Ohio English Language Proficiency Screener (OELPS)

The Ohio English Language Proficiency Screener (OELPS) is aligned to the K-12 English Language Proficiency Standards and is designed to identify Ohio students in grades K-12 as English learners. The OELPS is the second step in the standardized identification process; the first step is the Language Usage Survey. Information on the identification process is found in the Guidelines for Identifying English Learners.

The OELPS is an online test (paper is available for students who cannot test online). Districts will schedule time and provide appropriate equipment to administer the OELPS. The OELPS will help districts assess the English language proficiency of newly enrolled students.

Districts that want to use the paper test must contact the Ohio Department of Education at statetests@education.ohio.gov to start the process of determining eligibility for an exception to online testing. The Department will contact the district if the request is approved.

Districts may administer the OELPS any time during the administration period. Students who will enter kindergarten in the fall may be screened any time after the last day of preschool, even if this is before the end of the OELPS window in July. For the most valid results, the OELPS should be given as close as possible to the beginning of the kindergarten school year when the students are no longer attending preschool.

The Ohio English Language Proficiency Assessment (OELPA) is the summative test used to determine an already-identified English learner’s proficiency level and to exit from the English language program. All English learners take the OELPA annually, and the OELPA is required in addition to Ohio’s State Tests.

Ohio worked with a group of states led by the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21^st Century (ELPA21) to develop the screener. View the ELPA21 FAQ page.

Current News

• Ohio English Language Proficiency Screener 
• Test Dates

Resources

Available on the test portal

• OELPS Test Coordinator Manual
• OELPS Test Administration Manual
• ELPA21 Screener Step Two Speaking Scoring Document
• Teacher Assessment Scoring Center (TASC) User Guide
• Central Reporting System (CRS) Resources
• Date Entry Interface (DEI) User Guide
• OELPS Understanding Results Manual
• Translated Individual Student Reports for OELPS Results
• Accessibility Manual for Ohio's English Language Proficiency Assessments

Before administering the screener, test administrators must review the OELPS Test Administration Manual, the ELPA21 Screener Step Two Speaking Scoring Document and the Teacher Assessment Scoring Center (TASC) User Guide.

The Guidance Document for Ohio Pre-ID Files is posted on the test portal in the Resources section. The Ohio Pre-ID layout is used to register students in TIDE.

Last Modified: 5/18/2023 9:54:17 AM

---