PROMOTION AND RETENTION OF ENGLISH LEARNERS (ELLs) IN A LARGE URBAN SCHOOL DISTRICT: A POLICY ADVOCACY DOCUMENT

This policy advocacy document argues for a fair and equitable retention and promotion policy for English language learners (ELLs) in elementary grades of a large urban school district. Increasing access and instructional opportunities within bilingual/ESL services combined with more accurate measures of English proficiency would help mitigate random or unfair promotion and retention practices. A needs analysis was conducted on educational, economic, social, political, and moral-ethical dimensions and arguments made in support of the recommended policy (Browder, 1995). This policy solidifies district accountability for the education of all ELL students by mandating schools provide equal opportunity and access to high-quality instruction in the general curriculum either before, after, or during the school day, thus lowering or eliminating the need for ELL summer school and the number of retentions. A needs analysis was conducted based on Browder’s (1995) work. An implementation and assessment model combing aspects of Wagner et al.’s (2006) three phase and Kotter’s (2012) eight stage models for leading change is provided