Resolution Calls for Fair Testing Practices

At its regular meeting last night, the Falls Church City School Board joined other school boards across the commonwealth in passing a resolution to establish a contingency plan for testing  students whose English proficiency is limited (LEP students) and whose ability to read and comprehend English is limited.  The resolution comes on the heels of the U.S. Department of Education’s refusal to allow Virginia schools to continue using the Stanford English Language Proficiency (SELP) test as a proxy for the grade level SOL reading test for Levels 1 and 2 LEP students. 

The SELP test takes into account language deficiencies and measures student learning in other ways.   Because of the federal ruling, Virginia school divisions are left with only two options:  to give the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) reading test to all Level 1 and 2 LEP students who have been enrolled in United States Schools for more than 12 months; or to give the Virginia Grade Level Assessment (VGLA) test to all those students. 

“Giving either test will result in failures for most students and a very frustrating and demeaning testing situation for those students,” Superintendent Lois Berlin said.  “We would be requiring students who do not read English or read it with little understanding to take a grade level reading test.  We believe such a requirement constitutes an invalid and unethical practice.”

The Falls Church City School Board’s resolution signals the intent to test the grade level reading proficiency of only Levels 1 and 2 LEP students for whom teachers and staff determine the SOL grade level reading test represents a fair, valid, reliable and appropriate assessment of grade level reading performance.  Falls Church City Public Schools would not test grade level reading performance of students who can not read such tests in English.  Nevertheless, all Levels 1 and 2 LEP students would continue to have their English language proficiency, including reading, assessed and reported in accordance with Falls Church’s state-approved local assessment procedures and instruments.