English language learners make up 14 percent of the 1.1 million students in our schools — they speak scores of different languages, including Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Arabic and Punjabi. These students have specific needs and variable levels of mastery of their home language and English, but they have not always been given priority in the classroom.

Last year, the state Department of Education sought to address the issue by overhauling state regulations governing how English language learners are taught. Among the changes, which took effect in September 2015, were enhanced instruction for different levels of English mastery, expansion of dual language and transitional bilingual programs and more consultation with parents. At the heart of the new approach is the integrated model: keeping English language learners with the rest of the student population for all subjects and providing services as needed. That model requires a dually certified teacher or co-teachers.

As welcome as most of these changes are, it is already clear that many New York City public schools were not equipped to make them in one fell swoop. It may be a great idea to create integrated classrooms or to give 90 minutes a week of support to English language learners who are proficient in English, but nowhere do the new regulations provide assistance to schools that cannot fulfill these mandates because of staffing issues.

Responding to concerns raised by members, the UFT convened a working group of 30 rank-and-file teachers to examine the new policy and confront the challenges that have arisen in implementation. Among the group’s proposals: preserve some stand-alone classes for English as a new language in the mix for all students; mandate common planning time for co-teachers and provide professional development on how to use that common planning most effectively; and rescind the grade-span restrictions in the new rules that limit grouping instruction to two contiguous grades.

The recommendations were presented by the teachers in the working group to Regents Chancellor Betty Rosa and other city and state officials in a March 30 meeting and will be issued formally in a white paper in June. They merit careful consideration. City and state education officials recognize that teachers are on the front lines of implementing the new policies. Listening to their concerns and insights is essential if the policy changes are to be effective in helping English language learners reach their full potential.