1.4 million Californian English learner students will soon be getting language education supported by a recent federal settlement.  The Department and Board of Education has consented to put in place additional training and monitoring procedures to ensure language services to the English Learner-students comply with what is required by the federal Equal Educational Opportunities Act.

Meanwhile a new way of judging school performance – moving away from the Academic Performance Index score that has been used until now – was approved by Californian state education leaders. This accountability system instead will look at schools on how English learners are progressing, what the graduation rates look like, how ready graduates are for college and/or careers and the level of suspension rates.

It was also reported at the end of August that those students from Sacramento made “modest progress” in both English and Math.  According to Sacramento County schools superintendent, Dave Gordon, this new is “encouraging…We are making gains across the board and across our student subgroups. … I would say our districts and our teachers are making good progress in delivering a new curriculum and using a new assessment.”