriate staff development sessions to enhance his or her skills in addressing the needs of the ELs in their classrooms and to ensure the use of research based  instructional practices to increase English language acquisition and student achievement in all areas. Content area teachers will receive updates and training yearly to review best practices in adaptations and modifications for instruction to address the needs of the EL in his or her classroom.

U.S. Department of Education Notice of Language Assistance

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Allegheny County Immigrants and Refugees

ISAC (Immigrant Services and Connections)

Casa San Jose

Latino Family Center on Facebook

Catholic Charities for Free Health Care

Jewish Family and Children’s Services of Pittsburgh

Family & Community Engagement/Family Support Centers through the Allegheny Intermediate Unit

Omniglot

Colorin Colorado

Literacy Pittsburgh

When parents or guardians have questions or concerns regarding their child’s participation in the ESL Program, the following procedure will be used for addressing any issue:

Revised January, 2024