Does English-Language-Learner Classification Help or Hinder Students?

Designating early elementary students who are close to being proficient in English as English-language learners can have "significant and positive effects on the academic achievement" of the students, new research concludes. The study concludes that additional support that students receive as English-learners helps foster higher achievement in language arts and mathematics than students who were on the cusp but were identified as initial English-proficient studentsand, as a result, did not receive the extra services. Nami Shina research scientist at CRESST, the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards & Student Testing at the University of California, Los Angelesused...