ESL Learning Standards - Higher Ed - New York State Education ...

DESCRIPTION OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY LEVELS
In New York State there are four levels of English proficiency for the State’s
LEP/ELLs: beginning, intermediate, advanced, and transitional. Students have traditionally
been identified within one of these levels through scores on an English
language placement exam as shown on the following chart:
Levels of English Language Proficiency
(Based on Percentile Score on a Standardized English Reading Test)
1st percentile 10–13 20–23 30–33
40th percentile
Beginning
Intermediate
Advanced
Transitional
Mainstream
(English)
The chart above offers a recommendation for assigning students to levels of ESL
instruction using percentile scores on a standardized test of reading in English. It
is important to recognize that the levels overlap because growth in all four language
skills does not happen uniformly. School officials should decide on the
placement of students scoring within the overlap zone. In such cases, indicators
such as student age, maturity, grade level, students exposure to English, and
achievement in both language and content areas in English and the native language
should be considered in assinging students to specific levels.
The following are general descriptions of the expected competencies of LEP/ELLs
for each language skill area in each of the four proficiency levels.
Beginning ESL Level (1st to 13th percentile)
Listening: Students at the beginning level of ESL can comprehend simple statements
and questions. They usually understand the main idea of extended but simple
messages and conversations with some unfamiliar vocabulary and structures as
well as cognates from their native language. Students at this level benefit from repetition,
rephrasing, and nonverbal cues for comprehension. Students can comprehend
language consisting of simple vocabulary and structures in face-to-face conversations
with peers and familiar adults.
Speaking: Students at this level can use level-appropriate strategies to initiate and
respond to simple statements and engage in simple face-to-face conversations with
more fluent speakers of the same age group. Students at the beginning level frequently
make themselves understood by using repetition and circumlocution.
Reading: Students at the beginning ESL level can understand simple material for
informative or social purposes. They can understand the essential content of short,
general, public statements and standardized messages. They can comprehend the
main ideas of simple informative materials written for native English speakers,
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