This paper describes the author's personal involvement with issues of policy and implementation that were sparked by the "Lau" decision. Topics included are student assessment, the bilingual education wars, the role of research, the paradigm shift with the advent of standards, and California state policy in the education of English…

In December 2020, the WIDA Consortium released the "WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework, 2020 Edition." In the coming years, the 2020 Edition will be implemented across 36 states, the District of Columbia, and four territories and agencies in the US. The 2020 Edition also arrives at a time when the field of TESOL is…

The path to an excellent, high-quality education can be complex for students who have been historically and systemically excluded, including students of color, students experiencing poverty, students with learning differences, and multi-language learners. In 2020, Digital Promise launched the Equitable School Systems Transformation (ESST)…

In light of the growing development in policy and practice that recognizes the importance of early identification of students at risk for reading difficulties and dyslexia through universal screening, districts will need to carefully consider how this may impact English learners. The purpose of this brief is to: (1) share potential challenges…

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) ensures educational equity for multilingual learners through supporting school districts and charter schools to develop, implement and evaluate research-based language instruction education programs so that multilingual learners, including students with English learner status, attain academic language…

Studying English is challenging and, for many learners, undiagnosed learning disabilities can present a serious threat to their success. Recent studies indicate that up to 10% of the world population has a non-apparent disability, such as autism or dyslexia. At the same time, few English language learner (ELL) instructors in higher education have…

This Study Snapshot highlights key findings from a study that explored attendance supports aimed at reducing chronic absenteeism that Rhode Island's Providence Public School District (PPSD) schools implemented in the 2018/19 school year. The study investigated what attendance supports were most commonly implemented with fidelity in 2018/19 by…

Shared experiences through school-hosted events, such as family literacy events, can afford opportunities to support and extend academic learning while fostering positive home-school relationships. This article describes the importance of developing primary-grade students' literacy skills through a talent development lens and explains several ways…

For professional learning to "stick," teachers need to connect what they learn to their practice--and particularly to their work with their current students. The authors describe a PD program they've developed for math teachers with emergent multilingual students (English language learners) in their classes. Teachers choose "focus…

This Study Snapshot highlights key findings from a study looking at implementation of Pre-Elementary Grant (PEG) programs, the characteristics of PEG districts and the students served, and the student outcomes related to participating in state-funded preschool, including participating in a PEG program. Data sources included documents submitted by…

This document, created by the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE), provides guidance for newly opening charter schools. This guide can be used to keep track of MDE deadlines, access the reporting calendar and follow the steps necessary to ensure the utilization of all the resources and revenue available from the state. This guidance document…

Is the Common Core really "dead"? Though no longer called the Common Core in our three study states, the "new" college-and-career readiness standards still guide much of education policy in Texas, Ohio, and Kentucky. In our new feature article in "Educational Researcher," lead author Dr. Laura Desimone, along with…

The instructional programs educators design to help English Learner (EL) students work toward English proficiency look different in schools across the United States. This is due in part to the variety of approaches K-12 educators take to important questions such as: Should the program foster bilingualism or focus solely on English? Should ELs…

More than 45 individuals representing staff from state departments of education, school districts, testing and testing-related companies, and other educational organizations participated in a forum on June 26, 2018 in San Diego, California to discuss speech-to-text and scribing, the differences in terminology, challenges associated with…

This report summarizes Austin Independent School District elementary principals' comments from a December 2017 discussion about the process for choosing bilingual and English as a second language programs for their schools in the 2018-2019 school year.