As we move into English Proficiency Testing (ELP) testing season, many educators are balancing already full plates from instruction, planning, student support, and the added logistics that come with assessment windows.
For multilingual learners, this season can feel especially demanding. ELP testing asks students to demonstrate language growth while navigating unfamiliar formats, extended testing time, and the emotional weight that often accompanies high-stakes moments. Families may have questions or concerns, and educators, particularly those serving MLs, are holding space for all of it.
This is where collaboration matters most.
Not just within EL teams, but across classrooms, roles, and school communities. When ELP testing is approached collaboratively, it becomes less about compliance and more about shared responsibility, clarity, and care for the students at the center of the work.
Collaboration Starts with Shared Understanding
One of the most impactful ways to collaborate during ELP testing season is also one of the simplest: ensuring shared understanding across staff.
When classroom teachers, content-area teachers, specialists, and support staff understand what ELP assessments measure and why they matter, it shifts the narrative. Testing becomes less of a task happening to students and more of a process that helps inform instruction, services, and long-term programming.
Even brief conversations can help clarify:
- What ELP assessments are designed to measure across language domains
- How results are used to guide instruction and program decisions
- Why student effort and growth matter more than perfection
When educators share this understanding, they are better equipped to support students before, during, and after testing, both academically and emotionally.
Supporting Students Through Collaboration During Testing
Collaboration during the ELP testing season also shows up in how schools support multilingual learners as whole individuals, not just test-takers.
Small, intentional actions can make a meaningful difference in how students experience this season. Schools and teams might consider:
- Notes of encouragement from classroom or content-area teachers
- Acknowledging testing days in morning announcements
- Schoolwide recognition that honors persistence, effort, and growth
- Creating calm, predictable routines around testing days
These gestures send a powerful message to students: your work is seen, your effort matters, and you are supported.
For multilingual learners who are already navigating multiple languages, cultures, and expectations, that sense of collective support can help reduce anxiety and build confidence.
Tips From the Field: Preparing for ELP Testing Season Through Collaboration
Supporting multilingual learners during ELP testing season doesn’t require a complete overhaul of instruction. Often, the most effective approaches are collaborative, intentional, and embedded into what schools are already doing well.
Here are a few practical, research-aligned ways teams can work together to support students before, during, and after testing.
Build Familiarity With the Test Format
When students know what to expect, anxiety decreases, and confidence grows.
Helping multilingual learners become familiar with the structure and format of ACCESS or state ELP assessments allows them to focus on demonstrating language skills, not navigating uncertainty. This preparation can happen in small ways across classrooms, not just within EL services.
Resource:
WIDA – Preparing Students for ACCESS
https://wida.wisc.edu/assess/access/preparing-students
Integrate Daily Academic Language Practice
Consistent language routines matter more than last-minute test prep.
Daily opportunities to listen, speak, read, and write across content areas strengthen the exact skills ELP assessments measure. When classroom teachers and EL specialists collaborate on shared language goals, students experience coherence rather than fragmentation.
Resource:
DataWORKS – Empowering English Learners for State Testing Success
https://dataworks-ed.com/blog/2025/06/empowering-english-learners-for-state-testing-success/
Use Classroom Tasks That Mirror Test-Like Thinking
Instructional alignment supports both learning and assessment.
Tasks such as describing visuals, summarizing texts, and explaining reasoning help bridge everyday classroom language to the demands of ELP assessments. These strategies support language development year-round and reinforce confidence during testing season.
Resource:
Edmentum – 7 Tips to Help ELLs Prepare for High-Stakes Testing
https://www.edmentum.com/articles/tips-to-help-ells-prepare-for-high-stakes-testing/
Collaborate Across Roles
Supporting multilingual learners is a shared responsibility.
General education teachers, EL specialists, special education teams, counselors, and administrators all play a role in helping students feel supported before and after testing. When expectations and communication are aligned, students benefit from consistency across environments.
Resource:
Education Week – What All Teachers Should Know About WIDA’s Test for English Learners
https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/what-all-teachers-should-know-about-widas-test-for-english-learners/2024/05
Communicate Clearly With Families
Families are essential partners during testing season.
Clear, accessible communication about the purpose of ELP assessments, available accommodations, and ways families can encourage students builds trust and reduces confusion. Collaboration with families strengthens the support system around multilingual learners.
Resource:
WIDA – Family Resources for ACCESS
https://wida.wisc.edu/assess/access/preparing-students#communicating
These strategies remind us that ELP testing season is not a standalone event—it’s part of a larger instructional journey shaped by collaboration, clarity, and care.
A Note on Motivation: What We Can Hold Onto
When the year feels demanding—or the broader environment feels unsteady—there are a few things we can return to.
Collaboration strengthens classrooms.
Small steps still matter.
Language learning takes time, and every scaffold builds the path forward.
We are never doing this work alone.
ELP testing season is just one moment in a much longer journey. While we can’t control every policy shift or headline, we can control how we care, communicate, and collaborate.
And collaboration doesn’t end when testing windows close.
It’s how we move forward, together.
