About the English Language Development Standard Course of Study

An introduction to the North Carolina curriculum for English language learners, including an explanation of the domains and proficiency levels of language acquisition.

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The English Language Development Standard Course of Study (ELD SCS), as mandated by Title III of NCLB, is a set of standards specifically designed to meet the needs of English language learners in North Carolina. Its purpose is to provide goals and objectives that will help students reach full English language proficiency by focusing on the four domains of listening, speaking, reading, and writing while also paying close attention to the six proficiency levels used in this state (novice low, novice high, intermediate low, intermediate high, advanced, and superior). The ELD SCS is state-mandated beginning with the 2004–2005 school year and will be revised during the 2008–2009 school year.

The ELD SCS is designed to be as user-friendly as possible and is to be used by ESL teachers and content teachers alike. Content teachers should focus on their respective content area curricula while using the ELD SCS at the same time to concentrate on the specific language skills their LEP students need. ESL teachers may choose, depending on each district’s program guidelines, to teach the ELD SCS exclusively, while bringing in other supplemental books and resources that enrich instruction.

Teachers should find their students’ particular proficiency levels in each specific domain, then focus on the objectives at the next higher level, since the goal of instruction is to scaffold students to that level. Teachers may want to focus only on reading or writing objectives for one lesson, while focusing only on listening and speaking objectives in a different lesson. In the same respect, there may be a lesson that incorporates objectives in all four areas, or domains. When LEP students are pulled for ESL class by grade level and not proficiency level, teachers should decide which objectives in which domains would be appropriate for all levels while differentiating instruction as best they can.