ABSTRACT
Within the broad context of school accountability, issues related to the equitable inclusion of English learners (ELs) in mandated content assessments present formidable challenges to educational professionals. We examine current U.S. assessment policies in terms of basic ethical considerations and educational value. We then propose that effective inclusion efforts must begin with equitable exposure to and learning of the academic language required in the classroom and on content tests. Reviewing previous studies of academic language (AL), we begin to place AL within an evidentiary-based framework for the development of AL proficiency assessments that will help determine whether EL students have the requisite language skills for taking content tests.
