Goals
The English Language Development Department (ELD) is designed to assist English Language Learners (ELLs) in becoming productive individuals through a comprehensive, challenging and enriching educational program eventually leading to a fully mainstreamed learning environment. Our ELD program affords ELL students the opportunity to achieve long-term personal, social-emotional and academic success.
The program is designed to offer instruction in a student-friendly and supportive setting, recognizing that English Language Learners arriving in our community are often separated from all that is familiar to them - family, friends, school, home, culture and the use of their own language in the greater community.
Program Highlights
Summer School Requirements
Incoming ELL students are expected to enroll in a summer school course prior to their start at Mid-Pacific in the fall semester. After that, all ELL students are required to take summer school courses until they complete the advanced level and are fully mainstreamed.
Placement
Students are initially placed based on their transcripts, teacher recommendations, interview, and English language placement or standardized test (TOEFL Jr., TOEFL, iTEP Slate, CaMLA, SSAT). For more information, please visit our International Admissions page.
After placement, students take 1-4 ELD courses per year and progress out of ELD into fully mainstreamed courses when they have completed the advanced level of ELD.
Curriculum
The ELD curriculum is composed of 3 levels - beginning, intermediate and advanced. Students take a maximum of 4 ELD courses per year while concurrently taking mainstream content courses of increasing complexity as their English improves. Each course meets for nearly 3 hours and 30 minutes a week. Students are expected to maintain a B- average in ELD courses in order to progress to the next level.
ELD courses include:
High School ELD Courses | ||
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HS Basic
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HS Intermediate
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HS Advanced
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Middle School ELD Courses | ||
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Basic
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Intermediate
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Advanced
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Entry level guidelines | ||||||
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MS Basic | MS Intermediate | MS Advanced | HS Basic | HS Intermediate | HS Advanced | |
Reading | Can read comfortably at a lexile level of 350 or higher | Can read comfortably at a lexile level of 550 or higher | Can read comfortably at a lexile level of 800 or higher | Can read comfortably at a lexile level of 400 or higher | Can read comfortably at a lexile level of 600 or higher | Can read comfortably at a lexile level of 900 or higher |
Writing | Can write simple sentences | Can write a simple paragraph | Can write a 3 paragraph essay | Can write simple and compound sentences | Can write an academic paragraph | Can write a 5 paragraph essay |
Listening | Understands simple social conversations and classroom directions | Understands social conversations with support and can understand multi-step directions in the classroom | Understands most social conversations at normal speed and can get the main ideas and key details of academic lectures | Understands simple social conversations and classroom directions | Understands social conversations with support and can understand multi-step directions in the classroom | Understands most social conversations at normal speed and can get the main ideas and key details of academic lectures |
Speaking | Communicates in common social situations and can communicate needs at school | Communicates in social situations and can contribute to academic discussions with support | Communicates comfortably and contributes to academic discussions | Communicates in common social situations and can communicate needs at school | Communicates in social situations and can contribute to academic discussions with support | Communicates comfortably and contributes to academic discussions |
Chris Ferry
English Language Development Specialist
808-441-3720
cferry@midpac.edu