English Learner students in the middle grades need curricula that build academic language while giving them structured opportunities to read, write, discuss, and analyze rigorous texts. The Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum English Language Development (ERWC-ELD) modules, developed by the California State University for grades 6 through 8, were designed to meet that need, but their effect on student achievement required rigorous testing.

Serving as the independent evaluator, WestEd assessed the ERWC-ELD across six California districts and 37 teachers. The study had two main components: a fidelity of implementation evaluation and a quasi-experimental impact evaluation comparing EL students in ERWC-ELD classrooms with matched peers in classrooms that did not use the modules. The study found that teachers delivered the curriculum with strong fidelity across every component and that the ERWC-ELD had a positive, statistically significant effect on student achievement, with gains on both English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC) and the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) summative assessment for ELA. The report offers district leaders, school administrators, and ELA and ELD teachers evidence to inform decisions about adopting the curriculum in their schools.