ABSTRACT
In the past decade, most of the states in the United States have adopted College- and Career- Readiness (CCR) standards for K–12 students with aligned summative assessments in the areas of English language arts, mathematics and science. These standards have exerted a strong influence on a new generation of English language proficiency (ELP) standards and consequently on ELP assessments for students who are learning English as an additional language in school, or English learners (EL) students. This chapter describes how approaches to defining an ELP construct have evolved in response to these policies and practices, as well as language development theories and research. The chapter first reviews theories of language acquisition that have implications for operationalizing the ELP construct for ELP assessments. The chapter then describes how the ELP construct can be derived from current CCR and ELP standards, revealing essential language knowledge and skills that EL students may need in order to meaningfully participate and succeed in academic learning and assessment. Robust construct definitions of ELP can help in providing appropriate interventions and instructional materials as well as creating a foundation for effective professional supports for the implementation of the CCR and ELP standards with EL students.
