Portsmouth City Schools’ English Language Learners (ELL) program has seen a significant increase in enrollment over the past several years, driven by a growing Latino population and word-of-mouth recommendations. The program is led by Taitlyn Dutey, the district’s ESL teacher, and now serves 53 students, 15 of whom are new this year.
Dutey attributes the growth of the program to families in the community sharing their positive experiences with others.
“We’re seeing more people from families already here who are bringing in relatives, and with a lack of similar programs in other districts, families are choosing to come to Portsmouth,” she said.
Despite the program’s success, challenges remain. With the influx of students, Dutey noted that the program faces a shortage of resources and staff.
“We’re doing the best we can with what we have, but there’s definitely a need for more support as the program continues to grow,” she said.
To track the progress of students in the ELL program, Dutey uses the Ohio English Language Proficiency Assessment (OELPA), which is administered every spring. In previous years, the district also used Imagine Learning benchmarks to monitor growth throughout the school year. Last year, one student successfully tested out of the program.
Looking to the future, Dutey is focused on continuing to improve family engagement and building stronger relationships with the parents of ELL students.
“We’ve been working on better communication with families and finding ways to help them feel more connected to the school,” Dutey said.
In addition, Dutey and her brother and colleague, Tanner Dutey, have been working to increase professional development opportunities for teachers to help them better support ELL students. They’ve also started holding more consistent meetings with grade-level teachers to discuss individual student needs and strategies for improvement.
As the district’s first full-time ESL teacher, now in her sixth year, Dutey has seen the program grow from its infancy into a vital part of Portsmouth City Schools. With continued support, she hopes to see even more progress in the years to come.
