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English Language Learners

The Susquehanna Township School District’s Department of English Language Development (ELD) [formerly known as English as a Second Language or ESL] provides eligible students that are linguistically and culturally diverse with English language instruction and ensures compliance with state and federal laws and regulations.  A student's English language proficiency and academic background, are taken into consideration in order to deliver appropriate English instruction as well as content support at their level. 

Our goal for English Learners (ELs) is to become independent learners in a school environment. We help ELs gain proficiency in the English language by focusing on the development of academic skills in the domains of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. We also strive to help ELs and their families successfully adapt to our district and culture while maintaining and valuing their own culture. 

Enrollment 

The population of ELs varies throughout the year. Our students represent many different cultures and their native languages include: Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Bambara, Bulgarian, Burmese, Cham, Chinese, Croatian, Filipino, French, German, Greek, Gujarati, Haitian Creole, Hausa, Hindi, Hungarian, Japanese, Karen, Kinyarwanda, Lingala, Mandinka, Nepalese, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamazight, Telugu, Thai, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, and Yoruba. 

Eligibility for the ELD Program 

Upon entry into the Susquehanna Township School District, families are required to complete a Home Language Survey.  If a language other than English is noted, a district screener will contact the family and prior school district for additional information.  If necessary, the student will complete the W-APT (Kindergarten) or WIDA Screener (grades 1 - 12) English language proficiency assessment to determine his or her level of English proficiency in speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Parents will be notified of placement within thirty days if enrolled at the beginning of the school year, or within fourteen days if enrolled during the school year. 

Direct Instruction and Support 

The ELD department provides instruction at two levels: direct instruction and support.  Additionally, direct instruction students can receive support in other content classes such as ELA, mathematics, science, and social studies. Support students receive support in all content areas as necessary. This support can be push-in, pull-out, tutoring, or consultative.

ELL Documents