The longer students are classified as English-language learners, the greater the likelihood that they will drop out of school, a new study finds.
The report by the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing at the University of California, Los Angeles, also notes that English-language learners who are reclassified as English proficient in earlier grades are similar to non-English learners in terms of achievement and dropout rates.
Researchers drew on three years of statewide data for one unnamed state. Among students still classified as ELLs in high school, 33 percent dropped out, compared with 22 percent of those reclassified in grade 5 or sooner and 15 percent of those reclassified by 2nd grade.
