Governing Policy for ELLs

The ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act) was a bill signed by President Obama in 2015. This legislation was an updated version of the No Child Left Behind Act (signed in 2002 by President George W. Bush). Even NCLB was an updated version of the act signed in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. With all of these revisions, it is hard to keep up with what the educator's roll is. The law aims to ensure students who are in poverty, minorities, or Language learners are receiving excellent instruction. The ESSA " Requires--for the first time--that all students in America be taught to high academic standards that prepare them to succeed in college and careers (U.S. Department of Education, 2017). This sounds lovely, but what does this mean for teachers of ELLs and ELL students practically? This means there will be required reporting for ELL achievement. Naturally preceding this reporting are assessments for English language proficiency and acquisition. Instead f relying only on standardized tests for information on ELLs, a more comprehensive body of evidence may be requested by a school district. Also, the bill addresses the need for additional funding for staff and resources to teach ELLs in a way that exhibits best practice. There is still much to be revised in the bill, as it is fairly "young" in the legislative world. Sweeping changes may not be felt immediately. In my opinion, I think legislation for education has two sides: the intentions and the effects. With previous education legislation, were students left behind? Yes. Did every student achieve as was hoped for? No, in fact in 2015 only 33% of 8th graders were proficient in grade level reading. It seems as if the 66% were left behind. This leads teachers, families, students, and at large society, at a stand-still asking, will there ever be a great turn out with these propositions? We can only hope that one day there will be and we can take our part to teach ELLs and all students so they will achieve success.

References

Lindahl, K. (14 December 2015). The ESSA and ESL teacher education. Accessed through http://blog.tesol.org/the-essa-and-esl-teacher-education/

U.S. Department of Education. (2017). Every Student Succeeds Act. Accessed through https://www.ed.gov/essa