Teachers and parents urge district to reconsider proposed English-language program changes; staff say model responds to staffing constraints
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Summary
Educators and parents urged the Phoenix Union governing board on June 5 to reconsider a proposed English language development scheduling model that would reduce in-school language supports for repeating pre-emergent students and instead lean on compensatory out-of-school interventions.
Multiple Phoenix Union educators and parents urged the governing board on June 5 to reconsider a proposed change to the district’s English language development (ELD) scheduling model, saying the change would reduce in-school supports for the district’s most vulnerable English learners.
Brielle Guisman, an EL educator with five years in the district, told the board the proposed model would shift students repeating the pre-emergent level to receive only a two-hour ELD block and otherwise place them in mainstream classes without embedded language support. She said the district intends to document compensatory services in a written individual compensatory plan (WICP) and deliver additional help after school, on Saturdays and in summer school. Guisman said relying on out-of-school compensatory time for large numbers of students would be “negligent” and argued that WICPs are intended for individual exceptions, not systemwide shortcuts.
ELD teacher Hannah Peck said her school had previously allowed a teacher who directed racially abusive language toward students to return to the classroom and urged the board to protect students from repeat exposure to racial abuse. That comment framed broader concerns from educators about program design, staffing and student safety.
District staff presented related performance data at the meeting (see separate article on board goals). Staff said about 4,793 students are in the district’s EL program and that 3,817 EL students were tested on the AzELa this year; 556 students reclassified to proficiency on this testing (a 15% reclassification rate). Staff emphasized the complex composition of the EL student population and that many students arrive with significant academic gaps and varying language backgrounds.
What the presenters asked: Educators urged the board to: (1) reconsider a scheduling model that reduces in-school language supports for repeating pre-emergent students; (2) consult teachers in program design; and (3) avoid relying on after-school or summer compensatory services as the primary remedy for in-class deficits.
District response and follow-up: Staff described the proposed model as a response to teacher shortages and said the district is pursuing differentiated supports for campuses with high numbers of students at the lowest proficiency levels. Clerk Oliver later asked the superintendent to review a specific ELD teacher placement at Alhambra High School and to report back to the board. The board asked staff to conduct broader stakeholder outreach on ELD models and to bring teacher input into any revised plans.
Clarifying figures from staff presentation - Total EL students eligible for AzELa reassessment cited by staff: 4,793. - Students tested this year (AzELa): 3,817. - Students reclassified to proficiency this year: 556 (reported 15% reclassification rate for this tested cohort).
What the record does not show - The transcript documents concerns and the district’s stated rationale (staffing constraints) but does not show formal board action changing the ELD model at this meeting. Any change would require additional board action after staff and stakeholder review.
