How to Determine a Multilingual Student’s Proficiency With Academic English

“They speak English, so why are they struggling?”

As an educational diagnostician, I’ve heard multiple variations of this question from confused teachers. I’ve encountered similar scenarios when I observe students in a classroom setting. The student is sitting at their desk, chatting away with peers or telling their teacher about their weekend. But when the teacher asks a specific content-related question—how they solved a multistep math word problem or how they might start a written response—the student quietly looks down, doesn’t raise their hand, and sinks into their seat.

It’s easy to assume that the academic content is the problem. However, there are plenty of situations where the student does, in fact, understand the concept. What they might struggle with is finding the necessary language to really show what they know. Everyday social language and academic language place very different demands on students. Interpreting the language in a math problem, or defending a claim with evidence, requires more than conversational English. That’s what I tell teachers: “Why can’t this student do this?” isn’t the right question. It’s really “What part of the English language is making this task harder to access?”

the 4 Language Proficiency Domains

Two multilingual students who receive the same instruction in the same classroom can require entirely different types of language support. One student might confidently speak up during a class discussion but fail to put that same thinking into writing. Another student might independently read a passage but require more time to process oral directions.

This is where language proficiency data comes in handy. Language proficiency examines how students use and understand English across four domains: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Every state has its own system for measuring and reporting English language proficiency. In Texas, for example, students identified as emergent bilinguals take the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS) assessment. Because the terminology and assessments can vary, teachers should ask their English learner specialist, language support team, and/or administrator about how to access their state’s language proficiency results.

Consider the Accessibility of a Lesson

When I’m observing a multilingual learner, I jot down vocabulary from the teacher’s lesson, then sort the words into three tiers. Tier 1 is common, everyday words. Tier 2 is academic vocabulary. Tier 3 is content-specific vocabulary. Later on, I meet with the student and review a sampling of those words to see which ones they understand. This simple exercise gives me a better sense of the language demands of the lesson—and how accessible the language in the lesson was for the student.

Afterward, I take my notes back to the teacher. As an example, let’s say a student understands lots of Tier 1 words but is spotty with Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary. That tells me the student has a solid foundation in everyday, social English but is developing the academic language necessary to fully access instruction. Rather than simply reducing challenging vocabulary, the teacher and I will identify words that should be explicitly taught and supported through visuals, examples, sentence frames, and other scaffolds.

I also consider the content area. A student who struggles with Tier 3 vocabulary during a science lesson may require support for that specific content, while difficulty with Tier 2 words that appear across subjects points to a broader need for academic language development.

Students should be given repeated opportunities to use the target vocabulary. They can practice explaining a concept with a few key academic words or rehearse an answer with a partner before using the same language independently. As supports are gradually removed, it’s easier to tell whether the student is beginning to understand and incorporate language on their own.

Ensure Proper Scaffolding With 4 Reflective Questions

Before teachers reach for a sentence stem, translated text, or a modified assignment, I recommend that they take a closer look at the task itself. A simple way to do this is to ask four questions.

How much language does the task require? Sometimes an assignment is measuring more than an educator realizes. In my own work, I’ve seen students solve a computation problem quickly and accurately, then stumble when essentially the same math is presented inside a word problem.

Where is the language barrier? Think about the four language domains of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Based on your data, which one is getting in the way? A student who has difficulty following oral directions needs a different scaffold than a student who understands those directions but isn’t able to respond in writing.

What can the student already do independently? Determine what the student can do, rather than immediately focusing on what they can’t. Language proficiency data and student work are great for identifying where a student is already successful. If a student can explain a concept orally but struggles to write the same explanation, they may not need to be retaught the content. Instead, they need supports that move their thinking from spoken to written language, such as sentence frames, graphic organizers, or a teacher modeling how to turn an idea into a complete written response.

What is the smallest scaffold that gives the student access? Often, a teacher’s instinct is to make a task easier for a student. I encourage educators not to jump to that step, though. Consider how to make the task more accessible while keeping the thinking intact.

For instance, let’s say a student is solving a multistep math problem. The student can complete calculations when they’re presented numerically but not when the same skills are embedded in a word problem. Avoid reducing the complexity of the math; alternatives include highlighting essential vocabulary, adding a visual representation, or giving the student an opportunity to talk through the substance of the problem before solving it independently.

The same sort of scaffolds exist in other subjects, too. During science class, a student might understand a concept like ecosystems but struggle to incorporate academic vocabulary when explaining relationships between organisms. Providing a small word bank and allowing the student to orally rehearse an explanation with a partner prior to writing are great for supporting language without changing the science objective.

A question I often ask myself is, What does this student know, and what language will they need to show me they know it? By bringing that same inquiry into lesson planning, educators get ahead of potential pitfalls and demands, which ultimately is a boon for student learning.