English Learners

Parkway has a wonderfully diverse population of families who speak over 80 languages. The major goal of the Parkway EL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) program is to help all eligible students to reach academic proficiency at grade level. Student EL eligibility is determined by Missouri state criteria. Students spend as much time as possible immersed in their classroom, but level of support is determined by student language needs. 

Current methods of support for students in Kindergarten through 12th grade may include:

• Consultation
• Push-in support
• Pull-out support
• Co-teaching
• Sheltered EL class support.  

Newcomer Programming: 

A newcomer student is a student who has been in the country for less than one year and scores a 2.4 or lower on the language screening assessment. Newcomer Programming provides specific support to students who perform at a lower level in the four domains of language acquisition and is available at six schools in Parkway:

• Carman Trails Elementary
• Ross Elementary
• Green Trails Elementary
• Parkway Central Middle School
• Parkway Central High School
• Parkway South High School

Students who participate in newcomer programming at the elementary level will spend the majority of their day in an EL classroom with intensive language support provided by one of the newcomer EL teachers. As their language ability progresses, they will transition into a grade level classroom and receive support from an EL Specialist to provide accommodations and scaffolds of support as they continue learning. Elementary students typically complete newcomer programming in one year and then transition to their resident school.

At the secondary level, newcomer students participate in a block of courses which are targeted to the needs of newcomer students, in addition to other core content classes such as mathematics, science and social studies, as well as elective courses as they are available.