Office of Bilingual Education & Foreign Language Studies Dr. Pedro J. Ruiz, Coordinator

1. S/CDN Meeting Office of Bilingual Education & Foreign Language Studies Dr. Pedro J. Ruiz, Coordinator

2. Overview • Office of Bilingual Education and Foreign Language Studies • BETACs • Bilingual Education Funds • Ongoing Initiatives • Priority Areas • New Initiatives • Data • Actions to Close the Gap • Quality Review Services • Q & A

3. Organization Chart NYS OBE-FLS Pedro J. Ruiz, Ph.D. Coordinator Secretary Bilingual Supervisor Secretary Bilingual Associate Bilingual Associate Foreign Language Associate NYC Bilingual Associate Bilingual Associate Clerk Secretary

4. Configuration of BETACs AS of July 2006, the Statewide BETAC configuration will consist of 14 BETACS: • New York City BETACs • Bronx • Manhattan and Staten Island • Queens and Brooklyn • Language Specific BETACs • Haitian Creole Language (HABETAC) • Asian Language (ALBETAC) • Spanish Language (SBETAC) • “Rest of State” (ROS) BETACs • Eastern/Western Suffolk BOCES • Erie I BOCES • Mid-Hudson BOCES • Monroe 2-Orleans BOCES • “Rest of State” (ROS) BETACs • Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES • Questar BOCES • Southern Westchester BOCES • Nassau BOCES

5. Bilingual Categorical Education Funds • Bilingual Education/ESL Technical Assistance Centers (BETACs) • Two-Way Bilingual Education Grants • Intensive Teacher Institute • Bilingual/ESL Teacher Leadership Academy • Hispanic Youth Leadership Institute • Bilingual Performing Arts Program • Administrators Leadership Academy

6. Ongoing Initiatives • Statewide Teacher Institutes • Coordinate the Hispanic Youth Leadership Institute • Fund and increase Two-Way Bilingual Education Programs statewide • Developing & refining the NYSESLAT • Expand Professional Development • Redesign and update NYSBEN (OBE-FLS webpage) • Implement Quality Review initiative • Monitoring of Districts/Schools

7. Priority Areas • Data Collection Inconsistencies • Graduation of LEP/ELLs • High School Dropout Rate • Parent Involvement • Number of Uncertified Teachers • Streamlining CR Part 154 & Title III process

8. New Initiatives of OBE-FLS • Committee of Researchers / Panel of Experienced Practitioners • Re-establish the Teacher Exchange Program • Increase parent involvement of LEP/ELLs • Plan and hold a Research Conference on LEP/ELLs in 2007 • Develop and publish guidelines for LEP/ELLs

9. High School Cohorts NYSESLAT Results Looking at the Data

10. Cohort Enrollment Regents Local Diploma IEP Diploma % Still Enrolled Transferred to GED Dropped Out NYC 9,584 40.2% 4.1% 15.9% 5.1% 34.8% ROS 2,426 56.7% 1.3% 11.1% 8.7% TOTAL 12,010 43.5% 3.5% 14.9% 5.8% 32.3% 22.2% High School Cohort Outcome Statistics for LEP/ELLs LEP/ELLs who entered Grade 9 in 2000 Cohort - After Five Years

11. Cohort Enrollment Regents Local Diploma IEP Diploma % Still Enrolled Transferred to GED Dropped Out 9,755 25.8% 3.6% 44.7% 3.2% 22.6% ROS 2,899 42.4% 1.1% 30.4% 6.9% 19.2% 12,654 29.6% 3.1% 41.4% 4.0% 21.8% NYC TOTAL High School Cohort Outcome Statistics for LEP/ELLs LEP/ELLs who entered Grade 9 in 2001 Cohort - After Four Years

12. What do these charts tell us? • LEP/ELL students are most likely toneed an additional year of schooling • 41.4% were still enrolled after four years • 14.9% were still enrolled after five years • 21.8% dropout rate of ELLs after four years • 32.3% dropout rate of ELLs after five years • Fewer than half of LEP/ELL students graduated

13. Grade Span Total Number of ELLs Tested Percent Reaching Proficiency K-1 34,996 9.9% 2-4 52,460 13.9% 5-6 24,262 11.6% 7-8 24,594 12.5% 9-12 42,262 10.8% Total 178,574 11.3% 2005 NYSESLAT Data

14. 2005 NYSESLAT Data • LEP/ELLs identified and not taking the NYSESLAT, i.e., 25,000 to 30,000 students: • Possible reasons: • Transience between districts • Students who enter and leave the country or State during the same year • Students who were exited on a “local option” basis, but who were identified as LEP/ELL on BEDS forms in prior October • In addition, around 5.5% (10,000) did not have valid scores because they were missing one or more modalities of the test.

15. Actions to Close the Gap for Limited English Proficient/ English Language Learners • Improve the quality of bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers • Support the preparation of special education and bilingual special education teachers • Convene a Committee of Researchers / Advisory Council ofPractitioners in Bilingual Education and ESL • Increase outreach with the New York City Department of Education

16. Actions to Close the Gap for Limited English Proficient/ English Language Learners • Hold schools and districts accountable • Increase monitoring • Districts will need to implement Part 154 Comprehensive Plan and Title III requirements to claim State and/or Federal funds

17. Quality Review of Services for LEP/ELLs The Quality Review process is a comprehensive self-assessment tool designed to help school leadership and instructional staff to review and evaluate the quality of all LEP/ELL-related processes, practices and strategies in place in the school system.

18. What Can Schools Do to Address the Educational Needs of ELLs? Does Bilingual Education Really Work? Literally hundreds of scientific studies over the past half century have shown that bilingual education – when well designed and well implemented – is an effective approach for teaching second language learners. These findings have been consistent across numerous national borders and languages of instruction, all pointing to the conclusion that bilingual education "works."

19. Essential Questions • Are Teachers well trained to meet the needs of English language learners (ELLs)? • Does the school provide adequate resources, materials, and support services? • Are parents involved in their children’s education? • Is the program supported by the local school board and district administrators?

20. Summary • Strengthen Programs and Parental Involvement • Provide Resources to Districts and Schools • Support Professional Development • Improve Teacher Recruitment/Certification • Increase Monitoring for Accountability • Use Data to Inform Decision Making • Ensure Compliance at Federal, State and Local Levels

21. Q & A Contact Information Dr. Pedro J. Ruiz New York State Education Department Education Building Annex, Room 367 Albany, New York 12234 E-mail: pruiz@mail.nysed.gov obefls@mail.nysed.gov Phone (518) 474-8775 Fax: (518) 473-4678 Website: www.emsc.gov/ciai/biling/nysben.html