Fully English Proficient: A Reconsideration of EL Reclassification from a Translanguaging Perspective

• In Event: Equity in Reclassification for Adolescent Multilinguals: A Translanguaging Approach

Abstract

Objectives
In most states, the framework for assessing English Learners’ (ELs’) progress towards acquiring English is set by one of two consortia: World-Class Instructional and Design and Assessment Consortium (WIDA), and English Language Proficiency Assessment (ELPA21). Both use a similar approach for defining proficiency standards that align to federal guidelines. In Ohio, districts are required to use the ELPA21 to determine EL students’ level of English: emerging, progressing, or proficient. Students who score 4-5 in all four language skill areas are deemed proficient and reclassified former ELs.

The assessment framework for ELs has been improved since its inception under No Child Left Behind. The term English Learner has replaced the deficit-oriented label Limited English Proficient student and additional measures, such as the adoption of alternative tests for EL students with cognitive impairments, have upgraded the types of accommodations and access for ELs taking the tests. However, the overall testing regime has not changed much in 20+ years; ELs must still pass their respective yearly high-stakes test in order to be reclassified as “fully English proficient.” The legacy of this classification system has left the deficit framing of ELs’ languages and languaging practices intact. Rosa (2019) argues that the effect is to position ELs as “languageless,” which he attributes to raciolinguistic ideologies that hold deficient any minoritized language practices that do not conform to standard English (Flores & Rosa, 2015).

Translanguaging scholars argue that teachers can use translanguaging to challenge deficit-oriented language ideologies (García & Li Wei, 2014; Sembiante & Tian, 2020). This is what García and colleagues (2017) refer to as adopting a translanguaging stance to inform pedagogy for ELs. More recently, scholars have extended the notion of translanguaging stance to areas of assessment (Schissel, 2020). In this paper, I argue that enacting a translanguaging stance necessitates a deeper interrogation of how the testing regime classifies students as “fully English proficient.” The paper is guided by the following questions: 1) What are the real-world consequences of the classification system for adolescent ELs in Ohio? 2) What would an alternate classification system look like that recognizes the multilingual competencies of Ohio’s EL students?

Theoretical Framework
The paper presents an argument for reconsidering the classification categories of ELs based on translanguaging. Translanguaging is a theoretical perspective of multilingualism that focuses on how students deploy their linguistic resources across their multilingual repertoire to tackle academic tasks in school (Martínez, 2018; Seltzer, 2019).

Method and Data Sources
The paper includes state-level data on ELs in Ohio taking the ELPA test from 2017-2024, including test scores from 60,000+ ELs annually, examples of the test items, and the Ohio Department of Education official reports.

Results and Significance
Despite some positive modifications to the proficiency tests and procedures, the classification scheme for Ohio’s adolescent English learners continues to position them in terms of linguistic deficit. Adopting a translanguaging stance not only requires us to rethink how “fully English proficient” is defined and measured but also challenges us to develop more equitable approaches to assessment and classification.

Author

• Peter Sayer, The Ohio State University