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STATEMENT OF PURPOSE This is a quantitative study comparing the Access scores and MAP (Missouri Assessment Program) scores of ESL (English as a Second Language) students in the SJSD (St. Joseph School District) in order to determine if and how much the language barrier affects MAP score results. The purpose of this study is to quantitatively define if and how much an ESL student’s language barrier affects their academic achievement. STATEMENT OF RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The researcher will conduct a correlation study in which she will compare the 2012 ESL MAP scores with the 2012 Access scores at Edison Elementary School in the Saint Joseph School District. The goal is to discover whether a significant relationship exists between the two variables of language proficiency and academic achievement. The researcher also will compile a list of all ESL and non-ESL MAP scores for grades 3-6 and conducted a T-Test to measure how much lower ESL students tend to score on their achievement tests; thus confirming the need for action. These MAP scores will be analyzed to provide quantitative evidence that the language barrier does have an effect on ESL MAP scores. Permission to access data will be attained through Dr. Matthew Martz the Principal of Edison Elementary. Scores will be taken from ESL students with language proficiency scores ranging 1-6 on the Access language proficiency test. A blind list of the students’ scores will be prepared by the researcher to ensure confidentiality and maintain student privacy. Correlation statistics will be used to compare both Access and MAP scores. Graphs will be made to show the relationship between both test scores. T-test statistics will be used to compare the MAP scores of ESL students with native English-speaking students to confirm that ESL students score lower on their academic achievement tests than non-ESL students. ANTICIPATED RISKS AND BENEFITS Since there will be no contact with students in this study, the risks are abnormally minimal. Only contact concerning data will be with school principal, Dr. Matthew Martz. The researcher will immediately change the data to blind lists of students, thus protecting all students' privacy. SUBJECT SELECTION Edison Elementary is an average-sized elementary school in the SJSD. The researcher will be only be using the scores of students in grades 3-6 (due to the MAP test beginning with students in 3rd grade). The approximate number of students involved will be 200 (ESL and non-ESL). No other selection technique will be used due to the purely quantitative nature of this thesis and the small pool of subjects. CONFIDENTIALITY All student names will be deleted and assigned a number corresponding to each student's test scores (e.g. Student 1, Student 2, 3, etc.) Transfer from students names to corresponding numbers will be the researcher's first step when analyzing data. No person other than the researcher will see the names of students. Data sheets will be locked in a drawer at the Education Department in the researcher's office (Murphy 111 P). Note: No "Informed Consent Form" is included due to lack of contact with students in this study. Researcher will only be analyzing already existing data. Final Report on 12-10-2012 In summary, the researcher provided numerous examples of similar studies comparing ESL language proficiency and academic achievement all resulting in a positive correlation. The researcher then completed a series of T-Tests to quantify the reality of non-ESL students consistently out-performing ESL students in the subjects of: Communication Arts, Mathematics, and Science. Next, the researcher used Pearson Product Moment Coefficient of Correlation statistics to compare a group of ESL students’ language proficiency test scores with their concurrent academic achievement test scores to objectively define the relationship. The results were clear. In each academic subject, there exists a statistically significant, strong, positive correlation. Data collected from this study has provided quantitative evidence to successfully reject the null hypothesis “There is no relationship between ESL language proficiency and academic achievement.” It can be concluded, at this time, that ESL students with low language proficiency need more assistance during MAP testing than is currently provided in order to achieve and maintain accurate academic progress in this Midwest, Title I school. Further research is needed to study whether or not assistance in ESL achievement testing creates a more accurate evaluation of academic skills. Certain causes for low scores (e.g. unfamiliarity with test structure, lack of background knowledge in test vocabulary, etc.) should all be taken into account in future studies. Also, other studies are needed to determine what kind of assistance is most effective in accurately assessing achievement levels for ESL students.