edCount, LLC, The George Washington University, and Barrera Associates, Inc., are pleased to announce that their team has been awarded the contract to operate the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA) on behalf of the Office of English Language Acquisition at the U.S. Department of Education effective June 23, 2008.
Dr. Ellen Forte, edCount President will serve as Co-Principle Investigator on this work along with Dr. Joel Gomez of GWU.
NCELA’s mission is to capture, coordinate, and disseminate a broad range of resources in support of an inclusive approach to high quality education for ELLs. This mission encompasses five substantive service areas:
- English language proficiency standards and assessments: Resources and services related to the systems of standards that guide instruction for and assessment of English language development
- Inclusion in academic assessment systems: Resources and services related to alternate assessments and accommodation options for ELLs taking academic content assessments
- Accountability: Resources and services related to systems for evaluating the effectiveness of programs that serve ELLs
- Professional Development and Support for Curriculum and Instruction: Resources and services related to best practices for instruction of ELLs and the provision of professional development and technical assistance for state and local educators
- Administration of Title III programs: Resources and services related to the interpretation and implementation of Title III program requirements
Additional information about the services the new NCELA will offer is forthcoming.