Culture-Ed presents Navajo language assessment data; district now a bilingual-seal testing site

Ophelia Sanchez, director of Culture-Ed for Gallup-McKinley City Schools, presented district data on Navajo language instruction and assessment and reported steps to expand bilingual-seal testing for students.

Sanchez said the district builds its MasteryConnect assessments to mimic the Dene proficiency language assessment (DELPA) from the Navajo Nation and that each tested skill maps to specific classroom questions. She described a sequence of skills tested across grade levels: introductions (Q1–2), repetition (Q3–5), visual vocabulary (Q6–8) and oral comprehension/conversation (Q9–11). On the record, Sanchez explained the scoring for conversation items: “A 0 means we absolutely did not get a response. A 1 means that they actually answered in English. A 2 is a simple word in Navajo and a 3 is that they answered in a complete phrase.”

Sanchez said the district’s data show steady development in vocabulary and repeating skills from elementary through middle school, while the ability to hold extended spoken conversations in Navajo is still developing. She said high-school Navajo courses (Navajo 1 and Navajo 2) show more students answering in Navajo phrases, and that the district aims to increase the number of students who qualify for the bilingual seal.

The district reported it has become a testing site for the Navajo Nation bilingual seal and that several district teachers and Culture-Ed staff are certified to proctor the exam. Sanchez said the district is seeking opportunities to allow testing earlier than senior year and to permit retesting, because many students are close to the passing threshold and would benefit from additional assessment attempts.

Board members asked for a written comparison between the Spanish bilingual seal and the Navajo bilingual seal. Board member Benally requested the district email a breakdown: “I really want to see...breakdown and outline on how the bilingual seal for Spanish is compared to Navajo. I want us if you can email that to me.” Board members also raised outreach concerns after a student earned a bilingual seal at a Navajo Nation event without local-district representation; staff said they would work on coordination and better notification to the district.

Sanchez described curricular materials the district has developed — including mini-history books, posters, timelines and standards-based activity books — and said staff are piloting formative three-week curriculum-based measures (CBMs) and planning a district summative assessment to better measure oral growth.

The presentation included discussion of parent-facing supports and festivals to showcase language learning; board members urged more community-facing events and suggested evening language classes for parents and elders to support revitalization.