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WIDA™
The WIDA™ Consortium is a non-profit cooperative group whose purpose is to develop standards and assessments that promote educational equity for English language learners (ELLs). Through standards, assessments, research, and professional development, WIDA™ provides meaningful tools and information to educators working with ELLs that are anchored in research-based practices for serving these diverse learners. Saint Paul Public Schools uses WIDA resources to inform services for EL students.
The documents below from WIDA™ synopsize the beliefs of the Office of Multilingual Learning which values and honors the assets, contributions, and potential of linguistically diverse students.
Guiding Principles of Language Development
WIDA™ believes that Language is a powerful force that helps shape ones individual and collective identity. Language is a resource and ELLs as valued contributors to learning communities. The Principles of Language Development acknowledge the diverse linguistic resources our students draw from and the unique pathways they follow throughout the process of learning English. The Guiding Principles of Language Development were drafted by WIDA staff in collaboration with a WIDA™ standards expert panel, and group of researchers and practitioners in the field of academic language from across the US.
The WIDA™ Can Do philosopy embraces inclusion and equity and focuses attention on expanding students' academic language by building on the inherent resources of English language learners (ELLs) and accentuating the positive efforts of educators. WID™A enacts the Can Do Philosophy through standards, assessments, professional learning and research that provides timely, meaningful, and actionable results to educators, advancing awareness of the role of language learning in achievement along with the unique traits attributable to language learners.
WIDA’s five English Language Development Standards represent the social, instructional, and academic language that ELLs need to engage with peers, educators, and the curriculum in schools. The Office of Multilingual Learning embraces inclusion and equity for all students. English Learners in mainstream classrooms receive equitable access to standards-based grade level curriculum and content area language instruction. English Language Development Standards include Social and Instructional language, Language of Language Arts, Language of Mathematics, Language of Science, and the Language of Social Studies. When teachers are using the WIDA™ standards, they provide language instruction and language scaffolding for students.
The Minnesota Department of Education joined the WIDA Consortium in 2011. For more information, visit the WIDA™ website at www.wida.us
WIDA Assessments
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State and federal laws require that all identified EL students are assessed annually to measure their English language proficiency and progress in learning English in the four domains of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. In accordance with this law Saint Paul Public Schools uses WIDA assessments to identify and measure student progress.
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ACCESS for ELLs 2.0
ACCESS for ELLs 2.0
ACCESS for ELLs 2.0 is a English language proficiency assessment administered to Kindergarten through 12th grade students who have been identified as English Language Learners (ELLs). It is given annually to monitor students' progress in acquiring academic English.
In 2015-2016, an online assessment will replace the earlier paper-based assessment, ACCESS for ELLs, although a paper-based assessment will continue to be available as an accommodation for ELL students with disabilities and a support for New-to-Country (in US Schools less than one year) ELL student with an English proficiency level of 2 or below on the WIDA ELD Standards or the equivalent.
The Kindergarten and Alternate ACCESS for ELLs assessments will not change from previous years and remain paper-based.
ACCESS for ELLs 2.0 is aligned with the WIDA English Language Development Standards and assesses each of the four language domains of Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing.
Purpose and UseACCESS for ELLs:
- Exceeds the requirements stipulated by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 and is used to measure and report growth in a manner consistent with the need for fulfilling these requirements.
- Generates results that serve as one criterion to aid in determining when ELLs have attained the language proficiency needed to participate meaningfully in content area classrooms without program support and on state academic content tests without accommodations.
- Provides districts with information that will aid in evaluating the effectiveness of their ESL/bilingual programs.
- Identifies the ELP levels of students with respect to the WIDA ELD Standards' levels 1-6.
- Provides information that can be used to enhance instruction and learning for ELLs.
Features:
Test items are written from WIDA's five English Language Development (ELD) standards:
- Social & Instructional Language
- Language of Language Arts
- Language of Mathematics
- Language of Science
- Language of Social Studies
ACCESS for ELLs scores can be used to:- Monitor student progress on an annual basis
- Establish when ELLs have attained English language proficiency according to state criteria
- Inform classroom instruction and assessment
- Aid in programmatic decision-making
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Alternate ACCESS for ELLs
Alternate ACCESS for ELLs is an assessment of English language proficiency (ELP) for students in grades 1 -12 who are classified as English language learners (ELLs) and have significant cognitive disabilities that prevent their meaningful participation in the ACCESS for ELLs assessment. WIDA created the Alternate ACCESS for ELLs to meet federal accountability requirements and to provide educators with a measure sensitive to English language proficiency growth of ELLs with significant cognitive disabilities.
For more information about the Alternate ACCESS for ELLs visit the WIDA Website.
Participation CriteriaIEP teams decide whether students who are classified as ELLs with significant cognitive disabilities participate in Alternate ACCESS for ELLs and follow specific criteria designed to help IEP teams determine whether Alternate ACCESS for ELLs is an appropriate test for students. WIDA Participation Criteria
Alternate Model Performance Indicators (AMPIs)
The test is based on Alternate Model Performance Indicators (AMPIs), which provide expectations of what students should be able to process and produce at a given Alternate ELP level. To accommodate the three Alternate ELP levels (i.e., Initiating, Exploring, Engaging), AMPIs were developed for each language domain, standard, and grade-level cluster:
- Language Function (indicate, match, locate)
- Example Topic (text element)
- Form of Support (sensory, graphic and interactive)
Alternate Language Proficiency LevelsAlternate ACCESS for ELLs aligns with the WIDA Alternate English Language Proficiency levels.
These levels were designed to measure students language proficiency who have significant cognitive disabilities. The alternate ELP levels give students a chance to demonstrate progress within Level P1.
All Alternate ACCESS for ELLs test items are written from AMPIs and MPIs from four of WIDA’s ELD standards.
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Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs
Like ACCESS for ELLs 2.0, Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs is a secure large-scale English language proficiency assessment given to Kindergarteners who have been identified as English language learners (ELLs). It is given annually in WIDA Consortium member states to monitor students’ progress in acquiring academic English. Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs is only available to Consortium member states.
Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs is aligned with the WIDA ELD Standards and it assesses the four language domains of listening, speaking, reading and writing. This assessment meets, and exceeds, federal requirements for the monitoring and reporting of ELLs' progress toward English language proficiency.
For additional information about the Kindergarten Access for ELLs assessment, visit the WIDA Website.
Purpose and Use- Understanding students’ current level of English language proficiency along the developmental continuum.
- Multiple measures are used to determine whether students are prepared to exit English language support programs.
- Information that assists in determining whether ELLs have attained the language proficiency needed to participate meaningfully in content area classrooms without program support.
- Provides teachers with information to use in instruction and learning in programs
- Provides districts with information to evaluate the effectiveness of their ESL/bilingual programs.
Features:
Test items are written from WIDA's five English Language Development (ELD) standards:
- Social & Instructional Language
- Language of Language Arts
- Language of Mathematics
- Language of Science
- Language of Social Studies
Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs scores can be used to:- Monitor student progress on an annual basis
- Establish when ELLs have attained English language proficiency according to state criteria
- Inform classroom instruction and assessment
- Aid in programmatic decision-making