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
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of 5 or higher) in all four components.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of 7 or higher) in all four components.
STAMP 4S is currently accepted by all state Seal of Biliteracy programs.
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of 5 or higher) in all four components.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of 7 or higher) in all four components.
WorldSpeak is widely accepted by states and provides low cost accessibility to Less Commonly Taught Languages measuring Speaking and Writing.
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Score of 3 or higher
Working Fluency Requirements:
Score of 5
AP tests are widely accepted by state Seal of Biliteracy programs.
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Score of 4 or higher
Working Fluency Requirements:
Score of 6
IB tests are widely accepted by state Seal of Biliteracy programs (Higher level only).
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of I4 or higher) in all four testing components.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of A) in all four testing components.
AAPPL is currently accepted by most State Seal of Biliteracy programs.
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of I4 or higher)
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of A)
All four skills not required
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Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of I4 or higher) in all four testing components.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of A) in all four testing components.
OPI or OPIc and WPT is accepted in combination by most states Seal of Biliteracy programs 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
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of 5 or higher) in all four components.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of 7 or higher) in all four components.
Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements.
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Score of 18 or higher
Working Fluency Requirements:
Score of 21 or higher
Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements.
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Score of 3 or higher
Working Fluency Requirements:
Score of 5
Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements.
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Score of 480 or higher
Working Fluency Requirements:
Score of 540 or higher
Evidence-Based Reading & Writing SAT College & Career Readiness Benchmarks. Alternative to meeting your state Seal requirements.
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Score of 4.5 or higher
Working Fluency Requirements:
Score of 5.8 or higher
Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements.
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Intermediate-Mid (score of I4 or higher) in all four testing components.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Advanced-Low (score of A) in all four testing components.
Alternative to meeting your state Seal of Biliteracy requirements.
Fulfilled Candidate’s state Seal English requirements
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Meet State seal English requirements
Working Fluency Requirements:
Meet State seal English requirements
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
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Meet English graduation requirements in non-Seal states.
Working Fluency Requirements:
Meet English graduation requirements in non-Seal states.
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, College or University Diploma
Functional Fluency Requirements:
Obtain High School, College or University Diploma
Working Fluency Requirements:
Obtain High School, College or University Diploma
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.