How long do students take to exit English learner status? A meta-analysis of reclassification survival curves

• In Event: Navigating Language, Identity, and Culture

Abstract

One of the most fundamental questions related to English learner (EL) education is how long it takes for EL students to exit EL status and be reclassified as non-ELs. In this study, I meta-analyze findings from previously published survival analyses and other longitudinal studies to create summary reclassification curves and test for heterogeneity in EL reclassification patterns among different groups of studies. I found that half of kindergarten-entrant EL students are likely reclassified within 4.26 years or before grade 5. I also identified a large variation in time to reclassification based on student characteristics, reclassification policies, and EL instructional models.

Author

• Taiyo Itoh, University of Oregon