In May of 2000, the California Department of Education (CDE) issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to evaluate the “Effects of the Implementation of Proposition 227 on the Education of English Learners.” This study also required an evaluation of the Community-Based English Tutoring (CBET) Program. Eight research questions were specified for this evaluation:

1. How were various provisions of Proposition 227 and the English Language Acquisition Program (ELAP) being implemented in California schools, districts, and the University of California?
2. Which programs and services bang provided to LEP students were most and least effective in ensuring equal access to the core academic curriculum, the achievement of state content and performance standards, and rapid acquisition of English?
3. What were other program benefits (to parents, teachers, etc.) of the various effective programs and services?
4. What unintended consequences, both positive and negative, have occurred as a result of Proposition 227 implementation?
5. How have the implementation of Proposition 227 and ELAP provisions affected the academic achievement of LEP students, as measured by Standardized Testing And Reporting (STAR) results, redesignation rates, dropout rates, high school graduation exam passing rates and high school graduation rates?
6. What impact have the Profession Development Institutes had on the staff of participating ELAP schools?
7. What have been the effects of the Community-Based English Tutoring (CBET) programs on the participants and on LEP students?
8. What changes would strengthen Proposition 227 and ELAP implementation and impact?

 The American Institutes for Research (AIR) and WestEd submitted a proposal to the CDE in response to this RFP and was granted the bid. This study is a five-year longitudinal study of eight California school districts.  Thus far the study has analyzed extant data and conducted phone surveys of 32 school districts, from which eight school districts were chosen.  At these eight school sites, case studies will be conducted; student, and parents, classroom observations will be performed; and teachers focus groups will be set up.  Researchers will also conduct stakeholder interviews and written surveys of districts, schools, and teachers.

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