14 Del. Admin. Code § 920
This regulation shall apply to any district or charter school applying for or receiving funds to provide services or programs for English Learners (ELs).
The following words and terms, when used in this regulation shall have the following meaning unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
“ACCESS” means a suite of secure, large-scale, summative English language proficiency assessments.
“Department” means the Delaware Department of Education.
“English Learners” or “ELs” means individuals who, among other things, have English language speaking, reading, writing, or understanding difficulties sufficient to deny the individual the ability to meet challenging state academic standards as defined using Delaware’s standardized entrance and exit procedures.
“ESSA Plan” means a document that reflects the goals of the Delaware education system that are in compliance with applicable federal requirements outlined in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965, reauthorized in December 2015 as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
“Home Language Survey” means a questionnaire that is given to a student’s parent, guardian or relative caregiver to help schools and local education agencies identify students who are potential ELs, and who will require assessment of their English language proficiency to determine whether they are eligible for a LIEP.
“Language Instruction Education Program” or “LIEP” meansan instruction course: (1) in which an English learner is placed for the purpose of developing and attaining English proficiency while meeting challenging State academic standards; and (2) that may make instructional use of both English and a child’s native language to enable the child to develop and attain English proficiency and may include the participation of English proficient children if such course is designed to enable all participating children to become proficient in English and a second language.
“ WIDA English Language Development Standards ” means the social, instructional, and academic language that students need to engage with peers, educators, and the curriculum in schools.
2.2 For any student whom a language other than English is reported on the home language survey, the school or district shall follow Delaware’s statewide entrance criteria as outlined in Delaware’s approved ESSA Plan and further described in Delaware’s English Learner Guidebook. When appropriate, an initial screening assessment of English language proficiency shall be conducted as soon as practicable, but not later than twenty-five (25) school days after enrollment and shall be conducted by qualified personnel trained in the administration of the assessment instrument.
4.2 Any student who achieves a score on the annual ACCESS English language proficiency assessment that is higher than the eligibility cut off score established by the Department shall be reclassified as fully English proficient.
Each district and charter school with ELs shall annually evaluate its program and make programmatic changes as necessary.
Each district and charter school shall enter such data and information concerning ELs as instructed by the Department and as otherwise required by the Department into the statewide database.
Each district and charter school shall ensure that communication with parents, guardians and relative caregivers, including notices of eligibility for programs for ELs, notices about the student's educational performance and progress in such programs, and school information that is made available to other parents, guardians and relative caregivers shall be provided in English or in a language the parent, guardian or relative caregiver can understand.
ELs and students reclassified as fully English proficient shall be included in the Delaware System of Student Assessments (DeSSA) as provided for in the Department’sAccessibility Guidelines for the Delaware System of Student Assessments, or any amended version thereafter.
4 DE Reg. 467 (09/01/00)