NEWS
8-24-10
WIDA welcomes our 24th member state, Minnesota!
We look forward to assisting Minnesota's educators and further extending our mission! Read the Education Week blog update on WIDA's growth.
8-23-10
WIDA is now hiring two Professional Development Specialists! Please see the position description on the UW-Madison job site.
8-17-10
The WIDA MODEL test kits for Grades 1-2 and 3-5 are now available for purchase in our online store!
Please visit the WIDA MODEL page to learn more about the assessment or to print a paper order form if you would prefer to fax your order.
8-3-10
The LADDER for ELLs data-informed decision making program has launched its new website. Check it out!
7-20-10
Attention! The WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten introductory prices will expire on Sept. 1, 2010. Consortium members will be charged $150 for a single kit and $200 for a double kit, with slight increases in the cost of replacement parts as well. To place an order, please visit our online store.
7-19-10
WIDA has just released a new section of its website dedicated to Professional Certification for Trainers. The site will serve as a resource for existing and potential WIDA certified trainers, as well as those who might be interested in scheduling professional development related to WIDA's products and services.
5-14-10
WIDA welcomes our 23rd member state, Missouri!
We look forward to assisting Missouri's educators and further extending our mission! Read the Education Week blog update on WIDA's growth.
5-14-10
Please visit the PD Resources page to view the video trailer for a new graduate-level online course called Educating English Learners.
2-15-10
WIDA will be facilitating a new Dual Language Listserv! Please visit the Resources page to learn more and subscribe.
Welcome to the WIDA website!
WIDA is a consortium of states dedicated to the design and implementation of high standards and equitable educational opportunities for English language learners.
WIDA educational products and services fall into three main categories: standards and assessments, professional development for educators, and research.
The WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards are recognized worldwide for their innovative approach to measuring academic language development in English. From those standards, various WIDA assessments have been developed to evaluate student progress according to the WIDA proficiency scale, including ACCESS for ELLs® which is administered annually in consortium member states to comply with federal accountability requirements in the United States. In the 2009-10 school year, WIDA expects to assess about 840,000 English language learners (ELLs) in kindergarten through grade 12 using ACCESS for ELLs.
The WIDA MODEL™ series of assessments is being developed for schools or systems who are looking for additional measures of language growth. The WIDA MODEL for Kindergarten, Grades 1-2, and Grades 3-5 are currently available to consortium members and non-members (including international schools). WIDA MODEL for Grades 6-8 and 9-12 will be available in 2011.
WIDA's professional development offerings range from one-day workshops to semester-long graduate courses on topics pertinent to educators of English language learners (ELLs). Topics include curriculum and instruction strategies such as the use of standards and teacher collaboration models, language proficiency assessment, interpretation of score reports, data retreats geared toward developing school improvement plans, and a variety of other subjects that may be customized to meet the needs of local districts.
WIDA's research agenda addresses many hot topics in the world of ELL education. These include: defining and exploring academic language acquisition, implementation of standards and washback effects of assessment, and policy guidance for decision makers. Finally, WIDA offers alignment studies aimed at understanding the relationship between standards and assessments as well as the relationship between English language proficiency standards and academic content standards.
WIDA-related grants are currently exploring and developing new products and services related to formative assessment of English language learners, web-based Mathematics and Science content assessments of students with low English proficiency, an alternate assessment for English language learners with disabilities, and a data analysis/ program evaluation initiative targeting school improvement to better serve ELLs.
Originally established through a federal grant, the WIDA Consortium consists of twenty-three partner states: Alabama, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Secure WIDA Website Contents:
To login to download the W-APT™ or take the ACCESS for ELLs® training course, please click the Login button at the top right of this page.
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