North Carolina

Tags: Language Proficiency; Latino ELL Students; Motivation; Reading; Transfer of Literacy Skills; Vocabulary; Writing;

Target Population: Elementary, Middle, High School

Research Questions the Report Poses:

• Who are immigrant students and students who do not speak English well?
• Where are they from, and what is their family background (social, economic, linguistic, etc.)?
• How well do they do in school?
• Do their literacy levels prepare them to take part in higher education and a skilled workforce?"

Findings:

• ELL populations are growing faster than general student populations
• The growth of ELL populations in different states varies widely
• Students in California are more likely to be "linguistically isolated" than students across the country or in the other three states studied
• 57% of ELLs across the country were born in the United States
• 70% of ELLs in grades 6-12 speak Spanish
• NAEP data examined for 8th grade ELLs shows that only 4% and 6% of ELLs scored proficient in reading and math, respectively
• ELLs performed radically different on state math and reading assessments from state to state
• There is a wide achievement gap between ELL and non-ELL students on the 8th grade NAEP as well as state standardized tests
• Former ELL students and non-ELL students scored roughly the same on NAEP and state assessments

Policy Recommendations:

• "Reexamine whether Census data accurately capture the [ELL] population"
• "Examine how varying state exclusion rates for ELL students affect NAEP results"
• "Explore the literacy trajectories of former [ELL] students"
• "Document how states vary in their testing and monitoring practices for ELL students who parents opt out of language instruction services"
• "Leverage the research opportunities that multi-state English proficiency tests offer for analyzing ELL outcomes"

• Read the Full Report

To order a hard copy of the report, contact:
http://www.migrationpolicy.org/pubs/index.php

Batalova, J., Fix, M., and Murray, J. (2007). Measures of Change: The Demography and Literacy of Adolescent English Learners. Migration Policy Institute, Carnegie Corporation of New York: New York, NY.

Tags: Comprehension; Language of Instruction; Language Proficiency;

Target Population: High School

Research Questions the Report Poses:

• How are high school exit exams affecting districts, teachers, and students?
• How fair is it for states to require ELLs to pass an exit exam in order to graduate?
• What are the most effective strategies to help ELLs succeed on these exams?
• How are states accommodating ELLs on the exit exams?

Findings:

• Innovative programs and policies are beginning to spring up in states with exit exams.
• Over the past year, states have developed more supports for students and committed more funds to help students pass exit exams.
• Initial pass rates and achievement gaps have proved to be stubborn to move, especially in states where exit exams have been in place for several years.
• States are improving their ability to track and report on student–level data, which should help in the future to clear up some nagging questions about the impacts of exit exams on dropouts and achievement.
• Resolving fundamental questions about the fairness of exit exams and appropriateness of supports for English language learners is crucial if this reform is to succeed in helping all students.
• Rather than developing waivers or exemptions from exit exam requirements specifically for English language learners, states are choosing to require ELLs to pass exit exams, albeit with test accommodations.
• Evidence from New York and California indicates that former ELLs–students who become proficient in English and exit ELL status–are more likely to pass exit exams and are more likely to graduate than students as a whole.

Policy Recommendations:

• New strategies, which are mostly in the research stage, could increase the validity of exit exam scores for ELLs.
• New support policies and funding are necessary to improve achievement for these students and can lead to positive outcomes for ELLs.

• Read the Full Report

To order a hard copy of the report, contact:
n/a

Sullivan, P., Yeager, M., Chudowsky, N., Kober, N., O'Brien, E., Gayler, K. (2005). State high school exit exams: States try harder, but gaps persist. Center on Education Policy: Washington, DC. Retrieved from: http://alaskateacher.org/downloads/exit_exam_8_12_05.pdf

Tags: American Indian ELL Students; Asian ELL Students; Differentiated Instruction; Latino ELL Students; Other ELL Students (Middle Eastern, African, European, etc.); Parent Involvement and Outreach / PTA; Rights, Parents; Rights, Students; Struggling Readers;

Target Population: Parents, teachers, and advocates of elementary and middle schools' education.

Research Questions the Report Poses: This article raises the question of the impact of school mobility and its negative effects on student's educational outcomes.

Findings:

• Hispanic immigrants show the highest mobility rates in states like North Carolina and California.
• Current data shows that a student and its family move from state to state more than three times a year during the first grades of elementary school.
• The negative effect of constant moving is the disruption it causes in the new classroom and in the children involved in this moving process.

Policy Recommendations:

• School districts should monitor students' mobility, especially those students who are moving constantly causing academic disruption in any new classroom.
• School districts should also provide counseling to families who are flagged by mobility rates to ameliorate this situation and prevent constant moving.

• Read the Full Report

To order a hard copy of the report, contact:
Hard copies can be ordered from CALDER and the Urban Institute.

Xu, Z., Hannaway, J., and D'Souza, S. (2009). Student Transience in North Carolina: The Effect of School Mobility on Student Outcomes Using Longitudinal Data. North Carolina: National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research.