The in-take test battery completes the student profile. It also helps to determine the student's content knowledge for placement in mainstream courses. Some school districts develop and administer more informal tests, especially to assess aspects of English proficiency which are often not covered in standardized tests. In some programs, it is then reinforced through Engliish-medium instruction. Students with low English proficiency spend most of the school day learning English.
More proficient students can spend a greater part of the day in mainstream classes.
A mainstream course and an ESL course are linked. The mainstream course, taught by a regular content teacher, enrolls both native and non-native speakers of English. The ESL course, taught by an ESL teacher, provides needed language support to the non-native speakers. A mainstream course is taught by a regular content teacher to a class of both native and non-native English speakers. Instruction is adjusted to accommodate the needs of the non-native speakers.