What the bilingual assessment service is for

We offer bilingual assessments for English language students in some cases where you are not able to gather information about a student's learning needs because of language barriers.

A bilingual assessment can help you understand whether your learner may have additional learning or social and emotional needs to address.

There is no cost to your school for a bilingual assessment.

When to apply for a bilingual assessment

You might consider making a referral where an English language learner is not making progress when they:

• have been in the school system for at least 2 terms and have settled in, and
• are already getting extra support through English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) funding.

A bilingual assessment may be suitable if the student:

• has an unclear educational history or there is evidence of disrupted or no schooling before coming to New Zealand
• is withdrawn or seems depressed
• does not participate much in class
• is disruptive or behaves erratically
• does not complete any or much work.

If you are not sure whether a bilingual assessment is appropriate for a particular student, contact our refugee and migrant advisors. They will be able to help or suggest other kinds of support you can try.

Refugee and migrant support advisors

Who does not qualify

The bilingual assessment service is not available for:

• International fee-paying students, although schools may contract private services with costs being covered through fees.
• New Zealand-born students, although they may be considered if they have spent long periods of time out of New Zealand.

How to request an assessment

You need to make the request through your Resource Teacher Learning and Behaviour (RTLB) contact process. A special needs coordinator at the school (SENCO) usually completes the form rather than the classroom teacher.

You will need to gather supporting evidence and information for the application. You may need to observe the student over a period of time and note your observations about their learning and behaviour.

The types of information the RTLB service would like to receive are:

• The student's education before arriving in New Zealand – how many years they attended, the type of school (rural, city) and whether they attended regularly.
• Support already provided to the student. For example, ESOL funding, teacher's aide support, translation, counselling, individual learning plan, access to computer-based learning.
• Social interaction – how the student interacts with their peers both in and outside the classroom.
• Physical disabilities or other factors that might affect the student’s learning.

How the assessment works

The referral needs to be approved by the RTLB cluster and our refugee and migrant advisors. Once it is approved, the RTLB bilingual assessor will arrange the assessment. This may be several weeks after you made the referral.

The assessor will let the family know how the assessment process works.

What happens during the assessment

The RTLB assessor and bilingual support person come to the school for the assessment. They make 1 or more visits, depending on availability and travel distance.

They will try to help the student feel comfortable with the assessment. Ideally it will take place in a familiar environment.

The assessor and support person meet with the learner where they will complete tasks in both their first language and in English. They also meet with the learner's family.

The assessment aims to:

• gather basic information about the learner, their family and their experiences
• understand their confidence in their first language
• understand comprehension and production of written and spoken English text
• understand social and emotional state, including attitudes.

The student is assessed using their first language for:

• sound/letter knowledge
• spoken vocabulary
• retention of spoken language and structural strengths and gaps
• reading proficiency including sound and word knowledge, basic word recognition, fluency, comprehension, recall and re-read
• writing proficiency including written vocabulary, dictation, free writing and editing.

Outcomes of a bilingual assessment

The RTLB assessor prepares a report summarising the information gathered from the assessment. They include recommendations about how to meet the student's learning needs.

The report is sent to your school via your liaison RTLB.

The report aims to give you the background information you need to better support the student. The assessment may indicate that the student:

• is progressing normally for a student learning a new language
• has unexpected linguistic difficulties that are affecting learning progress
• is experiencing cultural and social trauma or adjustment difficulties at school and/or at home that are affecting English acquisition and learning progress
• has needs in their first language and cultural contexts, which also affect learning and English acquisition
• has an existing delay or disability which affect all aspects of their learning including linguistic progress in their current contexts
• has not received adequate or appropriate programming and support.

The assessment is not a diagnosis.