Testing-English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC)

The English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC) will be the successor to the California English Language Development Test (CELDT). The CELDT is the current required state test for English language proficiency (ELP) that must be given to students whose primary language is a language other than English.

State and federal law require that local educational agencies administer a state test of ELP to eligible students in kindergarten (or year one of a two-year kindergarten program, sometimes referred to as "transitional kindergarten") through grade twelve. The California Department of Education (CDE) is transitioning from the CELDT to the ELPAC as the state ELP assessment by 2018. The ELPAC will be aligned with the 2012 California English Language Development Standards, and will be comprised of two separate ELP assessments:

• an initial identification of students as English learners
• an annual summative assessment to measure a student’s progress in learning English and to identify the student's ELP level