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Compiled by Jenn Noorjanian, EL Director, Milford Public Schools, Milford, Massachusetts
District EL Department Highlights
MCAS and WIDA ACCESS State Assessments
- Students successfully participated in MCAS and WIDA ACCESS assessments.
- School administrators and teachers are regularly informed about EL student performance and given access to WIDA ACCESS data via our Ellevation platform.
- All Milford staff and administrators are made aware of the importance of providing bilingual dictionaries to all EL and former English learners (FEL) students in the district during the administration of Math, Science, and Civics MCAS. All homeroom teachers are provided with dictionaries for successful dissemination in this “loaner” program.
Professional Development
- SEI Endorsement course opportunities are forwarded to the district employees as needed.
- SEI PDP opportunities are avialble through the WIDA Secure Portal and the Ellevation platform.
- Annual attendance by district staff at the state MATSOL and MABE Conferences is celebrated.
- Informal PD during Team Collaboration Time (TCT) is planned with the building administration.
Student Placement, Programming, and Monitoring
- See Student Placement and Programming tab on Home Page.
ESL Teaching Staff and Administration Collaboration with SEI Teachers and Leadership Representatives
- SEI teachers and grade-level/department SEI teams work collaboratively with ESL teachers to plan and facilitate instruction for our English Learners. The teams of teachers have team collaboration time (TCT)/common planning time (CPT) with the EL staff members who participate in academic planning for instructional lessons and special subject classes.
- EL department representatives (EL CTLs, ESL Teachers and TAs, etc.) are members of all school department meetings, leadership meetings, literacy councils, curriculum councils, etc., so that the needs of ELs can be recognized and addressed. This ensures continuing academic and intervention services for ELs, as well as equal access to all school activities.
Community Outreach
- Milford Community Use
- Milford Youth Center
- Milford Town Library
- There is close coordination between Milford Town Library and Milford Public Schools; the library has an extensive collection of world language books, videos. online platforms such as Mango Languages, and offers the community ongoing ESL classes and conversation drop-in opportunities.
EL Curriculum Development
- Milford Public Schools has put together a team of SEI and EL teachers to work on a content-based K–12 English Language Development curriculum using DESE offered UBD MCU templates (curriculum maps, unit plans, scope and sequence documents, WIDA resources, etc.) Time to discuss curriculum development and the implications on instructional practice is also spent during curriculum team leader (CTL) meetings.
State Support of EL Directors and Mentoring Efforts
- The district EL director has been instrumental in reaching out to surrounding districts in the Blackstone Valley to share professional development opportunities.
- Parent Involvement meetings through ELPAC/MPAC: Multilingual Parent Advisory Council is held four times throughout the year (October, January, March, and May)
- Translations and Interpretation are available through the Family Resource Center (FRC)
- State and Federal regulations require that districts provide parents of EL students with information about assessments and related academic achievement in a language they can understand.
- Report cards and progress reports are available in the major second languages found in our district: Spanish and Portuguese.
- Parents may request a translation of their child’s report card or progress report by contacting the EL Director or Translation and Interpretation Coordinator for the Milford Public Schools.
- Codes of Conduct are also available in these three languages (English, Spanish, and Portuguese) for each school, as well as the year’s District Calendar.
Other Family Outreach Initiatives where translators are available:
- MCAS Informational Evening
- WIDA ACCESS Informational Evening
- Title I Math and Literacy Nights
- Multilingual Parent Advisory Council Meetings (MPAC)
- Adult ESL classes are offered through the Milford Public Library and our partnership with Framingham Adult English as a Second Language PLUS (FAESL Plus)
- Back To School Nights
- Parent Information Nights
- Student Assemblies
- Family Community Network
- Kindergarten Orientation Night
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