Royal Oak Schools Announces English Department Name Change

ROYAL OAK, MI — Royal Oak Schools will replace English as a Second Language department name with English Language Development in a move the district said is part of an effort to be inclusive and sensitive to its students backgrounds, identities and needs.

"We will be replacing the term English as a Second Language (ESL) with English Language Development (ELD) when referring to our district’s K-12 program that supports students and families who may use a language other than English in their homes," the district said in a statement.

The district said calling the program English as a Second Language makes an assumption that English is being taught to a monolingual speaker of another language. That discounts the potential that students are already speakers of two or more language, officials said.

"Additionally, a significant number of students in our program speak English as their first, or native, language with another language also used in their home environments," officials said.

District officials said referring to its program as English Language Development highlights its mission of teaching and learning while developing its students social and academic language.

The shift aligns with WIDA’s 2020 release of revised English Language Development Standards as well as current trends in the field, district officials said.