Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE)

Each year, Massachusetts schools enroll an increasing and diverse number of English learners (ELs) with limited or interrupted formal education. Some of these students may be refugee children fleeing civil unrest or war, while others may have had inconsistent access to formal education in their home countries before coming to the United States. While SLIFE are diverse, with interruptions in schooling often due to factors like conflict, migration, economic hardship, or limited access to education in their home countries, the guidance and resources below aim to help districts identify additional supports these students may need beyond standard English learner education services. The Department is committed to supporting school districts and educators to improve educational opportunities for all students, including students identified as SLIFE, in alignment with the agency's Educational Vision.

The Office of Language Acquisition has taken a three-pronged approach to supporting schools and districts with identifying and meeting the needs of SLIFE: 1) research, 2) a community of practice, and 3) guidance and tool development.

Research

In Spring 2022, the Office of Language Acquisition partnered with the Center for Applied Linguistics CAL) to complete a national literature review about SLIFE, focusing on two primary research questions:
1. What can the Department learn about SLIFE nationally and in MA that would help the Department to accurately identify and provide effective, differentiated services for SLIFE?; and
2. What are effective policies, practices (definitions, processes, program models, curricula, and tools), and programmatic approaches for supporting the academic success and well-being of SLIFE in Massachusetts and the nation?
Here is the completed literature review and executive summary:
- Understanding and Supporting Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE) in Massachusetts: A Review of Literature — November 4, 2022
- Understanding and Supporting Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE) in Massachusetts: Literature Review Summary

Community of Practice

The Massachusetts SLIFE Community of Practice (CoP) has provided an ongoing space for educators from more than 50 districts to collaborate, share best practices, and engage in professional learning about meeting the needs of SLIFE. For more information or to join the CoP, contact David Valade .

Guidance & Tools

Sample SLIFE Success Portfolio

A SLIFE Success Portfolio may serve as a systematic structure through which to gather various sources of data, include multiple voices (e.g., administrators, social workers, teachers, students, caregivers), and collaboratively make asset-based decisions to shape the student's educational experience. These sample tools come from the MA SLIFE guidance and are optional templates that districts could use, adapt, or modify to best meet their needs.

Sample SLIFE Success Portfolio Cover and Introduction

SLIFE Success Portfolio Part A: Understanding the Student

SLIFE Success Portfolio Part B: Supporting the Student

SLIFE Success Portfolio Part C: Ongoing Progress Monitoring

SLIFE Definition

To be identified as SLIFE in Massachusetts, a student must meet all the following criteria:

The DOE25 SIMS field indicates the students is an English learner.
The student is 8 to 21 years old.
The student enrolled in a school in the United States after grade 2 or exited the U.S. for 6 months or more and did not attend school during this time.
Prior exposure to formal schooling is characterized by one of the following:
- No formal schooling;
- Significant interruptions in formal schooling;
- Consistent but limited formal schooling (e.g., school days were significantly shorter).

In addition, the list below outlines common characteristics often shared by students who have experienced significant interruptions in formal schooling. Ultimately, districts should use a holistic approach to determine whether students' gaps in education indicate that they will need significant support beyond what is provided in existing English learner education (ELE) programs to access grade-appropriate content and build foundational skills.

When a student is identified as SLIFE, the district should indicate this designation in the student's school profile, cumulative folder, and on SIMS field DOE041 to help facilitate provision of appropriate supports and services.

Frequently, students identified as SLIFE share some of the following experiences, strengths, and needs:

May have emerging literacy skills (in home language and/or English).
May need intensive support to strengthen foundational skills in literacy, numeracy, or other content areas (in home language and/or in English).
May function approximately 2 or more years below Massachusetts grade-level expectations in home language literacy and numeracy.
May have strengths in pragmatic life skills but less experience with decontextualized academic tasks.
May be used to oral communication over written communication.
May experience cultural dissonance when learning in a formal schooling environment.

A Brief History of the Department's Commitment to SLIFE

In 2011, a Massachusetts Working Group was established to address the unique needs of students identified as SLIFE. In 2012, the working group drafted a definition of "SLIFE," which helped educators more effectively identify and support students. Subsequently, the Department's first iteration of guidance for working with SLIFE was published in 2015 and then revised in 2019.

In collaboration with practitioners, the Department continues its history of supporting the unique subset of English learners (ELs) identified as SLIFE. In 2022, the Department's Office of Language Acquisition (OLA), in partnership with the Region 1 Comprehensive Center (R1CC), initiated the latest phase of SLIFE work, responding to requests from school districts and educators for more support in operationalizing the SLIFE definition and guidance.

This current phase, driven by data showing increasing numbers of newcomers arriving in Massachusetts school districts, involves the three-pronged approach outlined above: research, a community of practice, and guidance and tool development.

Last Updated: September 26, 2024