In Santa Monica and Malibu, the five languages most frequently spoken by English learners are Spanish, Farsi, Russian, Japanese and Korean, officials said.
The statewide test divides students into five categories based on proficiency levels. Students measuring in the first three categories — beginning, early intermediate and intermediate — are considered to have less than reasonable fluency. Students at the early advanced or advanced levels of proficiency are considered to have reasonable fluency.
From 2002 to 2003, the portion of Santa Monica-Malibu students considered reasonably fluent in English rose by 9 percent, to 64 percent of students. And the portion of students classified at the beginning proficiency level, which is the lowest level of fluency, fell from 7 percent in 2002 to just 2 percent the following year.
The district’s middle school students showed marked improvement, with more than 72 percent of English learners considered reasonably fluent in 2003, compared with 60 percent in the previous year.
“Their performance underscores the district’s diligence and effectiveness in responding to our responsibility to provide appropriate services and access to our students who require linguistic support,” Deasy said.
The California English Language Development Test, which measures English proficiency in listening, speaking, reading and writing, is administered each fall to about 1.3 million public school students learning English in the state.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 9, 2004. Read the original PDF.