Time to Reclassification: How Long Does It Take Washington English Learners to Develop English Proficiency?

• In Event: Beyond the Homogeneous English Learner Classification: New Progress Analyses Using New, Multiple English Learner Subgroups

Abstract

Objectives
How long does it typically take English learners (ELs) to develop proficiency in English? This study seeks to understand how long it takes ELs in seven Washington state school districts to meet reclassification criteria, and reclassify as former ELs. The study also explores how students’ time to reclassification varies by their initial English proficiency, and grade of entrance into Washington schools.

Theoretical framework
Most research on time to proficiency has relied on students’ reclassification from EL to former EL, however since every state has its own criteria for reclassification, it is difficult to compare results among states. Extant studies of how long it takes ELs to learn English have produced estimates ranging from three to seven years, and have found that that older students take longer to reach proficiency than younger. Initial proficiency level in English is also found to have strong effect on the time it takes students to reach proficiency, and time varied by age at school entrance and by gender.

Methods
This study presents findings on the average time to reclassification, which is the mean number of years it took ELs to develop the English proficiency necessary to reach a grade-specific score on Washington’s English language proficiency assessment and reclassify. Because not all ELs reclassified within the time period of the study, the rate of reclassification (the percentage of students who reclassified by 2012/13) was also examined. The study disaggregates findings by students’ initial English proficiency and grade on entrance to Washington schools, as well their home language, gender, and race/ethnicity.

Data sources
The study includes 17,733 current and former ELs who entered elementary schools in seven Washington districts (Auburn, Federal Way, Highline, Kent, Renton, Seattle, and Tukwila) between the beginning of kindergarten and the end of grade 5. The study used 2005/06 through 2012/13 data from the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction’s K–12 dataset, which includes data on program participation, assessment scores, and student-level demographic characteristics.

Results and conclusions
This study found that the average time to reclassification from EL to former EL was 3.8 years, and 18 percent of ELs were not reclassified by the end of the study. The study also found that ELs who entered Washington elementary schools in earlier grades took less time to be reclassified than students who entered in later grades. Finally, the study found that ELs who entered in kindergarten with the lowest levels of English proficiency took longer to reclassify than those with the highest proficiency. Unexpectedly, ELs who entered later, in grades 2–5, with the highest levels of English proficiency took longer to reclassify than those with the lowest proficiency.

Significance
Knowing the average time to reclassification is important to educators because English proficiency is linked to academic success in the United States. Knowing the typical time it takes students to develop English proficiency provides educators with a measure of expected progress. This knowledge may also help educators identify specific programs and practices that facilitate or delay the development of English proficiency.

Author

• Jason Greenberg Motamedi, Education Northwest