District Responsibilities
To ensure that Limited English Proficient (“LEP”) students receive appropriate schooling in English and curriculum areas, the District shall:
- in accordance with Part 117 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education, diagnostically screen every new entrant to the schools to determine whether they are possibly LEP1 pursuant to 2-a of section 3204 of the Education Law. It will also be determined through such screening whether the student is of foreign birth or ancestry and comes from a home where a language other than English is spoken as determined by the results of a home language questionnaire and an informal interview in English;
- ensure that students diagnostically determined to be LEP are annually evaluated. Such evaluation will include evaluation of each student’s performance in content areas to measure the student’s progress as well as evaluate them based on their performance on New York State Education Department assessment;
- ensure that all LEP students have access to appropriate instructional and support services, including guidance programs;
- ensure that all LEP students have equal opportunities to participate in all school programs and extracurricular activities as non-LEP students;
- annually provide the Commissioner of Education with the following documents, in the form and by the dates prescribed by the Commissioner of Education:
a. a copy of the Board of Education’s policy;
b. a report by building of the number of students initially identified and annually evaluated as being LEP in the preceding school year, including their grade level, native language and instructional program;
c. a report by building of the number of students that took the NYSES-LAT in the preceding school year;
d. a report by building of the number of teachers and support personnel providing services to LEP students
e. the results of the annual evaluation of LEP students, including test data and any additional data required by the Commissioner of Education; and
f. a report on the expenditure of state, local and federal funds in the prior year on programs, activities and services for LEP students.
The District will also distribute to the parents or other persons in parental relation to LEP students, school-related information in English or when necessary, the language they understand, and refer LEP students who are suspected of having a disability to the Committee on Special Education (“CSE”).
In addition to the above requirements, the District shall submit to the State Education Department by September 1st of each year a comprehensive plan to meet the educational needs of LEP students which includes:
- the criteria used to place LEP students in appropriate transitional bilingual or free- standing English as a second language (“ESL”) programs;
- a proposed budget for the operation of the state-aided program;
- a description of the nature and scope of the bilingual and/or ESL instructional program and services currently available to LEP students, including a description the curricular and extracurricular services provided to LEP students, the support services provided to LEP students, and the transitional services provided to LEP students;
- an evaluation plan in the format specified by the State Education Department;
- a description of procedures for the program’s management, including: staff selection, parental notification, coordination of funds, training, and program planning;
- an assurance that all regulations and laws governing programs for LEP students will be followed;
- a description of the in-service training plan for all school personnel.
II. Screening and identification of Limited English Proficiency Students
A. Enrollment of all New Students (i.e., both American-born and foreign-born)
Upon enrollment the parents or guardians complete the registration form which includes the following entry:
- What language did your child speak when he/she first began to talk?
- What language is spoken most of the time at home now?
- In what language does the child read or is read to at home?
If English is not the answer to all questions, then the language appropriate survey will be given to the parents/guardians to complete. Currently, there are surveys in several languages. If there is not an appropriate language survey, then the survey can be given in English if the parents can read (or have it read to them) and understand it.
The completed survey is then put in the permanent record and that student is considered a potential LEP student needing testing to determine eligibility for ESL services.
B. Determining Whether Student is Eligible for ESL Services
Within two (2) weeks of the potential LEP student starting classes, he/she will be interviewed and tested by a member of the ESL Department using the Language Assessment Battery-Revised (LAB-R). All test score results are recorded on the permanent record and the information is to be disseminated to all teachers involved with the student. Students that score below the State designated level of proficiency on the LAB-R will be considered LEP and will be eligible for ESL Services.
C. Annual English Language Assessment
To determine the continuation of ESL Services for a LEP student, he/she will be interviewed and tested by a member of the ESL Department using the New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT). All test score results are recorded on the permanent record and the information is to be disseminated to all teachers involved with the student. Students that score below the State designated level of proficiency on the LAB-R will be will be eligible for continued ESL Services. Annual testing will be in the spring.
III. ESL Programs and Services
A. Bilingual Instruction
Should twenty (20) or more LEP students with the same native language at the same grade level all attend the same school building in the District, such students shall be provided with a bilingual program. Such program shall be composed of:
- ESL instruction which emphasizes listening, speaking, reading, writing and communicating skills in English;
- course content instruction in both English and the native language; and
- native language arts instruction which emphasizes communication skills in the student’s home language.
B. English as a Second Language Instruction
Should fewer than twenty (20) LEP students with the same native language at the same grade level all attend the same school building in the District, such students shall be provided with a free-standing ESL program. Such program shall be composed of:
- instruction which emphasizes listening, speaking, reading, writing, and communicating skills in English; and
- course content area instruction using ESL methods.
Such program need not provide a native language arts component designed to develop skills in the native language.
C. Additional Concerns
The District reserves the right to contract with a Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) or another school district to provide bilingual and/or ESL programs.
The District shall notify, in English or in the appropriate native language, the parent(s) or guardian(s) of a student designated as LEP of the student’s placement in a transitional bilingual or ESL program. Such notification shall include program options, including the option of not having the student placed in a transitional bilingual program. Should a parent wish to withdraw his/her child from a transitional bilingual program, the parent/guardian shall meet with the Building Principal and Supervisor of Bilingual Education. Such meeting shall be for the purpose of informing the parent/guardian of the nature and value of the transitional bilingual program. Any child that withdraws from a transitional bilingual program must participate in a free- standing ESL program.
Parents shall be informed that they have the option of transferring their child to another school within the district, when the number of eligible students in the student building does not require the offering of a transitional bilingual education program. If a parent/guardian chooses not to exercise this option, he/she shall be informed that the child will participate in a free- standing ESL program.
Appropriate District personnel shall meet at least twice a year with all parents of LEP students to discuss the students’ needs and progress.
D. Support Services
The District shall provide appropriate support services to students who are participating in either transitional bilingual or free-standing ESL programs in order for such students to achieve and maintain a satisfactory level of academic performance. Such services may include, but shall not be limited to, individual counseling, group counseling, home visits, and parental counseling. If appropriate, such services shall be provided in the first language of the students and the student’s parent(s)/ guardian(s).
E. Transitional Services
The District shall ensure a transition for former LEP students who are transferring from a bilingual or free-standing ESL program into an English mainstream program. Transitional services shall be provided for the first year after such students are placed in the English mainstream instructional program.
In-Service Training
F. The District shall provide in-service training to all personnel providing instruction or other services to LEP students in order to enhance staff appreciation for such students’ native languages and cultures, and staff ability to provide appropriate instructional and support services.
IV. Services to LEP Students with Disabilities
If a student’s score on an English language assessment instrument approved by the Commissioner of Education is the result of a disability, the student shall be provided special education programs and services in accordance with the individualized education program (“IEP”) developed for such student(s). Such student shall also be eligible for all services described above, if such services are recommended in his/her IEP.
Note: Prior regulation, Implementation of North Colonie Program for Limited English Proficient Students, 5115(a)‐(c)
May 22, 1995
June 21, 1999
Amended: October 24, 2011
1 A student who by reason of foreign birth or ancestry, speaks a language other than English, and scores below the proficiency level on an English language instrument approved by the Commissioner of Education, is to be classified as “LEP.