Background
Definition
Data for this indicator are taken from a survey, with English and Spanish versions, that is mailed to households, with follow-ups by phone and in person. Prior to 2007, the survey was offered in English only. With the survey, information is also given on how to complete the survey by telephone in English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Korean, or Vietnamese. Follow-up may also include an in-person survey with an interpreter. More information on how the American Community Survey strives to be inclusive of people who do not speak English is available here: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/methodology/design-and-methodology.html (Chapter 9).
As used here, a dual language learner (DLL) is a child living in a household where at least one person older than five years speaks a non-English language. The household language was recorded as the language spoken by the first non-English speaker on the following list: householder, spouse, parent, sibling, child, grandchild, other relative, stepchild, unmarried partner, housemate, and other. Thus, some children designated as DLLs may speak only English, particularly if the non-English-speaking household member is a non-relative. A list of languages included in the various categories is available here: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/tech_docs/subject_definitions/2015_ACSSubjectDefinitions.pdf (pages 140-141)
Survey respondents were also asked whether children, ages five years and older, who spoke a language other than English at home, spoke English “very well,” “well,” “not well,” or “not at all.” Children who spoke only English at home were included with those who spoke English “very well.”
Endnotes
[1] The Department defines English language learners as students served in programs of language assistance, such as English as a second language, high-intensity language training, and bilingual education.
[2] U.S. Department of Education. (2017). EDFacts data warehouse, 2014-15: LEP Enrolled. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/edfacts/data-files/school-status-data.html.
[3] The U.S. Department of Education uses “English language learner,” rather than dual language learner, so that is the term we used here in reference to school-age children.
[4] The U.S. Department of Education’s list of accommodations includes extended testing time, small-group or one-on-one testing, and test directions (and, for math, test items) read aloud in Spanish. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. (2013). NAEP accommodations increase inclusiveness. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/about/accom_table.aspx.
[5] U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. (2018). Summary data tables for national and state sample sizes, participation rates, proportions of SD and ELL students identified, and types of accommodations. Retrieved from https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/math_2017/files/2017_Technical_Appendix_Math_State.pdf.
[6] The National Assessment Governing Board for the NAEP defines the Basic level as follows:
“Fourth-grade students performing at the Basic level should be able to locate relevant information, make simple inferences, and use their understanding of the text to identify details that support a given interpretation or conclusion. Students should be able to interpret the meaning of a word as it is used in the text.
“When reading literary texts such as fiction, poetry, and literary nonfiction, fourth-grade students performing at the Basic level should be able to make simple inferences about characters, events, plot, and setting. They should be able to identify a problem in a story and relevant information that supports an interpretation of a text.
“When reading informational texts such as articles and excerpts from books, fourth-grade students performing at the Basic level should be able to identify the main purpose and an explicitly stated main idea, as well as gather information from various parts of a text to provide supporting information.”
U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. (2015). The NAEP Reading Achievement Levels by Grade. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/reading/achieve.aspx#2009_grade4.
[7] The National Assessment Governing Board for the NAEP defines the Basic level as follows:
“Eighth-grade students performing at the Basic level should exhibit evidence of conceptual and procedural understanding in the five NAEP content areas. This level of performance signifies an understanding of arithmetic operations—including estimation—on whole numbers, decimals, fractions, and percents.
“Eighth-graders performing at the Basic level should complete problems correctly with the help of structural prompts such as diagrams, charts, and graphs. They should be able to solve problems in all NAEP content areas through the appropriate selection and use of strategies and technological tools—including calculators, computers, and geometric shapes. Students at this level also should be able to use fundamental algebraic and informal geometric concepts in problem solving.
“As they approach the Proficient level, students at the Basic level should be able to determine which of the available data are necessary and sufficient for correct solutions and use them in problem solving. However, these eighth-graders show limited skill in communicating mathematically.”
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2015). The NAEP mathematics achievement levels by grade. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/mathematics/achieve.aspx#grade8.
[8] Fry, R. (2008). The role of schools in the English language learner achievement gap. Washington, DC: Pew Hispanic Center. Retrieved from http://www.pewhispanic.org/2008/06/26/the-role-of-schools-in-the-english-language-learner-achievement-gap/.
[9] Ibid.
[10] Halle, T.G., Hair, E.C., Wandner, L., McNamara, M., & Chien, N. (2012). Predictors and outcomes of early vs. later English language proficiency among English language learners in the ECLS-K. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 27(1), 1-20.
[11] Winsler, A., Burchinal, M. R., Tien, H-C., et al. (2014). Early development among dual language learners: The roles of language use at home, maternal immigration, country of origin, and socio-demographic variables. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 29(4), 750-764.