Thirty-one percent of the students in Tulsa Public Schools are acquiring English in addition to their other coursework. As of this 11/27/23 regular board meeting “that is 10,395 students from prekindergarten through 12th grade” reported Dr. Grisso, Executive Director of Language and Cultural Services.
The number grows daily with 100 English Language Learners (ELLs) being added each week since late October of this year. A sizeable portion of ELLs in the secondary schools have had limited schooling and/or sizeable gaps in their education. A large number of the enrollees have no previous school records and/or no readily available way to acquire them.
By the end of 2022 TPS received 1,717 new ELLs. Now, near the end of 2023 TPS has received 2,098. Dr. Grisso projects receiving 4,206 by the end of 2024. At the current time, based on current state testing requirements, English language learners make up 10% of the State Report Card.
Only about 10% of the ELLs were not born in America. Some of the ELLs can read, but not in English. All of the ELLs could greatly benefit from the specialized services of English Learning Development (EDL)Teachers. The vast majority of all the students acquiring English are in the classrooms with students whose primary language is English or who have successfully “graduated” from needing the special assistance of EDL teachers.
