With the 2015 passage of the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA), the oversight of language policy in U.S. schools shifted from federal to state governance. Although the education of students officially designated as English learners (ELs) has historically been grounded in federal law, we argue that ELs' educational experiences are also…

Learners of a second language often have limited access to the native culture of that language in an authentic way, resulting in them committing linguistic and intercultural mistakes. One of the main advantages of task-based learning is that it can expose students to real-world circumstances, which makes learning a language more meaningful and…

World language educators are constantly tasked with evaluating appropriate and beneficial assessments for their students. This study investigated how first-year students in a Midwestern United States high school perceived three different alternative assessments in the world language classroom: Dynamic Assessment, Task-based Assessment, and…

The English Placement Test (EPT) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) is designed to provide an accurate placement (or exemption) of international students into the ESL writing and pronunciation classes. Over the last five years, UIUC has experienced an increase in the number of international students taking the EPT. Because of…

This guide is useful for pre-kindergarten educators who work with second language students who wish to document their students' language development over time. Although the purposes may vary among various practitioners and audiences, overall this handbook is intended to provide guidance in how to capture students' language proficiency in reliable…