Mission Statement

The mission of the English Language Development (ELD) Program in Old Forge is to provide instruction and support to foster the linguistic, academic, personal, and social growth of English Learners (ELs).

Overview

When registering a new student, or for kindergarten in the Old Forge School District, all parents/guardians are required to complete a Home Language Survey.If a parent/guardian indicates on the Home Language Survey that another language is spoken in the home, then an English language provider will conduct an interview with the parent/guardian. Based upon the survey and interview responses, those students, who qualify, will be referred for an “English Language Learner Assessment.” The results of this assessment will determine if a student requires English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction.Parents/guardians may not opt their children out of an English Language Learner Assessment or ESL instruction, if found to be eligible. If you believe your child may qualify for these services, please contact the principal of your child’s school building.

What is ESL?

The Old Forge School District’s K-12 English Language Development (ELD) Program provides English Learners daily instruction in the areas of Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing in English by certified ESL teachers. English Language instruction is delivered to students by way of small groups, pull-out and push-in instruction. Students are grouped with students of similar age, grade, and language proficiency level. Students are provided with instruction in alignment with recommended hours from the Pennsylvania Basic Education Circular for Educating English Learners. The instruction is also aligned to PA Core Standards, PA English Language Development (ELD) Standards, and supported by a high quality, research-based language acquisition curriculum. Students qualifying for ELD services are assessed annually with the WIDA ACCESS 2.0 for ELLs test to monitor growth in language proficiency and to determine the continued need for support with English language development. The amount and duration of ELD pull-out instruction may decrease as the student’s language proficiency increases. Students have the opportunity to exit the ELD program annually and the Pennsylvania Department of Education requirements for exit are followed.

Goals and Objectives

The purpose of the English Language Development Program (ELD) is to create a culturally responsive and diverse environment where students acquire English, and are given the opportunity to develop the language skills necessary to communicate for social and academic purposes.  To meet this goal, instruction addresses the ELD and Pennsylvania Core Standards in the four domains:  Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening.  Our belief is that instruction should be tailored to the individual needs of each student.   The ELD program aims to develop both basic interpersonal communication skills (BICS) and cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP), as described in the Basic Education Circular (BEC) for ELs. 

Program Goals

• Facilitate English language acquisition through the skills of listening, speaking, reading, writing, and comprehension.
• Help students learn to use English effectively to participate and succeed in academic, social, extracurricular, and community environments.
• Provide educational experiences that will prepare students academically, and will empower them with the skills and knowledge necessary to maximize their learning potential.
• Facilitate the acculturation process by exposing students to the customs, traditions, and behavioral expectations of their new surroundings.
• Orientate students and their families to the school and the community.
• Encourage students to continue to value and celebrate their cultural heritage, and maintain their native languages.
• English learners acquire full proficiency in English at or better than expected growth.
• Classroom teachers and administrators understand and accept the specific language acquisition needs of ELs and actively seek ways to better serve this population.
• Non-English parent(s) are provided access to participate in their child’s education on an equal basis as their English-speaking peers (communication in a mode and language they can understand, timely notification of the English Language acquisition progress of their child, opportunities to participate in district programs)
• Collect data and analyze to monitor EL progress by grade level and WIDA levels to better inform evaluative practices.
• Create standardized policies and procedures to create a uniform ELD program.

English Language Learners (ELLs)

English Language Learners (ELLs) refer to students who were not born in the US, whose native language is not English and comes from an environment where a language other than English is spoken. Additionally, ELLs refer to students who are migratory with a native language other than English and come from an environment where English is not the dominant language.

Student Placement

While registering, parents/guardians of new students must complete the Home Language Survey (HLS). Based on the responses to the HLS, an ESL teacher will screen and/or assess a newly enrolled student for his/her English language proficiency. ESL teachers will review student screener scores and student records to suggest the best placement. Parents have the right to refuse placement in the ELD program. For more information on opting out of ELD services, click here.

Exiting the ELD Program

Students in the ELD program are assessed annually using the WIDA ACCESS Test. ELD teachers determine whether the student has met state-mandated exit criteria each year. After exiting the program, students will be monitored by ESL teachers for four years. Exit criteria and monitoring information can be found here

Translation Services

Old Forge School District uses an interpreter service to communicate with families concerning academic or any school needs.