Warren County ESL Procedures
2009-10
INTRODUCTION
The Warren County Schools provide English as a
Second Language (ESL) services to students who are identified as
Limited in English Proficiency (LEP), and who are permanent residents
of Warren County, KY. The purpose of the ESL program is to
provide a program of instruction so that Limited English Proficient
students can reach proficiency on the academic performance indicators
set forth in the Kentucky Program of Studies. The specific
goals of the ESL program are 1) to provide LEP students with
equal opportunity and access to services so they may become fully
proficient in English and 2) to ensure that LEP students reach
full educational parity with comparable native-English speakers by the
end of their school careers.
Warren County Schools provide an ESL program for
students whose native language is not English and whose scores on a
language proficiency assessment (ACCESS) demonstrate that they are
limited in
English proficiency. The goal of the program is to develop
the Limited English Proficient students’ ability in English to the
point that their academic performance is equivalent to native
English-speaking students on the same grade and age level. The
program serves students who are beginning to learn English and those
who have developed oral proficiency but are still performing below
grade level in reading and writing because of their limited ability to
read and write English. This process may take up to an estimated
5 to 7 years for a student to reach full proficiency, based on the
level of proficiency when the child enters the program (Cummins:
1991; Collier and Thomas: 1997).
English is the language of instruction in the
classroom, but students are encouraged and supported to develop
proficiency in their first language and culture as they acquire
English. Full proficiency in the native language, inclusive
of reading and writing, facilitates second language development
(Wong-Fillmore: 1991; Bialystok & Hakuta:
1994).