State Superintendent Randy Dorn adopted new Washington English language proficiency standards that correspond to the Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. Washington will begin the transition to these standards during the 2014–15 school year.
The new standards were developed by the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21) Consortium. Member states include Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oregon (lead state), South Carolina, Washington and West Virginia.
“As our state transitions to Common Core and Next Gen, it’s important that we meet the needs of our English language learners,” said Dorn. “These new standards will help us better serve this growing population as they work toward both language and academic proficiency.”
The development of the new English language proficiency standards began in May 2013. Nationally recognized organizations and experts in the field were involved throughout the development and review process. The Council of Chief State School Officers acted as the managing partner. Other participating organizations included:
- UCLA’s National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST)
- The National Center on Educational Outcomes
- Stanford University’s Center to Support Excellence in Teaching (CSET) Understanding Language Initiative
The standards were reviewed and endorsed by the Washington State Curriculum Advisory and Review Committee (CARC) and the Bilingual Education Advisory Committee (BEAC) who recommended that Dorn approve them.
For more information
