Resources for Determining Special Education Eligibility of English Learners

From 2017 to 2020, REL Northeast & Islands staff worked with state and local partners in the region to learn about the policies and practices they use to identify disabilities among English learners and to provide resources to implement key policies and practices at the district, school, and classroom levels. The resources provided on this page can be used by teachers and administrators working with English learners both to provide high-quality instruction and to build practices to better determine special education eligibility. The resources include:

Determining Special Education Eligibility of English Learners: A practitioner brief that describes how four districts are using key practices to meet the needs of their English learners

Supporting Educators in Determining Special Education Eligibility of English Learner Students: A summary of key practices using multi-tiered systems of support with English learners, including tools for understanding language vs. disability, screening and progress monitoring processes and tools, and a description of how to implement the three tiers of multi-tiered systems of support

Using Data and Progress Monitoring in a Tiered intervention Framework to Provide High-quality Individualized Instruction to English learners who are Struggling: A slide presentation describing the key practices found in four districts and specific considerations for implementing practices that support English learners