Language Assistance Program Update
August 3, 2018
Who Takes the WIDA Screener or Kindergarten Placement Test?
If a language other than English is given for any of the three questions on the Home Language Survey, the Kindergarten W-APT or WIDA Screener is administered if it is the initial enrollment in Indiana or the student is transferring from a non-WIDA state (see list of WIDA states here.)
If the student is coming from another Indiana school or a WIDA state, reach out to the past school or use the Learning Connection to obtain recent WIDA scores. The receiving school has up to 30 calendar days at the beginning of the school year, or 10 days if the student enrolls after the beginning of the school year, to obtain Kindergarten W-APT, WIDA Screener, or ACCESS for ELLs test scores from the previous school. Scores less than a year old can be used for making decisions regarding identification and placement. If scores are more than a year old, or if results are not obtained in the specified time frame, the student must be assessed with Kindergarten W-APT or WIDA Screener.
Preschool or Pre-Kindergarten students are not given an English language screener.
Who can give the WIDA Screener and Kindergarten Placement Test?
To be certified to administer and score WIDA Screener, Test Administrators must complete the relevant online training and pass the certification quizzes with scores of 80% or higher for the tests and grade levels they will be administering. All training and certification quizzes are located here.
New WIDA Website and Webinars
Kindergarten W-APT Screener
What Screener Scores Identify a Student in Indiana as an English Learner?
First graders during first semester of school - Student qualifies is identified as an English Learner if he/she scores below 29 in Speaking & Listening combined or below 14 in Reading or below 17 in Writing on Kindergarten W-APT.
Students in Grades 2-12 are identified as English Learners if their overall proficiency score is less than 5.0 on the WIDA Screener.