San Dieguito Union High School District

Seal of Biliteracy

The State Seal of Biliteracy (SSB) award encourages students to pursue linguistic proficiency and cultural literacy in one or more languages in addition to English, and promotes SDUHSD’s commitment that every student graduates prepared and equipped with the knowledge and skills to participate successfully in life after high school.

The SSB is marked by a gold seal affixed to the diploma to recognize high school graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing one or more languages in addition to English. This seal honors the skills students attain and can be evidence of skills attractive to future employers and college admissions offices.

HOW STUDENT CAN QUALIFY:

To earn the California State Seal of Biliteracy, a student must demonstrate proficiency in English plus one or more other languages.

The California Department of Education provides guidance for the biliteracy requirements, which are viewable by clicking the graphic below.

At SDUHSD, we encourage students to take steps to earn the Seal of Biliteracy. Counselors at each school site can support students in choosing appropriate coursework, providing guidance on transferring off-campus credits, or determining whether an exam is most appropriate for qualification.

California State Seal Biliteracy Requirements

Language Proficiency Assessment

For currently enrolled grade 11 and 12 students who are in need an assessment to demonstrate their proficiency in a language, the district offers an annual opportunity, including the ACTFL Assessment of Performance toward Proficiency in Languages (AAPPL) for the following languages: Arabic, Chinese, (Mandarin), English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish, and other languages in a different format, which may require more time to be coordinated. The testing sessions for this language assessment take place in April and/or May each school year. Students requesting an exam have reviewed qualifications to ensure coursework or AP/IB exams would not qualify them.

Seal of Biliteracy Assessment Sessions for 2026-2027 are:

April 15, 2026 at 4:00 pm

April 29, 2026 at 4:00 pm

Please note --> taking and passing the language assessment does not earn credit for coursework and doesn't fulfill the UC/CSU requirements for taking language coursework. The purpose of taking the assessment is to earn the Seal of Biliteracy.

Timeline For SEAL Evaluation

December - SDUHSD will evaluate grade 12 pre-qualifiers for the Seal of Biliteracy
March - SDUHSD will communicate to remind grade 9-11 students to take the SBAC assessment as pending qualifiers
April - District assessment offered.
May - Advanced Placement exams offered; preliminary list to registrars in late May
June (after Graduation) - Evaluation of final transcripts and certification of the Seal of Biliteracy will be added to diplomas.