The current English Language Development (ELD) programs in the Putnam City school district are designed to meet the requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015. In addition to language instruction, the programs are organized to identify, assess and serve all eligible students as the ESSA Act requires. Furthermore, proper procedures are established to document the learning progress of our English learners. A monitoring system has been implemented to guarantee the success of students who have exited the program up to two years after being proficient in English. The ELD programs encompass research-based curricula, which are typically found in school districts across the United States.
Program Overview
Instructional Models
The District has used the ELD pull-out model in our elementary schools in the form of small flex groups. Students spend most of the school day in a mainstream classroom but are pulled out for twenty-five to thirty minutes at least three times a week to receive ELD instruction.
The District has also used the push-in model in some elementary sites. Using this model, the ELD teacher goes into the regular classrooms to teach the EL students. The ELD teacher centers the content of the instruction on the objectives the regular classroom teacher has selected. The nature of this ELD instructional model is content-based. We take advantage of the push-in model when our ELD teachers are certified in elementary education and can work collaboratively with mainstream classroom teachers.
Class period
The District has implemented the ELD class period in the middle and high school settings. Students receive ELD instruction during the regular class period. In addition, they participate in ELD small group instruction according to their level of English proficiency.
Sheltered English
The sheltered English model is used to group language minority students from different language backgrounds together in classes where the ELD teacher is also certified in high school English. High school students are given English credit for successful completion of Sheltered English classes.
Tutoring
Considering the needs of our EL students on Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and our newcomers, additional instruction might be deemed necessary.
Contracted hourly bilingual aides provide supplemental instructional support to our English learners on an IEP and our newcomers.
Interpretation Services
Putnam City Schools’ families speak more than 58 languages in their homes. Since Spanish and Vietnamese are our two dominant languages in the district, we routinely provide language interpretation and document translation services in those languages. In addition, the district provides language interpretation and document translation for parents in other languages upon request.
ELD Instructional Facilitators
The ELD Instructional Facilitator program aims to provide English language development teachers and regular classroom teachers with research-based professional development training and instructional coaching to support English learners, thereby enhancing the academic achievement of English learners in the district.
Parental Outreach
As part of the District’s parental outreach efforts, adult literacy classes are available for parents of English learners. The goal is to prepare parents to participate in their children’s education.
