Illinois General Assembly - Illinois Compiled Statutes

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105 ILCS 5/14C-3

(105 ILCS 5/14C-3) (from Ch. 122, par. 14C-3)

Sec. 14C-3.

Language classification of children; establishment of
program; period of participation; examination.

Each school district shall ascertain, not later than the first day of
March, under regulations prescribed by the State Board, the
number of English learners within the school
district, and shall classify them according to the language of which
they possess a primary speaking ability, and their grade level, age or
achievement level.

When, at the beginning of any school year, there is within an
attendance center of a school district, not including children who are
enrolled in existing private school systems, 20 or more English learners in any such language classification,
the school district shall establish, for each classification, a program
in transitional bilingual education for the children therein. A school
district may establish a program in transitional
bilingual education with respect to any classification with less than 20
children therein, but should a school district decide not to establish
such a program, the school district shall provide a locally determined
transitional program of instruction which, based upon an
individual student language assessment, provides content area instruction
in a language other than English to the extent
necessary to ensure that each student can benefit from educational
instruction and achieve an early and effective transition into the regular
school curriculum.

Every school-age English learner not
enrolled in existing private school systems shall be enrolled and
participate in the program in transitional bilingual education
established for the classification to which he belongs by the school
district in which he resides for a period of 3 years or until such time
as he achieves a level of English language skills which will enable him
to perform successfully in classes in which instruction is given only in
English, whichever shall first occur.

An English learner enrolled in a program in
transitional bilingual education may, in the discretion of the school
district and subject to the approval of the child's parent or legal
guardian, continue in that program for a period longer than 3 years.

An examination in the oral language (listening and speaking), reading, and
writing of English, as prescribed by the State Board, shall
be administered annually to all English learners enrolled and participating in a program in transitional
bilingual education. No school district shall transfer an English learner out of a program in transitional
bilingual education prior to his third year of enrollment therein unless
the parents of the child approve the transfer in writing, and unless the
child has received a score on said examination which, in the
determination of the State Board, reflects a level of
English language skills appropriate to his or her grade level.

If later evidence suggests that a child so transferred is still
disabled by an inadequate command of English, he may be
re-enrolled
in the program for a length of time equal to that which remained at the
time he was transferred.

(Source: P.A. 98-972, eff. 8-15-14; 99-30, eff. 7-10-15.)