Education

"There is no equality of treatment merely by providing students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum; for students who do not understand English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education." Link to the Case

This section describes Federal and State obligations to provide bilingual education for LEP students receiving education and special services.

Federal Protections                                                                   

The Federal basis for the right to bilingual education is the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VI, Section 601, of the Act prohibits school districts receiving federal funds from discriminating against individuals on the basis of race, color, or national origin. Section 602 of the Act authorized the former Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) to issue regulations so that federal aid recipients complied with Section 601.

In 1968, HEW issued guidelines that required districts receiving federal funds to ensure that students of a particular race or national origin were not denied opportunity to receive the curricula, classes and activities obtained by other students. In 1970, HEW issued a memorandum that made the guidelines more specific, requiring districts to:

1. take affirmative steps to rectify language deficiencies of these students;
2. refrain from assigning these students to classes for the mentally handicapped on the basis of criteria which reflected their English language skills;
3. insure that any ability grouping designed to meet these students’ language skills did not result in permanent tracks; and
4. notify the parents of school activities in a language that they understood.

Title VI and the guidelines apply to all LEP students, including those with disabilities. This section was taken from the following article available at this link.

The Equal Educational Opportunity Act of 1974 (EEOA) requires states “to ensure that needs of students with limited English language proficiency are addressed,” by requiring them to remove barriers to equal participation in educational programs now rather than later, and it provides students with a right of action to enable them to enforce their rights, 20 U.S.C. § 1706. Flores v. Arizona, 516 F.3d 1140,1173 (9th Cir., 2008), (Link to Case) quoting Idaho Migrant Council v. Bd. of Educ., 647 F.2d 69, 71 (9th Cir.1981).

Under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), states, districts, and schools have two sets of responsibilities for students with limited English proficiency. They are responsible for ensuring that these students make progress in learning English under Title III and that they become proficient in language arts and mathematics under Title I.

Beginning with the 2004-2005 school year, The Department of Education is required to annually review whether states have made adequate yearly progress (as defined by the state) for each of the student groups and have met their objectives for increasing the number or percentage of students who become proficient in English. See a copy of the report here and in the resources below.

New York Protections                                                              4

The New York Department of Education regulations describe the obligation of public schools to provide bilingual education instruction for LEP students. See Part 117 and 154 below. Other regulations also provide that testing materials used to assess whether students should be enrolled in special education programs must not be racially or culturally biased, and for LEP students, these materials must measure the student’s true abilities rather than measuring their English skills. See 8 NYCRR 2004.4. 

Federal Resources                                                                          

Federal Department of Education (DOE)

• English Language Learners Resources from the (DOE)
• Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA)
• The Department of Education LEP Guidance
• No Child Left Behind: GAO Report: Assistance from Education Could Help States Better Measure Progress of Students with Limited English Proficiency
• GAO Report: Meeting the Needs of Students With LEP
• DOE Office of Civil Rights Letters
  • Mesa,  Arizona LEP Student Parent Access
  • Tucson, Arizona, LEP Student Parent Access

National Studies on LEP Educational and Special Education Issues

• Descriptive Study of Services to LEP Students and LEP Students with Disabilities, 2003 Development Associates, Inc., submitted to The U.S. Department of Education A Copy of the Report is Here. Other Data from the Report.

• The New Demography of America’s Schools: Immigration and the No Child Left Behind Act, 2004 The Urban Institute  A Copy of the Report is Here

• Hispanic/Latino Deaf Students in Our Schools, 2001 Postsecondary Education Consortium of The University of Tennessee A Copy of the Report is Here.

• Addressing the Disproportionate Number of Minority Students in Special Education, 2003 ECS. A Copy of the Report Here.

• Language Difference v Language/Learning Disability:
  The art and science of distinguishing between diversity and disorder. A Copy of the Report is Here

• A Review of 50 States’ Online Large-scale Assessment Policies: Are English Language Learners with Disabilities Considered? University of Minnesota Study, A Copy of the report is available here

• Confronting the Unique Challenges of Including English Language Learners with Disabilities in Statewide Assessments, University of Minnesota, A Copy of the Report is Here

State Resources                                                                                 

New York State Department of Education

• New York's Profile by OELA
• NYS Department of Education 2002 Bilingual Requirements
• NYS Department of Education 2004 VESID Report on LEP
• New York State (NYS) Office of Bilingual Education
• NY Bilingual Education Technical Assistance Center (BETAC)
• NYS Bilingual Education Regulations
• NYS Part 154 Requirements for Schools
• Part 154 LEP Procedures Chart (PDF), from BETAC
• New York's No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Home Page
• New York DOE Memo on NCLB Requirements for LEP/ELL
• A Parent's Guide to Special Education (in Spanish)

Other Resources                                                                                    

Guides and Manuals

• Department of Education NCLB Guide (in Spanish)
• Understanding the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: English Proficiency Guide, Learning Point Associates (PDF)
• Special Education Resources for Spanish-speakers
• Determining Referrals for LEP Students to Special Education. A Copy of the Manual is Available Here
• English Language Learners With Special Needs: Effective Instructional Strategies, Vanderbilt University Study, A Copy of the Manual is Here
• Educating English Language Learners: Implementing Instructional Practices, 2006 National Council of La Raza
• Improving Assessment and Accountability for English Language Learners in the No Child Left Behind Act
• State of Idaho LEP Policy 2002

Other Websites

• National Association of Bilingual Educators Guide
• Learning Disabilities Online Resources in Spanish
• English Language Learners (ELLs) and Literacy Development
• National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition & Language Instruction Educational Programs (NCELA)

Last Updated: August  11, 2008 ● Empire Justice Center © 2008