Limited English Proficiency Levels

From the TESOL Pre-K–12 English Language Proficiency Standards Framework

The use of five levels reflects the complexity of language development and allows the tracking
of student progress across grade levels within the same scale. The five levels of language
proficiency reflect characteristics of language performance at each developmental stage. The
language proficiency levels are intended to highlight and provide a model of the process of
language acquisition that can be adapted by individual districts and states.

Level 1-Starting
At L1, students initially have limited or no understanding of English. They rarely use
English for communication. They respond nonverbally to simple commands, statements,
and questions. As their oral comprehension increases, they begin to imitate the
verbalizations of others by using single words or simple phrases, and they begin to use
English spontaneously.
At the earliest stage, these learners construct meaning from text primarily through
illustrations, graphs, maps, and tables.
Level 2-Emerging
At L2, students can understand phrases and short sentences. They can communicate
limited information in simple everyday and routine situations by using memorized
phrases, groups of words, and formulae. They can use selected simple structures correctly
but still systematically produce basic errors. Students begin to use general academic
vocabulary and familiar everyday expressions. Errors in writing are present that often
hinder communication.
Level 3-Developing
At L3, students understand more complex speech but still may require some repetition.
They use English spontaneously but may have difficulty expressing all their thoughts due
to a restricted vocabulary and a limited command of language structure. Students at this
level speak in simple sentences, which are comprehensible and appropriate, but which are
frequently marked by grammatical errors. Proficiency in reading may vary considerably.
Students are most successful constructing meaning from texts for which they have
background knowledge upon which to build.
Level 4-Expanding
At L4, students’ language skills are adequate for most day-to-day communication needs.
They communicate in English in new or unfamiliar settings but have occasional difficulty
with complex structures and abstract academic concepts.
Students at this level may read with considerable fluency and are able to locate and
identify the specific facts within the text. However, they may not understand texts in
which the concepts are presented in a decontextualized manner, the sentence structure is
complex, or the vocabulary is abstract or has multiple meanings. They can read independently but may have occasional comprehension problems, especially when
processing grade-level information.
Level 5-Bridging
At L5, students can express themselves fluently and spontaneously on a wide range of
personal, general, academic, or social topics in a variety of contexts. They are poised to
function in an environment with native speaking peers with minimal language support or
guidance.
Students have a good command of technical and academic vocabulary as well of
idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms. They can produce clear, smoothly flowing,
well-structured texts of differing lengths and degrees of linguistic complexity. Errors are
minimal, difficult to spot, and generally corrected when they occur.