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Welcome to Golden Valley's English Language Development Department!

Our  English Language Development Department provides English Language Development (ELD) for students who are new to the English Language or who need additional assistance improving their language acquisition because they may speak or hear another language at home.  Our program at Golden Valley High school focuses on the student becoming successful language speakers and writers as well as successful students.

We strive to help students:

• Develop fluency in English

• Become prepared for either a College or Career pathway of their choice by completing high school coursework that satisfies the A-G requirements for college admission

• Cultivate a positive sense of self-worth

• Learn to be self-advocators

• Become involved in the school and community environment

• Understand and respect other cultures

Who participates in ELD classes?

California requires all parents to complete a home language survey when they register their students for school at any age.  The survey asks:

1. What language did this student learn when first beginning to talk?

2. What language do you use most frequently to speak to this student?

3. What language does this student most frequently use at home?

4. What language is most often spoken by the adults at home?

If your answer to any of the first three questions on the survey is a language other than English, your student's English proficiency will need to be evaluated.

Students will be asked to take the English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC) and will be evaluated as:

• English Learner (EL)

• Long-Term English Learner (LTEL)

• Fluent English Proficient (FEP)

Students who take the ELPAC exam until they are “overall advanced” and then they begin the process of Reclassification to Fluent English Proficient (RFEP).  Students who are ‘overall advanced” and who have taken coursework in other languages while at GVHS can be eligible for the California Seal of Biliteracy.  It is the goal of the ELD Department at GVHS to prepare all Language Learners to achieve the Seal of Biliteracy. Please read the attached links for further information as there are specific requirements for students to qualify.