§ 11 — Benchmarks, guidelines and learning success templates for English learner programs

Section 11. The department shall develop: (i) benchmarks for attaining English proficiency for English learners, (ii) guidelines to assist school districts in the identification of English learners who do not meet benchmarks and (iii) an English learning success template for use by districts to assist English learners who do not meet English proficiency benchmarks.The guidelines shall include: (i) recommendations for school districts to identify and monitor an English learner's progress in English proficiency; (ii) methods for school districts to provide personalized goals for English learners who are not meeting English proficiency benchmarks; (iii) best practices for ensuring that English learners meet English proficiency benchmarks and personalized goals including, but not limited to, methods to incorporate parental input; and (iv) methods for school districts to share best practices in assisting English learners in gaining English proficiency.Upon the department's creation of the success templates and guidelines pursuant to this section, school districts shall adopt procedures to identify English learners who do not meet English proficiency benchmarks and shall establish a process for the district to: (i) identify areas in which identified English learners needs improvement and establish personalized goals for the identified English learners to attain English proficiency; (ii) assess and track the progress of English learners in the identified areas of improvement; (iii) review resources and services available to identified English learners that may assist said learners in the identified areas of improvement; and (iv) incorporate input from the parents or legal guardian of the identified English learner,.The department shall solicit public comment prior to issuing the benchmarks, guidelines and English learning success template. The department shall review the benchmarks, guidelines and English learning success template not less than every 5 years. The review shall include a period of public comment. School districts shall provide a copy of the department guidelines, materials describing the benchmarks and the English learning success template to the parent or guardian of each English learner, in the English learner's primary language, at the beginning of each school year or upon enrollment of the child in an English learner program if the enrollment is not concurrent with the beginning of the school year.