Assessment

State English language proficiency assessments are designed for ELs and measure students’ proficiency in the English language. English language proficiency assessments measure students’ proficiency levels and progress in the four domains of language: speaking, listening, reading, and writing.

Source: ESEA Sections 1111(b)(1)(F), 1111(b)(2)(G), 3113(b)(3)(B)

Program Eligibility

All students new to the district should receive a Home Language Survey upon enrollment. This document should only be filled out at the student’s initial enrollment and kept in the student’s cumulative folder. If a language other than English is indicated on the HLS, the student must be assessed for their English proficiency using one of the following approved assessment screeners. If the student scores “not proficient” on the approved screener, they are eligible for ESOL services.

Under section 3113(b)(2) of the ESEA, a student who may be an EL must be assessed for such status within 30 days of enrollment in a school in the State. If the child enrolls after school has begun, the school has 10 days to screen and notify parents.

Source: Non-Regulatory Guidance: English Learners (September 2019), p. 44-45

ESOL Approved Screeners

Summative English Language Proficiency (ELP) Assessments

Local Education Agencies (LEAs) must "administer a uniform, valid and reliable statewide ELP assessment annually to all ELs in schools served by the State, in grades kindergarten through grade twelve."

Source: 34 C.F.R. §§200.5(a)(2), 200.6(h)(1)

KELPA

The Kansas English Language Proficiency Assessment (KELPA) measures student progress toward the  2018 Kansas Standards for English Learners.

For more information, please visit the Kansas Assessment Program website. 

WIDA Alternate ACCESS

WIDA Alternate ACCESS is given to identified ELs with the most significant cognitive disabilities during the annual testing window.

For more information, please visit the WIDA state page for Kansas.

For more information, please contact:

  • Cary Rogers, (785) 296-0916 - WIDA Alternate ACCESS eligibility
  • Emily Scott, (785) 296-4941- EL support, KELPA, and WIDA Alternate ACCESS
  • Chelsea Pelfrey, (785) 296-0040 - WIDA Secure Portal and WIDA AMS