Overview of the Initial and Summative ELPAC

This section covers basic information about the Initial English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC) and Summative ELPAC, including structure, purpose, who takes the assessments, how they are administered, and receiving the results.

Initial and Summative ELPAC

The ELPAC is administered as directed in the ELPAC Online Test Administration Manuals.

  • The Initial ELPAC testing window is from July 3, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
  • The Summative ELPAC testing window is from February 3 through May 31, 2025.

For more information, refer to the Initial ELPAC and the Summative ELPAC Directions for Administration. The ELPAC consists of

  • the Initial ELPAC, which will determine a student’s initial classification as an English learner (EL) student or as an initial fluent English proficient (IFEP) student; and
  • the Summative ELPAC, which provides information on annual student progress toward English Language Proficiency (ELP) and supports individualized education programs team decisions on student reclassification as fluent English proficient (RFEP).

Test Structure

The Initial and Summative ELPAC consists of four domains: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing.

Listening and Speaking combine into an Oral Language composite.

Reading and Writing combine into a Written Language composite.

The Oral Language and Written Language composites combine into an Overall ELPAC scale score and performance level.

Initial ELPAC Overview

The Initial ELPAC is intended to identify students as EL students or IFEP. The Initial ELPAC is administered to students only once in their lifetime.

Students in kindergarten through grade twelve (K–12), ages three through twenty-one, whose primary language, as indicated on a home language survey, is or includes a language other than English shall take the Initial ELPAC to determine whether they are EL students or are fluent in English. Per ELPAC regulations (5 CCR Section 11518.5), those students must be administered the Initial ELPAC in accordance with one of the two following timelines:

  • Within 30 calendar days after they are first enrolled in a California public school
  • Sixty calendar days prior to instruction, but not before July 1

Summative ELPAC Overview

The Summative ELPAC is designed to:

  • Determine the ELP level of EL students.
  • Assess the progress of EL students in acquiring the skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing in English.

The Summative ELPAC shall be administered annually to students identified as EL students in grades K–12, ages three through twenty-one, until they meet the reclassification criteria in EC Section 313, and they are reclassified as RFEP (5 CCR Section 11518.15).