N.J. Admin. Code § 6A:15-1.4

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024

Section 6A:15-1.4 - District board of education requirements, including LIEPs for multilingual learners

(a) The district board of education shall provide all preschool to 12th-grade MLs enrolled in the school district pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:7F-46 and 18A:7F-54 with equal educational opportunities and all educational activities and programs, including required courses and support services defined at (b), (c), (d), and (e) below to prepare MLs to meet or exceed the NJSLS for high school graduation. The instructional opportunities shall be designed to assist MLs to fully comprehend all subject matter and demonstrate their mastery of all NJSLS academic content areas.

1. Instructional opportunities may also include individualized and targeted supports, as needed by MLs.

2. The district board of education shall ensure that all educational services, activities, and programs incorporate a linguistically and culturally responsive, multicultural curriculum in accordance with N.J.S.A. 18A:35-4.35, 4.36, and 4.36a, to ensure educational equity aligned to the district board of education's comprehensive equity plan, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:7.

(b) The district board of education shall provide all MLs with an LIEP.

1. A district board of education shall provide appropriate instructional programs to preschool MLs pursuant to (c) below.

2. Whenever there are 20 or more MLs in kindergarten through 12th grade in any one language classification enrolled in the school district, an LIEP shall include bilingual education or dual language immersion programs pursuant to (e) below, unless waived pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:15-1.15.

3. Whenever there are 10 or more MLs in kindergarten through 12th grade enrolled in the school district, an ESL program shall be provided.

4. Whenever there are at least one, but fewer than 10 MLs in kindergarten through 12th grade enrolled in a school district, the district board of education shall provide the MLs with English language services. English language services shall be provided as part of the regular school program.

5. Instructional program alternatives may be implemented pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:15-1.15.

(c) All district boards of education shall provide appropriate instructional programs to eligible preschool MLs based on the New Jersey Preschool Program Implementation Guidelines and the New Jersey Preschool Teaching and Learning Standards of Quality, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:13A, Elements of High-Quality Preschool Programs.

1. A program that meets the New Jersey Preschool Teaching and Learning Standards of Quality and is approved, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:13A, will be considered a preschool LIEP.

(d) The district board of education shall establish bilingual education or dual language immersion programs whenever there are 20 or more MLs in any one language classification enrolled in the school district in kindergarten through 12th grades, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:35-18. Bilingual education or dual language immersion programs shall:

1. Be designed to prepare MLs to acquire sufficient English knowledge and skills to meet the NJSLS. All MLs participating in bilingual and dual language immersion programs shall also receive a class period of ESL instruction each day in session;

2. Include a curriculum that is aligned to the NJSLS and the ELD standards and includes primary language instruction delivered to further master literacy in the primary language and as a support in the development of English proficiency;

3. Include the full range of required courses and activities offered on the same basis and under the same rules that apply to all students within the school district; and

4. Utilize a curriculum for bilingual education programs that is adopted by the district board of education.

(e) The district board of education shall provide at least one class period of ESL instruction each day in session based on a student's English language level to all MLs placed in an LIEP.

1. The district board of education shall develop and adopt an ESL curriculum that addresses the ELD standards to address the instructional needs of MLs.

2. The ESL curriculum shall be cross-referenced to the school district's bilingual education and academic content area curricula to ensure that ESL instruction is correlated to all academic content areas taught.

(f) A district board of education may establish dual language immersion programs to meet the requirements at (b)2 above and N.J.S.A. 18A:35-15 through N.J.S.A. 18A:35-26.

1. Dual language immersion programs shall be designed to help students achieve proficiency in English and in a second language while mastering academic content area skills.

2. Instruction shall be in all courses or subjects of study that allow students to meet all grade promotion and graduation standards.

3. Classes in dual language immersion programs shall be comprised of at least 50 percent MLs.

4. The program may be coordinated with the school district's world languages program.

5. Dual language immersion programs that are not established to provide the LIEP services required pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:35-15 through N.J.S.A. 18A:35-26 do not have to comply with the chapter's requirements.

(g) A district board of education may establish a newcomer program for a limited duration in time to address the needs of recent immigrant students, particularly SIFEs, before the students transition to a general education classroom. A high-quality newcomer program shall:

1. Be age-appropriate;

2. Include content that relates to the NJSLS;

3. Include social-emotional learning; and

4. Include courses that are credit-bearing and count toward graduation pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:8, or promotion requirements to allow students to meet grade-level standards within a reasonable period of time.

(h) The district board of education shall offer sufficient courses and other relevant supplemental instructional opportunities in grades nine through 12 to enable MLs to meet or exceed the NJSLS for graduation. When sufficient numbers of students are not available to form a bilingual class in an academic content area, the district board of education shall develop, in consultation with and approved by the Department, plans to meet the needs of the students.

(i) In addition to (a) through (h) above, the district board of education shall design additional programs and services to meet the special needs of eligible MLs. The additional programs and services shall include, but not be limited to, individualized and targeted supports through Title I programs; special education; career and technical education programs; gifted and talented education services; supports to help MLs earn a State Seal of Biliteracy pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:8-5.3; and individualized learning opportunities pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:8-5.1.

(j) The district board of education may establish a program in bilingual education or dual language immersion for any language classification with fewer than 20 students.

(k) The district board of education shall establish a process for how MLs in high school may meet the world language or ELA course graduation requirements, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:8-5.1, by applying credits earned in an ESL course. The district board of education shall verify on a student's record that the applicable ESL credits meet or exceed the NJSLS at the high school level.

N.J. Admin. Code § 6A:15-1.4

Amended by 48 N.J.R. 485(c), effective 3/21/2016

Administrative Change, 48 N.J.R. 1802(a).

Administrative Change, 51 N.J.R. 1673(b).

Amended by 55 N.J.R. 1708(a), effective 8/7/2023