News
2-15-10
New Dual Language Listserv
Many dual language educators believe that the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) make it difficult for Dual Language Schools to meet annual yearly progress (AYP) indicators, resulting potentially in undeserved sanctions for schools. The upcoming reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) offers dual language educators an opportunity to have an impact on federal policies that will improve the recognition of their unique needs and strengths.
WIDA has agreed to host a Listserv to allow dual language educators across the US an opportunity to dialogue, share best practices, and strategize about new policies that promote and support high quality dual language practices and outcomes. Administrators and teachers from Nuestro Mundo, Inc., Madison, Wisconsin's first dual language immersion school, have agreed to serve as Listserv moderators to stimulate the conversation. WIDA staff will participate only minimally as they want to encourage educators in the field to be the main contributors to this Listserv.
WIDA will also be providing technical support for the Listserv. If you wish to subscribe, please send an email to Bob Rossa at rmrossa@wisc.edu and write "Subscribe to Dual Language Listserv" in the subject line.
1-22-10
ACCESS for ELLs Test Administration Training DVD available for sale!
Consortium members: if you would like to purchase a DVD copy of the Grades 1-12 ACCESS for ELLs training video for $10.00, please e-mail your name, shipping address, phone number, and the quantity of DVDs desired to help@wida.us. We will respond to your e-mail with a shipping quote and information about payment options. The video files can also be viewed for free on this website (see article from 12-18-09).
12-18-09
NEW ACCESS for ELLs Test Administration Training Video
WIDA is pleased to present a new resource to assist with training ACCESS for ELLs test administrators (TAs). Please note that this video does not take the place of the online training course modules, but can serve as an introduction for new TAs and a refresher for seasoned TAs. This material is accessible via your secure training course login. They are located near the bottom of the green navigation menu under "Grades 1-12 Video."
12-14-09
WIDA welcomes our 22nd member state, Wyoming!
We look forward to assisting Wyoming's educators and further extending our mission of promoting educational equity for English language learners! Read about it in Mary Ann Zehr's Education Week blog.
11-24-09
WIDA is now hiring a Correlation/Alignment Manager!
The successful applicant must have at least a Masters degree and experience with content analysis and/or alignment studies at the school, district, or state level. This individual must also have experience managing short term projects with multiple stakeholders. Research, presentation, and alignment study design experience is preferred.
Visit the University job site to review the complete list of requirements and principal duties. Interested applicants should submit a detailed resume and a cover letter describing how their experience and qualifications align with the position duties and responsibilities to: wcerbusofc@education.wisc.edu. PVL 63318 should be listed in the subject line. The deadline for consideration is December 15, 2009.
11-17-09
Training Tool Kit for 2009-10 Assessment Now Online
The ACCESS for ELLs Training Tool Kit, including PowerPoint presentations and other supporting documents, has now been completely updated for 2009-10. Please login to the training course and click on "Training Tool Kit" to view and download these materials. Some states may distribute CD-ROMs of the Tool Kit contents to consortium member districts in the coming weeks.
The Tool Kit is part of WIDA's strategy to build local capacity for training. If you have questions about the contents or appropriate use of the Training Tool Kit, please contact the WIDA Help Desk at 1-866-276-7735 or help@wida.us.
10-29-09
Course Offered by Colleagues of WIDA
WIDA regularly collaborates with our educational
colleagues at the UW-Madison. Early in its "idea stage" of
development, WIDA offered input on a new offering that
might be of interest throughout the WIDA Consortium,
particularly geared toward teachers with little background
in ELL/bilingual education. The following course offers
transferrable graduate credits for in-practice teachers.
The Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison is pleased to offer a new
online course: Educating English Learners.
This course is designed to support preK-12 educators--teachers, support staff, and administrators--who are
making decisions as to program and staffing designs,
support services and resources, and educational
approaches for English learners. Based on a sociocultural
view of schooling for English learners, it draws on the
lives and experiences of 5 students from diverse
backgrounds in different locales to illuminate issues that
impact the language, literacy and academic development
of English learners in schools. Through viewing videos of
students, readings, collaborative discussions and activities,
course participants will engage in analyses of issues, and
applications of course content to their specific sites and
contexts.
This is a credit-bearing (3 credit) graduate-level course for
teachers, staff and administrators who are currently
practicing in schools. It is offered in the Spring semester
of 2010 (beginning late in January). For registration
information or questions, please contact Lisa Hebgen,
Education Outreach & Partnerships, at lmhebgen@wisc.edu, or 608-263-0951.
10-27-09
WIDA welcomes our 21st member state, New Mexico!
We look forward to assisting New Mexico's educators and further extending our mission of promoting educational equity for English language learners! To read more about their decision, please visit Education Week's Learning the Language blog.
10-9-09
ACCESS for ELLs Test Administration Manuals posted
The 2009-10 ACCESS for ELLs® Test Administration Manuals for Kindergarten and Grades 1-12 have been posted in our online training course. Please login to view and/or print the TA Manuals.
9-21-09
WIDA Reception at SETESOL a big success!
A special thank you to those who attended the WIDA Reception at SETESOL in Atlanta last Thursday! Congratulations to our raffle winners; Wynne Bates of Milledgeville, GA took home a WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten assessment kit, and Amany Habib of Pensacola, FL who won a free WIDA ELP Standards book. We hope that the conversations we had at this reception will be fruitful in the coming weeks and months!
9-1-09
A Perfect Match
WIDA and the Illinois Resource Center are teaming up to offer a 6-day series of professional development for districts interested in using data to drive program development and improvement for English language learners. To learn more, please visit the "Perfect Match" page of the IRC website.
8-31-09
NCELA releases article about ONPAR study findings
This season's AccELLerate newsletter from the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition focuses on ELLs and science/math content. WIDA's Rebecca Kopriva has contributed an article about research and development of the ONPAR test items.
7-27-09
New document posted!
A Spanish translation of the Kindergarten W-APT™ Summary Scoring Sheet has been posted in the secure W-APT section of this site. Special thanks to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction for sharing this translation for the benefit of our students' families!
7-15-09
Tech Report Released
The newest Technical Report covers the Development & Field Test of Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs®. This report pertains to the development of the new K test instrument which took place from 2006-08 and the test became operational in 2008-09. The report is now available on the home page of the online training course (login required).
7-7-09
WIDA welcomes our 20th member state, Hawaii!
We look forward to assisting Hawaii's educators and further extending our mission of promoting educational equity for English language learners! Read about the Hawaii Department of Education's reasons for joining the consortium in Mary Ann Zehr's Education Week blog.
6-2-09
Tech Report Released
The ACCESS for ELLs® Annual Technical Report No. 4, Series 103, 2007-2008 Administration is now available. These documents address the validity and reliability of the ACCESS test to accurately assign students their proficiency level scores.
6-1-09
New Document Released Outlining WIDA MODEL™ for Kindergarten Usage & Scores
Several questions have been regularly brought to our attention about the new WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten assessment, which we have attempted to answer in a new document explaining the intended use of this assessment and the scores it yields. The memo provide answers to the following questions:
1. For whom is the WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten intended?
2. What are the purposes of the WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten?
3. How can information from the WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten be used?
Please review this new WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten memo carefully. The information is equally important for those who have purchased the assessment already as for those who are considering doing so.
4-23-09
2009 Interpretive Guide for Score Reports Now Available
A PDF file of this report can be downloaded from the ACCESS for ELLs® page of this site.
New to the Interpretive Guide for 2009: an explanation of the two types of proficiency level scores for Kindergarten.
4-17-09
Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs® Scores Memo
This memo provides notice that the 2009 proficiency level score interpretations will look quite different for Kindergarten due to the new test format that was introduced this year. If you have questions about any of the memo's content, please feel free to contact the WIDA Help Desk.
3-25-09
Instructional Materials Correlation
WIDA has received inquiries from ELL educators that indicate there may be confusion about the relationship between WIDA and certain instructional materials. WIDA has not reviewed or endorsed any instructional materials, nor has it reviewed or authorized any textbook or instructional materials correlations. Any claims of correlation to the WIDA ELP Standards are solely those of the publisher presenting the correlation document and not WIDA. If you encounter or have been presented materials for potential purchase that appear to imply a connection to WIDA or the ACCESS for ELLs® test, that appear to imply an endorsement by WIDA, or that lead you to believe that the product is somehow associated with WIDA, then we would like to hear from you. We would also like to know if any of these perceived relationships have influenced any of your purchasing decisions. Please contact Jim Lyne at 608-265-2262 or jwlyne@wisc.edu or the WIDA Help Desk (help@wida.us) to let us know. Thank you!
3-24-09
WIDA ELL CAN DO Booklets
WIDA is pleased to announce the release of a new publication intended to foster collaboration among ESL/bilingual teachers, general education teachers, students, families, and administrators. These short, handy booklets contain a brief introduction, suggestions for collaboration, WIDA's Performance Definitions for English language proficiency levels 1-6, and the grade level cluster-specific CAN DO Descriptors. These booklets are intended to be affordable and straightforward for individuals who are not familiar with our aligned system for instruction and assessment of ELLs. As they are not standard-specific, they encourage teachers from any subject area to begin to understand what students in their classrooms CAN DO at the various levels of language proficiency.
The WIDA English Language Learner CAN DO Booklets are available by grade level cluster (PreK-K, 1-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12) for a Consortium price of $7 each or $30 for a set of one booklet from each of the five clusters. Non-consortium members pay $8 apiece or $35 for a complete PreK-12 set. Orders may be placed by downloading an order form. Once we have received your order form, we will contact you with a shipping quote.
The WIDA ELL CAN DO Booklets may also be viewed on the CAN DO Descriptors page of our website.
2-27-09
Study shows ACCESS for ELLs® is doing what it's designed to do
Please see Mary Ann Zehr of Education Week's blog explaining a newly released study. Results show that how students perform in the Reading and Writing domains of ACCESS for ELLs® is a good indicator of how they will score on their state's academic tests for reading, writing, and mathematics. This means that scores can be considered reliable in deciding if ELLs are ready to respond to grade-level content without additional language support.
1-26-09
Virginia Department of Education ELP Standards Videos
The Virginia Department of Education has generously offered to share a series of videos created by teachers, for teachers, to promote understanding of the WIDA ELP Standards and offer example lesson plans based on certain language functions.
You may view the videos and download lesson materials from the Virginia Department of Education website. A permanent link is available at the bottom of the ELP Standards page.
WIDA encourages and appreciates the willingness of our member states to share any such local efforts in order to maximize the number of educators benefitting from your work. If your state or district has unique or outstanding projects underway that can be shared with the consortium, please contact WIDA Outreach Specialist Andrea Cammilleri.
1-12-09
WIDA Consortium featured in article about ELL Placement Testing
Read an Education Week feature story on placement testing in one of WIDA's largest districts in terms of ELL population, Gwinnett County, Georgia. The story profiles several high school students and how test scores are used to determine placement and monitor progress as students learn English.
12-18-08
New WIDA ACCESS for ELLs® Sample Items
WIDA is pleased to announce the release of a new set of ACCESS for ELLs® Sample Items for grades 1-12. The sample items are free and available to the general public on the ACCESS for ELLs® page of this website.
By releasing these test questions, we hope to foster awareness of how this English language proficiency assessment operates. This understanding will benefit all stakeholders in the education of English language learners, from students themselves and their families to teachers and administrators, as well as professors training future teachers. The publication is formatted to showcase how ACCESS for ELLs® test items relate directly to the WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards upon which they are based, creating a system that allows teachers to use the ELP standards in conjunction with test results to target the language objectives that students need to advance their proficiency. Like the actual test, these sample items are in full color.
This publication is not in any way equivalent to a test form and should not be used for assessing students. In future years, we will be releasing more items to fill out the range of grade levels, proficiency levels, domains, and content areas that are addressed in the assessment.
WIDA hopes that this publication will be a valuable addition to the resources available on this website for the purpose of informing educators about WIDA's mission to develop standards-based assessment, curriculum and instruction materials that will prepare students for linguistic and academic success. Read Mary Ann Zehr's article about the sample items on the Education Week website.
10-17-08
Grade Level Cluster-Specific CAN DO Descriptors posted
WIDA is pleased to release its new grade level cluster-specific versions of the popular CAN DO Descriptors. With the guidance of WIDA's Lead Developer, Margo Gottlieb, these descriptors were written and later approved by teachers through a survey rating process. The Descriptors are currently available for download as Word documents, but will soon be available in full color and for sale as laminated spiral booklets. Please check back later in 2008 for updates to this project.
10-15-08
Formative Assessment Grant Awarded to WIDA
The WIDA Consortium is pleased to announce that it has received a three-year grant with generous support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to develop and validate a formative assessment system for teachers serving English language learners (ELLs) at the secondary level. These classroom assessments will function as an integral component of WIDA's overall system of standards and assessments for ELLs and will be aligned to the nationally recognized WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards™ and the ACT College Readiness Standards. Initial development work is slated to begin late fall 2008.
The project, under the direction of WIDA Research Director H. Gary Cook, is designed to assist teachers in measuring student progress in developing the essential language needed for success in academic classes. Quality, ongoing feedback from these assessments will help teachers and students target learning objectives and thus more effectively prepare students to accelerate learning toward the goal of language proficiency and post-secondary academic success. Lorraine Valdez Pierce, a nationally-recognized scholar on ELL formative assessment, will be involved with the project along with the Center for Applied Linguistics.
Piloting and field testing of these assessments will take place in urban school districts in keeping with the Carnegie Corporation's priorities for assistance by building the K-16 pipeline, strengthening accountability, and strengthening human capital*, specifically as they relate to ELLs' pathway to college. The goal of the project is to have an integrated, secondary formative assessment system aligned with WIDA and college readiness standards operationally available by 2011.
9-24-08
EAG funds awarded to WIDA to develop English language proficiency assessment for students with severe disabilities
WIDA is pleased to announce that the Alternate ACCESS for ELLs™ assessment project has received $1 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Education's Enhanced Assessment Grant competition. To learn more about the project, read the latest "Learning the Language" blog from Mary Ann Zehr of Education Week. Also, please visit the Alternate ACCESS page of our website.
7-3-08
Special Announcement
The ACCESS for ELLs® Test Administrator Training course is now located on this website, www.wida.us. Even if you had an account in the UW Oshkosh Desire2Learn system for this purpose, you must reenroll in this new course. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please visit your state's page in the green menu at the lower left of this page to learn about enrollment procedures in your state. If you have already received an enrollment email, you may login by clicking the Login button in the upper right hand corner of this page.
10-02-07
The W-APT™ Score Calculator
The W-APT™ section of the website now offers a tool to save test administrators the time and trouble of manually converting raw scores and calculating the composite proficiency level (CPL) scores. With the click of a button, it calculates Speaking, Reading, Writing and Listening proficiency scores, along with the CPL score and a grade-adjusted CPL score. Unfortunately, it can not be applied to Kindergarten scores at this time, but will be updated in Spring of 2008 to include Kindergarten in addition to grades 1-12.
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