ESL/Bilingual
Vision
To create an environment that fosters learning, cultural awareness, and civic-mindedness for all students in East Orange School District.
Mission
The EOSD’s ESL/Bilingual Department seeks to support its students by engaging and collaborating with all stakeholders to eliminate barriers to learning. Through communication and cooperation, we will provide the necessary resources to ensure that teachers are equipped to create an environment that fosters learning, cultural awareness, and civic-mindedness for all students in East Orange School District.
EOSD ESL/Bilingual Programs
The EOSD Office of Bilingual Education offers full-time bilingual programs for Haitian Creole and Spanish-speaking students in grades K–12. Speakers of other languages will participate in our English as a Second Language (ESL) Program and will receive ESL instruction combined with Sheltered English Instruction support from trained teachers.
ESL units of study are designed with a focus on culture and celebrating individual differences. Teachers receive training on best practices to weave personal student experiences into daily learning to better facilitate the transfer of knowledge from their native language into English. As a district, our goal is to foster English language acquisition while respecting and celebrating each child’s individual background.
Students are identified for placement in bilingual and ESL programs using multiple criteria, including the results of the Home Language Survey and WIDA Screener assessment. All students identified as English Language Learners (ELL) are required by the NJDOE to participate in the WIDA ACCESS 2.0 assessment, which measures progress towards English language proficiency using the WIDA English Language Development Standards in the following domains:
- Listening
- Reading
- Speaking
- Writing
This assessment is administered every year to all students identified as ELLs, regardless of program participation.
