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1 Jul 2018
Report

English Language Program Participation Among Students in the Kindergarten Class of 2010-11: Spring 2011 to Spring 2012

Jeremy Redford

Providing English language instruction has important implications for millions of children nationwide. For instance, in 2014, 4.6 million public school students participated in programs for English language learner (ELL) students, accounting for about 9 percent of enrollment. This Statistics in Brief report describes the percentage of students who participate in instructional programs designed to teach English language skills and the specific programs in which they participate as they enter schooling.

The report uses data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-11 (ECLS-K:2011), and focuses on the time period where the students were transitioning from kindergarten to first grade. This brief examines the following study questions:

  • How did Kindergartners who participated in English language instruction programs compare with kindergartners who did not participate in English language programs in terms of student and school characteristics?
  • What were the characteristics of the English language instruction that kindergartners with limited English proficiency received in the spring of kindergarten?
  • Did participation in English language instruction programs change between kindergarten and first grade? 

Key Findings

  • Of these kindergartners participating in English language programs designed to teach English language skills, 80 percent were Hispanic, 57 percent lived in households with incomes below the federal poverty level, and 35 percent had parents whose highest level of education was less than a high school credential. The percentage of kindergartners with each of these characteristics was higher among kindergartners participating in English language instruction programs than among those who were not participating in these programs.
  • A higher percentage of kindergartners participating in English language programs (46 percent) than kindergartners not participating in these programs (5 percent) attended schools in which school administrators reported that 50 percent or more of kindergartners in the school were English language learner (ELL) students.
  • Twenty-two percent of kindergartners participating in English language programs were no longer in an English language instruction program in first grade. About 3 percent of kindergartners entered English language programs in first grade after not having been enrolled in them previously. As a net result of this turnover, there was no significant change in the percentage of the 2010–11 kindergarten class participating in English language instruction programs between kindergarten and first grade.
PDF icon English Language Program Participation Among Students in the Kindergarten Class of 2010-11: Spring 2011 to Spring 2012 (PDF)

Related Projects

Project

Early Childhood Longitudinal Studies (ECLS)

The Early Childhood Longitudinal Studies (ECLS) program offers the first nationally representative study of early childhood development and education in the United States. The ECLS program currently has three separate longitudinal studies fielded by the National Center for Education Statistics: The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–99; the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort; the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study of 2010–11.
Project

Study of English Language Learners in Massachusetts

Research by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has shown that the majority of English language learners (ELLs) who entered Massachusetts public schools in kindergarten were reclassified within three years; however, most still struggled with reading and math in later grades. AIR conducted research and analysis on Massachusetts state data that will provide a profile of ELLs and policy recommendations for improving their outcomes.

Related Work

22 May 2018
Brief

The Summer After Kindergarten: Children’s Experiences by Socioeconomic Characteristics

This Statistics in Brief analyzes student's participation in summer activities compared by two socioeconomic characteristics - household poverty status and parents' highest level of education. Data for socioeconomic characteristics was gathered from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-11 while data related to summer activity participation was collected from interviews with parents or guardians in the fall of 2011.
Topic: 
Education, Equity in Education, Longitudinal Education Studies, Early Childhood and Child Development
1 Sep 2015
Service

Attaining Core Content for English Language Learners (ACCELL)

The ACCELL approach includes methods, resources, and tools to help teachers across the subject areas scaffold core content for ELLs. ACCELL was strategically developed from the ground up to align with college and career ready standards.
Topic: 
Education, English Learners, Reading and Literacy

Further Reading

  • Early Childhood Longitudinal Studies (ECLS)
  • The New First Grade: Kindergarten
  • Findings From the Fourth-Grade Round of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010–11 (ECLS-K:2011)
  • Parent and Family Involvement in Education, from the National Household Education Surveys Program of 2012
  • Homeschooling in the United States: 2012
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Jeremy Redford

Jeremy Redford

Senior Researcher

Topic

Education
Early Childhood and Child Development
English Learners
Reading and Literacy

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