Boston Council Hearing Exposes Gaps in ELL Parent Support, Bilingual Education

BOSTON — June 8, 2023 — Boston City Council hearing surfaces BPS gaps in English language learner parent support and native language instruction. Chair Julia M. Mejia convened the June 8 remote hearing on two dockets examining how Boston Public Schools serves ELL families and accounts for spending on those students. Claudia Green of English for New Bostonians asked the city for $1 million to expand parent English classes to more BPS school communities for the 2024 school year, saying more than 1,600 parents have taken part since 2012 and that 49 percent of all BPS families speak a language other than English at home. Dr. Maria Serpa of Lesley University told the council that over 90 percent of ELL students are failing the MCAS and called for an immediate short-term plan for native language access; John Mudd of Black Student Achievement said 45 percent of the most limited-English students are placed in general education with ESL only. BPS reported a recommended FY24 translation and interpretation budget of $7.3 million, up from a base supported by 10 FTEs to 13, but administrators were unable to answer whether BPS offers any ESOL classes for parents — a gap that drew sharp criticism from co-sponsor Councilor Fernandez Anderson, who called it evidence of inadequate prioritization of ELL families.