California鈥檚 schools chief has assigned a team of experts to focus exclusively on the needs of California鈥檚 estimated 1.5 million English-language learners as the state embarks on numerous initiatives to improve the achievement of students who are learning English in public schools.
Karen Cadiero-Kaplan, an education professor at San Diego State University who has specialized in training teachers to work with English learners, joined the California Department of Education late last month to direct its newly formed English Learner Support Division.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson tapped Ms. Cadiero-Kaplan to lead the division that he formed six months ago after educators, advocates, and staff members in the state department of education said the achievement of ELLs was among the most pressing education issues facing the state.
The division is made up of about 30 staff members and marks the first time in more than a decade that California鈥攚ith the largest number of English learners in the nation鈥攈as had a single unit overseeing the range of programs and services used by ELLs, including migrant education and federal Title III funds. After the passage of Proposition 227 in 1998鈥攚hich put strict limits on bilingual education鈥攕taff members with responsibilities related to English-learners were scattered through the state agency.
As part of the department鈥檚 renewed focus on ELLs, Mr. Torlakson also created an 鈥淓nglish Learner Integrated Action Team,鈥� which is charged with developing a statewide strategic plan for English-learners, Ms. Cadiero-Kaplan said. She will be a member of that team.
鈥淧eople are going to be seeing a great deal of work across the entire department of education to not only recognize the needs of English learners, but to develop policies and actions that help ensure that we are providing the best supports for districts and for students,鈥� Ms. Cadiero-Kaplan said. 鈥淢y vision and focus is that we have to do what is right for our students.鈥�
New Standards
Nearly every state鈥檚 department of education has staff members dedicated to the oversight of Title III funds and other programs that serve English learners. The five other states with the biggest ELL populations鈥擳exas, New York, Florida, New Jersey, and Illinois鈥攁lso have units within their education agencies that focus on English learners. What may set California鈥檚 new division apart is its high-level placement within the state agency and its role in overseeing all efforts related to English learners, according to experts in the ELL field.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a smart, good investment given the significant population in the state,鈥� said Robert Linquanti, a senior research associate with WestEd, a San Francisco-based education research group. 鈥淎nd developing a strategic plan for the state makes a lot of sense. It provides a real opportunity to set policy priorities for English learners rather than always being reactive.鈥�
Chief among the team鈥檚 responsibilities will be updating the state鈥檚 current English-language-development standards to be aligned with the common academic standards in English/language arts and mathematics that California and 45 other states have adopted. That work will happen on a tight deadline, Ms. Cadiero-Kaplan said, with focus groups convening next month, experts writing the standards by June, the public commenting on them over the summer months, and final approval from the state board of education slated for November.
The English-learner support team also is responsible for overseeing the state鈥檚 new 鈥渟eal of biliteracy鈥� program, which allows students who demonstrate fluency in English and a second language to earn a special distinction on their diplomas and high school transcripts. The seal is intended for all students, not just those who are learning English.
Local educators who work with English learners say having an ELL chief at the state education department could not come at a better time.
鈥淭he field has been waiting for this for a long time,鈥� said Yee Wan, a member of the board of directors for the National Association for Bilingual Education, who is also the coordinator of multilingual programs in the Santa Clara County Office of Education in the Bay Area. 鈥淭here are so many huge issues right now, especially with the common standards, that having this leadership and this team in place will ensure that the issues unique to English learners are addressed head on.鈥�
Advocates for ELLs also see potential for this student population to be given primary consideration in all education policy decisions.
鈥淵ou need to have somebody鈥檚 voice in high-level policy conversations who will say, 鈥榃hat will this mean for English learners?鈥欌�� said Shelly Spiegel-Coleman, the executive director of Californians Together, a nonprofit group that advocates for English learners and is the main proponent of the biliteracy seal. 鈥淲ithout someone having the responsibility to ask that question, the needs of English learners many times don鈥檛 get raised and are an afterthought.鈥�
