Nohemy Tautimer
08/02/2013
EDU-213N
Grand Canyon University
Professor Lorena Brown
With the rise in immigrant students comes a rise in students who do not speak English. Schools are facing the need to not only teach these students their regular academics but also a new language. In Guthrie, Oklahoma, there may seem like there would not be as much need for such programs but the fact is that English language learners are also here. ELL students need assistance from the schools they attend in order to master their English skills and be able to become productive citizens when they graduate. Schools have had to come up with procedures to identify ELL students, assess and monitor their learning and proficiency, keep teachers informed, and ensure ELL students access to grade-level content and develop language simultaneously. When a new student enters school in Guthrie, Oklahoma first they are required to fill out a home language survey form, (Oklahoma Department of Education, 2012). This form basically asks what the primary language spoken at home is. If another language other than English is spoken then students are required to take the WIDA placement test, (Miles, 2013). If a student scores below a 5.0 they are considered to be an English language learner, (Miles, 2013). That is how they identify ELL students at Guthrie Public Schools. Parents also need to be informed of these tests wither 30 days before school starts or within two weeks of school starting, (Oklahoma Department of Education, 2012). Throughout the school year schools have to assess ELL students to determine their progress. At Guthrie public schools ELL students in elementary school are monitored for progress every quarter by a bilingual tutor, (Miles, 2013). In junior and high school students are monitored daily by their teachers for progress, (Miles, 2013). The tutor and teacher monitor students social activities, their regular classroom environment, their activity in