Time: 2:00–3:00 p.m. Eastern

Location: Webinar

Description: The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) allows English learners reclassified as English proficient to be included as English learners for accountability purposes for up to four years after reclassification. Yet recent research indicates that looking at students who were ever classified as English learners—“ever-English learner students”—provides important information for states, districts, and schools.

This webinar will highlight a REL Northeast & Islands report that includes all English learner students in calculations of New York City high school graduation rates, whether or not they had been reclassified as English proficient. Authors Drs. Michael J. Kieffer and Caroline E. Parker will be joined by Dr. Karen Thompson, who will present results from a similar study using ever-English learner students to measure graduation rates in Oregon. Presenters will explore the implications of using ever-English learners in both accountability and continuous improvement.

Partnership or Research Alliance: Connecticut English Learner Research Partnership

Audience: The primary audience for this event are state and district administrators whose work focuses on English learner students; state and district leaders responsible for data and/or accountability; and state-level policymakers. District and school leaders concerned about graduation rates for English learner students may also be interested in this event.

Speakers:

• Michael Kieffer, Ed.D., Associate Professor of Literacy Education, New York University
• Karen Thompson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Oregon State University
• Caroline Parker, Ed.D., Principal Research Scientist, REL Northeast & Islands at EDC

Report Citation: Kieffer, M. J., & Parker, C. E. (2017). Graduation outcomes of students who entered New York City public schools in grade 5 or 6 as English learner students (REL 2017–237). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory Northeast & Islands.

Hopkins, M., Thompson, K. D., Linquanti, R., Hakuta, K., & August, D. (2013). Fully Accounting for English Learner Performance. Educational Researcher, 42 (2), 101-108. doi:10.3102/0013189X12471426