Elementary and Secondary Education Act Reauthorization: Data Options for the English Language Acquisition State Grants Formula (Title III-A)

Cassandria Dortch
Analyst in Education Policy

As the 112th Congress considers reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), concerns about the source of data for the Title III-A state formula allocation may be addressed. ESEA Title III-A, the English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement Act, is the major source of federal funding targeted to the academic achievement of K-12 limited English proficient students (also known as English learners) and recent immigrant students. Title III-A formula grant allocations are made to the states, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, based on the proportion of limited English proficient (LEP) students and immigrant students in each state relative to all states. When the ESEA was last reauthorized by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-110), statutory provisions of the Title III-A allocation formula directed the Secretary of Education to make allocations based on data from two allowable sources—the Bureau of Census or state reported data, whichever would “yield the most accurate, up to-date numbers.” The most accurate, up-to-date, stable, and relevant source of data for the numbers of LEP and immigrant students has been difficult to discern, and recently the Department of Education commissioned a study from the National Research Council (NRC) to recommend a data source.

The Department of Education currently uses three-year estimates of the numbers of LEP and immigrant students in each state from the American Community Survey (ACS), which is administered by the Bureau of the Census. After reviewing the ACS data and data reported annually by the states, the aforementioned NRC study recently recommended combining both ACS and state reported data to determine the number of LEP students for use in the Title III-A formula allocation. The NRC study specifically recommended calculating the number of LEP students for use in the formula as the sum of 25% of the state reported number of LEP students who scored below the proficient level on the current year’s state English language proficiency assessment (state LEP students scoring below proficient on recent ELPA) and 75% of the ACS three-year estimates of the number of 5 to 21 year old LEP students who speak English less than very well (ACS LEP students).

This report examines how the state allocations would change based on the NRC recommendation and an alternative approach. The alternative approach calculates the number of LEP students for use in the formula as the sum of 25% of the state reported number of LEP students (state LEP students) and 75% of the ACS LEP students. First, the report compares how the value of each state’s allocation would change under the new methodologies compared to the previous year under the current methodology. Second, the report evaluates the estimated year-to-year changes in the value of each state’s allocation under the new methodologies. Large changes in the amount of state grant allocations from one year to the next are not optimal for planning and operating quality language acquisition programs. The analysis presented in this report finds that the NRC recommendation would result in state allocations decreasing by more than 10% for two states in comparison to the FY2011 allocations calculated according to statutory provisions; the alternative approach would result in state allocations decreasing by more than 10% for four states. More striking is the potentially substantial increase in allocation amounts for Alaska and New Mexico. In addition, the year-to-year variability would be lower under the alternative approach than the NRC recommendation. The report discusses several options for reducing variability in the yearto- year allocations during the transition to a new data source and methodology.


Date of Report: January 18, 2012
Number of Pages: 38
Order Number: R42154
Price: $29.95

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