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Standards Organizers Leave English Proficiency to States

Kenji Hakuta, a member of the common-standards validation committee, says the final version of the standards will help teachers stress academic-language development with English-learners. The new document addresses some, though not all, of the concerns of advocates for ELLs.

—Erin Lubin for Education Week

Final Document Includes Discussion of ELLs Primarily in Introduction

By Mary Ann Zehr

The writing teams for common academic standards sought the advice of researchers on English-language learners, but the organizations that coordinated the venture don’t plan to produce a set of English-language-proficiency standards to go with the common standards , released last week.

Instead, the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors Association intend to leave that up to the states.

“As far as developing [the English-proficiency standards] ourselves, I don’t see that happening,” said Keith Gayler, the director of standards for the ccsso. At the same time, he added, the organization might help some states work together...