Westside Messenger - May 2nd, 2021

www.columbusmessenger.com
By Dedra Cordle
Staff Writer
The percentage of students who have a connection to
the English Language Learners program has hit a record
high in the South-Western City Schools District.
At the April 26 board of education meeting, program
coordinator Ed Kennedy shared compiled data that shows
roughly 25 percent of the student body population now
falls under that ELL umbrella.
“For the 2020-21 school year, we had 3,404 enrolled students
who have been identified as English Language
Learners, and we also had just under 1,800 students who
have recently exited the program,” he said.
For the past several years, the district has been hovering
around the 21 to 22 percent mark, but the steady
increase of students enrolling year after year has now
pushed it to 25 percent.
Kennedy attributed that steady increase to great “word
of mouth” from parents whose children are new to the
English language.
“They know that our ELL program has a strong reputation,”
he said in a post-meeting interview. “Our district has
a program that really works to help kids become proficient
and we have a number of support services to help them
and their families during this transitional phase as well.”
Traditionally, the areas that have seen the greatest
amount of growth in the ELL population is the Franklin
Heights and Westland corridors, but Kennedy said that
has slowly started to shift.
“Those areas and their feeder schools are still seeing a
tremendous amount of growth, but Central Crossing High
School and the Grove City corridor to a lesser extent are
seeing a rise in their own ELL population.”
Spanish continues to be the number one language with
EL students at 71 percent with Somali and Arabic following
at 12 percent and 8 percent, respectively.
Kennedy said Ukraine had been coming in at number
four but was recently surpassed by Hakha Chin with 4 percent.
In totality, there are 84 languages and dialects spoken
by students in the district.
Kennedy said that when students enroll in the program,
a majority are doing so when they are at the pre-functional
or basic level of learning the English language.
He added that it takes one to two years for students to
have a proficient grasp on conversational skills, while it
takes five to seven years to become proficient with their
reading and writing skills. He said the curriculum largely
focuses on their basic interpersonal communication skills
first and then transitions to their cognitive academic
language proficiency skills.
“You have to have an understanding of basic
oral skills before you can begin to read and write
and listen proficiently.”
For the past three years, the district has been a
recipient of a Striving Readers Comprehensive
Literacy Grant through the Ohio Department of
Education. Kennedy said those funds have allowed
the district to purchase reading materials and create
professional development opportunities for
their educators.
He said some of those reading materials that
were purchased included graphic novels which
allows students to read the text and comprehend
that corresponding action with the visual graphics.
“Graphic novels have been a huge help with
their comprehensive skills and keeping their interest
in the material,” he said.
In fact, Kennedy reported that the opportunities
created from the grant have helped raise the reading
level average by 1.2
grade levels for all EL’s in
grades 7-12 and assisted
with a 5.4 percent increase
in the number of 7-12 EL’s
scoring proficient or higher
on state EL assessment
tests.
“It feels like a lot of
progress has been made,”
he said.
May 2, 2021 - WESTSIDE MESSENGER - PAGE 3
In Education
ELL student population grows in South-Western
Free produce market
The Mid-Ohio Foodbank and the
Knights of Columbus Santa Maria Council
#2898 will host a free produce market the
fourth Friday of each month through the
end of October at St. Agnes Church, 2364
West Mound St. in Columbus. The food
pantry will be open from 3 to 5 p.m. For
additional information, email Kevin Miller
at km8007@att.net.
Prairie Township history sought
The Southwest Franklin County
Historical Society is in the process of
updating its website on Prairie Township
and is looking for historical photographs
and stories of that area. Individuals who
are willing to share information or photos
are asked to email pictures and information
to grovecityohhistory@gmail.com. Of
particular interest would be any information
of old buildings and/or businesses in
the communities of Alton, Rome or
Galloway.
around the westside
Westgate Plant Swap
Do you have indoor or outdoor plants
that need divided? Looking to diversify the
plant types in your yard? Friends of
Westgate Park and the Westgate
Neighbors Association are partnering to
host the second annual Westgate Plant
Swap. Those interested can drop off plants
from 6 to 8 p.m. on May 14 at the swap
location. The groups will sort the plants
into categories and get them organized for
the next day. Come back to the swap location
from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on May 15 and
pick out some new plants.
Here are some examples of plants that
would work well for this swap: hostas, irises,
daylilies, black-eyed susans, ornamental
grasses, sedum, purple coneflower, etc.
Houseplants are welcome as well.
Parking for the day of the swap is available
along Parkside Road, as well as the
large parking lot near the park. The swap
will take place outdoors; rain or shine.
DON’T HAVE
CURBSIDE
RECYCLING?
NEED CARDBOARD RECYCLING OPTIONS?
SWACO makes recycling easy with
drop-off sites that accept: plastic bottles,
tubs and jugs, metal cans, carton
containers, glass bottles and jars,
paper & cardboard.
Find your nearest recycling
site at recycleright.org.
In related news, Kennedy said the district will once
again host a summer program for EL’s, though it will primarily
target grades K-8. He said the district is in the
process of identifying students who may benefit from the
program and information will be sent out to parents and
guardians soon. He added that it will be virtual but there
will be an opportunity for in-person Friday events where
students can participate in cultural awareness festivities
and book fairs.
RecycleRight.org