Using TESOL's 1997 landmark publication, ESL Standards for Pre-K-12 as a building block, the new 2006 PreK-12 English Language Proficiency Standards expands the scope and breadth of ESL content standards:
Connects language to the specific core curriculum content areas of English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. Values students' native languages and cultures as the foundation for developing academic language proficiency. Acknowledges the social and intercultural aspects of language development. Provides an organizational structure that is synchronized with US federal legislation.
World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment Consortium (WIDA) is a consortium of nine states, formed in 2002 with federal monies, to develop comprehensive English language proficiency standards. This new volume provides extensive matrices elucidating sample performance indicators, organized by the five standards (targetinglanguage in social/intercultural interactions, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies) and grade-level cluster (PreK-K, 1-3, 4-5, 6-8, and 9-12). The matrices are formed by the interaction of the five language proficiency levels (starting, emerging, developing, expanding, and bridging) with each language domain (listening, speaking, reading, writing).
