Multilingual Learners Identified with or suspected of having educational disabilities

Dually Identified Students are students who have been formally identified as Multilingual Learners with Limited English Proficiency and who have also been found eligible as a child with a disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or MLs who have been found eligible for a 504 plan:

• Limited English Proficient (LEP) – as defined in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), now the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). [20 U.S.C. § 7801(20), 34 CFR 300.27].
• Eligible for Special Education Services – meaning the child has been identified as having a qualifying disability under IDEA [20 U.S.C. § 1401(3), 34 CFR § 300.8, and ECEA Rule 2.08] and requires specially designed instruction (special education) to receive reasonable benefit from general education. 
• Eligible for a 504 Plan – meaning the child has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 [29 U.S.C. § 794, 34 CFR § 104.3(j)], and requires accommodations or services to ensure equal access to education, even if they do not qualify for special education under IDEA.

Supporting Dually Identified Students Fact Sheet (PDF)

Apoyo a los estudiantes con doble identificación (PDF)

Administrative Units must have policies, procedures, and practices in effect that prevent the inappropriate overidentification and disproportionate representation by race and ethnicity as children with disabilities. To ensure appropriate identification as a child with a disability

• Evaluations must be nondiscriminatory on a racial or cultural basis and conducted in the child’s native language or other modes of communication to ensure valid and reliable evaluation data concerning the child’s strengths and needs. [34 C.F.R. § 300.304(c)(1)].
• A Multilingual Learner must not be determined eligible for Special Education if Limited English Proficiency is the primary determinative cause for educational difficulties the child is experiencing [34 C.F.R. § 300.306(b)(1)].
• Schools must use valid, reliable, and culturally relevant assessments to evaluate students accurately [34 C.F.R. § 300.304(c)(1)(ii)–(iv)].
• The multidisciplinary team should include educators knowledgeable about English language acquisition, cultural differences, and acculturation, to collaboratively interpret evaluation data [34 C.F.R. § 300.306(a)(1), and 34 C.F.R. § 300.306(b)(1)(iii)]
• Academic data should be compared to that of demographically similar peers to ensure technically sound interpretation of results [34 C.F.R. § 300.306(a)(1), and 34 C.F.R. § 300.306(b)(1)(iii)]
• Parents must be involved in the evaluation process, and schools must obtain informed consent before conducting a special education evaluation.  [34 C.F.R. § 300.300(a)].

It is the Administrative Unit's responsibility under Child Find to locate and identify all students with disabilities including Multilingual Learners (MLs) with disabilities. School teams must not identify MLs with disabilities when linguistic and cultural differences or lack of instruction in literacy and math are the determinative causes for their difficulties in school. When parents or staff members report concerns about a student's academic, social-emotional, functional, or behavioral concerns, IEP teams including educators who are knowledgeable in language acquisition and acculturation should work to investigate these concerns before the special education evaluation referral.

ML Enrollment Scenarios Flowchart (PDF)

Newcomers are entitled to school enrollment and equal access to educational programming. This Fact Sheet clarifies the special education process as it relates to Newcomers who are Multilingual Learners identified with or suspected of having disabilities. 

Administrative Units must evaluate students who are Newcomers without delay if they are suspected of having disabilities. This evaluation must be non-discriminatory.

Students who are Newcomers (PDF)

Tell Us About Your Child Survey is a questionnaire that educators can give to families or caregivers of multilingual learners with the most significant cognitive disabilities to better understand a student's language and communication needs. In the survey, families or caregivers will answer questions about a student’s method of communication and language, their ability to understand communication and their preferred communication supports. 

Tell Us About Your Child Survey

• American Federation of Teachers: Immigrant and Refugee Children: A Guide for Educators and School Support Staff
• PEAK Parent Center
• OSEP IDEA Spanish Glossary 2nd Edition
• Deaf Students and English Language Learners
• Colorín Colorado
• Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs

• Office of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education
• MTSS - Office of Learning Supports
• Office of Literacy (READ Act)
  • READ ACT and English Learners
• Indian, Native Hawaiian and Alaska Native Education - Title VI Programs
• Assessment Division
  • Assessment Accommodations
  • Eligibility for Assessments in Spanish Flowchart (PDF)

• OSEP Fast Facts
• OSEP Spanish Glossary 2nd Edition
• OSEP Letter to Timothy Boals, PhD 2021

• Benefits of Multilingualism  OELA
• OELA Tool Kit
• Tools and Resources of Addressing the Needs of English Language Learners with Disabilities

• U.S. Equal Rights to Public Education Regardless of Immigration/Citizenship Status

• Equal Access to Elementary and Secondary Education for Students Who Are English Learners with Disabilities November 12, 2024 
• Civil Rights Protections Against Retaliation A Resource for School Communities 2024

English Language Proficiency (ELP) standards are required by Colorado state and federal law. On December 10, 2009, the Colorado State Board of Education voted unanimously to adopt the English Language Development (ELD) standards developed by WIDA as the Colorado English Language Proficiency (CELP) Standards.

The CELP standards should be used, in conjunction with Colorado’s Academic Standards, to plan instruction that supports Multilingual Learners as they engage in academic content. 

To learn more about language development and the CELP Standards, refer to, the CELP Standards Resource Library.

For Multilingual Learners receiving instruction in Spanish and English, WIDA has created Marco DALE (Marco de los estándares del desarrollo auténtico del lenguaje español de WIDA) to support bilingual instruction and education. 

• Dynamic Assessment Modules

• Special Education and English Language Learners
• Colorín Colorado ELLs with Disabilities: How ESL/Bilingual Specialist can Collaborate for Student Success