February 1, 2008
Dear Select Language Census Coordinators:
This letter is to notify local educational agencies (LEAs) of their Language Census submission responsibilities and to provide LEAs with the necessary information to complete their Language Census data submission. This letter is intended for LEAs submitting Language Census data to the California Department of Education (CDE) using the Language Census Data Entry Assistant (LCDEA) software and for LEAs that do not have any English learner (EL) or fluent-English-proficient (FEP) students.
The Language Census is an annual school-level data collection containing counts of students from non-English-language backgrounds enrolled in public kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) schools in California and data on the staff who provide services to ELs. No reporting changes have been made to the Language Census this year. Language Census data are to be collected as of February 29, 2008, and submitted to the CDE on or before April 3, 2008.
Your LEA is responsible for the electronic submission of Language Census data for each K-12 public school in your LEA, including charter schools. As in the past, pre-schools, children’s centers, adult schools, regional occupational centers, and State Special Schools do not report Language Census data.
Language Census (LC) Coordinator’s Distribution Responsibility
It is the LEA’s LC coordinator’s responsibility to provide the necessary materials schools need in order to collect Language Census data. If the LEA chooses to provide each of its K-12 public schools a copy of the Language Census (R30-LC) form with the school’s name pre-printed on the form, they may be printed from the Language Census software. Copies of the Instructions for the Spring Language Census Reporting Year: 2008 may also be printed from the Internet.
For those LEAs that have their schools linked to a network drive, we encourage them to install the Language Census software on the network drive and have each school update its own information. If a network drive is not available, we encourage the LC coordinator to install the software at the school sites. Using the software at the school-level should make the data collection process easier and should enhance the ability to report accurate information in a timely manner. Detailed instructions for using the software at the school-level or on a network are available on the Language Census Software News Web page located at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sd/lc/lcdeanews.asp.
Two important notes about using the software at the school level:
- Each school, including charter schools, submits their data to the LEA LC coordinator, not the CDE. If a school submits their data to the CDE, the LEA’s entire data submission will be overwritten with the school’s data.
- It is recommended that the LC coordinator ask each school to back up their data entry and print the completed Language Census form for their own use.
Language Census Coordinator’s Data Collection Responsibility
It is the LC coordinator’s responsibility to provide any needed assistance to schools in collecting the Language Census data. Below are three options districts have for collecting their Language Census data.
- Local school data entered using the LCDEA: The LCDEA is made available at the school-level and school staff key data into the software and export the data to the LEA. The LC coordinator then imports each school’s data into the LCDEA and works with each school to resolve the errors and to review all warnings before submitting the LEA’s data via the Internet by April 3, 2008.
- Central data available electronically at the LEA: If the data are available in an electronic format, the data may be imported into the LCDEA without data entry (see Instructions, Appendix – Language Census Software Instructions, step 4). The LC coordinator then works with each school to resolve the errors and to review all warnings before submitting the LEA’s data via the Internet by April 3, 2008.
- Paper: The LC coordinator collects forms from each school and checks for completeness and accuracy before entering the data into the LCDEA. Once the data are keyed into the software, the LC coordinator works with each school to resolve the errors and to review all warnings before submitting the LEA’s data via the Internet by
April 3, 2008.
Language Census Data Entry Assistant Software Submission
LEAs are to use the LCDEA software, which is designed for the electronic collection and submission of data. The software requires a Windows-based personal computer with Internet connectivity. The software is available for downloading from the Language Census Software News Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sd/lc/lcdeanews.asp.
LEAs without English Learners or Fluent-English-Proficient Students
There are some LEAs who do not have any EL or FEP students. If you are one of these LEAs, you may either use the software to submit your data or log onto the Language Census Coordinators Login Web page at http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/lclogin.asp between February 29, 2008, and April 3, 2008, to certify your LEAs data. You will need your LEA’s unique password, which is provided on the enclosed List of Expected Schools, to access this site.
List of Expected Schools
The List of Expected Schools contains a list of schools in your LEA that are open and expected to submit Language Census data. Please use this list to verify that our records for schools in your LEA are up-to-date. If the List of Expected Schools is not accurate, please follow the instructions for updating the list. Also included on the list is a password that may be used to access the LC coordinator login page on the Internet.
Materials
Language Census materials will no longer be mailed to LC coordinators. All materials will be available from the Language Census Instructional Materials Web page located at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sd/lc/materials.asp.
Internet and Training Resources
Our office has developed a Web page specifically for LC coordinators, which is located at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sd/lc/materials.asp. Features of this page include important dates; the LC coordinator login page, which allows you to update contact information, view the List of Expected schools, and view your pre-certified data; downloadable LCDEA software and updates; software instructional documents; forms and instructional materials; training materials; letters; information on CSIS; and other resources for ELs. Please note that access to some of the features on this Web site require the unique password provided only to the LEA LC coordinator.
If you have questions about this mailing or the Language Census submission process, please contact Dorothy Aicega at 916-327-0208 or Shana Yeary at 916-327-5927.
Sincerely,
Karl Scheff, Administrator
Educational Demographics Office
KS:da
Enclosures
1430 N Street
Sacramento, CA 95814