Qualifying Tests & Requirements
To receive the Global Seal of Biliteracy, candidates or their representative schools or institutions must submit qualifying seal of biliteracy test scores as evidence of their language skills in two or more languages. The following chart depicts which tests and what scores have been approved to qualify candidates for the Global Seal. Qualifying test scores must be submitted within 12 months of the test date. Click on tests below for more information.
| WORLD LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT Can be candidate’s first/heritage or second language | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| APPROVED ASSESSMENTS | FUNCTIONAL FLUENCY AWARD | WORKING FLUENCY AWARD | COMMENTS |
| Avant STAMP 4S | Intermediate - Mid | Advanced - Low | All 4 components required. STAMP 4S is currently accepted by all state Seal programs. |
| Avant WorldSpeak | Intermediate - Mid | Advanced - Low | WorldSpeak is widely accepted by states and provides low cost accessibility to Less Commonly Taught Languages measuring Speaking and Writing. |
| College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Exam | 3 | 5 | AP tests are widely accepted by state Seal programs. |
| International Baccalaureate (Higher Level) | 4 | 6 | IB test is accepted by many states (Higher level only) |
| AAPPL Form B administered by Language Testing International | I4 (Intermediate - Mid) |
Advanced - Low | All 4 components required. AAPPL is currently accepted by most State Seal programs. |
| Language Testing International ALIRA (Latin) | Intermediate - Mid | Advanced - Low | All four skills not required |
| Language Testing International OPI or OPIc and WPT | Intermediate - Mid | Advanced - Low | OPI or OPIc and WPT is accepted in combination by most states and provides accessibility to Less Commonly Taught Languages. (some states require tests in all four domains: OPI/WPT/RPT/LPT) |
| ENGLISH REQUIREMENT Global Seal candidates in the U.S. must MEET both World Language and English qualifying criteria |
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|---|---|---|---|
| APPROVED ASSESSMENTS | FUNCTIONAL FLUENCY AWARD | WORKING FLUENCY AWARD | COMMENTS |
| Avant STAMP 4S in English | Intermediate - Mid | Advanced - Low | Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements. |
| ACT Exam | 18 | 21 | Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements. |
| College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Exam | 3 | 5 | Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements. |
| SAT Exam | 480 | 540 | Evidence-Based Reading & Writing SAT College & Career Readiness Benchmarks. Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements. |
| WIDA ACCESS | 4.5 | 5.8 | Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements. |
| Language Testing International AAPPL Form B in English | I4 (Intermediate - Mid) |
Advanced - Low | Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements. |
| Fulfilled Candidate’s state Seal English requirements | X | X | For candidates in states with a state Seal of Biliteracy, it is recommended that candidates meet the same English criteria required by the state Seal in order to have a parallel credential. If a state Seal English requirement is a state test from which a private school is excluded, an alternate criteria can be used. |
| Fulfill English graduation requirements in non-Seal states | X | X | For those in states without a Seal of Biliteracy, candidates can qualify by meeting English graduation criteria or by meeting other qualifying Global Seal of Biliteracy criteria for English. |
| High School/University Diploma | X | X | For candidates who are college/university students or adults, a high school diploma or transcript can be submitted to meet Global Seal of Biliteracy criteria for English. |
how these tests were approved
The Global Seal of Biliteracy’s Board of Advisors is responsible for approving tests to be used to determine a candidate’s level of language proficiency. Guiding Principles were created with expanding access to credentialing as a primary goal. The evaluation of available tests is ongoing with the first group of tests representing those most widely accepted by state Seal programs. To qualify as an accepted language assessment, the assessment must conform to the following Guiding Principles*
1. Externally validated (not developed or scored at the local/state level)
2. Assesses all 4 basic skills -- Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing*
3. Results aligned with or correlated to the ACTFL Proficiency Scale.
*Exceptions made for languages such as Latin or ASL where a component may not be assessed or for Less Commonly Taught Languages where tests in all 4 skills may not be available or are cost prohibitive.