Policy Brief: Adapting to Changes in California’s English Learner Population

More than a quarter of California's youngest children start public school not yet fluent in English. Federal law requires that these children receive supportive services to participate in school as they become fluent. From 2016 to 2023, however, the number of English Learners (ELs) fell by 372,000, or 15 percent-a population drop that has driven the overall enrollment decline in California public schools. The languages spoken among ELs have become more diverse, and the share who have been ELs for six years or more or who are new to the US is rising-all of which may require districts to adjust their programs.

Who are California's English Learner students?

When parents enroll their children in school, they fill out a survey to determine whether the child speaks primarily English at home; those who do not are assessed to determine if they need supportive services-these students are English Learners. Roughly 1 million California students are currently English Learners and over 900,000 are former English Learners-constituting just over a third of total public school enrollment. Over 80 percent of ELs speak Spanish; other top languages are Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, and Arabic (each 2% or less of the total).

Reclassified students are former English Learners who have been assessed to no longer need EL supports. In 2023-24, the effects of the pandemic on reclassification still lingered: except for 1st grade, far fewer students were reclassified than before the pandemic, especially in 3rd and 4th grade. On the bright side, 6 percent of EL kindergarteners were reclassified before starting 1st grade, the highest share in the past five years. Reclassification by or in 1st grade had been rising even before the pandemic-perhaps because more children have been starting in public schools at four years old, through the Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program.