Multilingual learners (MLL) are a large and growing group of disadvantaged students in the United States public education system who come from refugee and immigrant backgrounds and require linguistic instruction, in addition to content instruction. MLLs are entitled to language instruction, and school districts receive additional funding for these…

There is growing recognition about the importance of studying teacher agency in working with Linguistically Diverse Students (LDSs) after No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Every Student Succeed Act (ESSA) given that the high-stakes testing and accountability system, required by NCLB and largely maintained by ESSA, have exerted negative effects on…

This review explores the multifaceted challenges and strategies related to the education of emergent bilingual (EB) students in the U.S. education system. It highlights three primary themes: program approaches, instructional needs, and the importance of school-home connections. The first theme evaluates various educational programs for EB…

The population of English learners (ELs) in K-12 schools continues to grow. Between the 2009-10 and 2014-15 school years, the percentage of English learners increased in over half of the states, and in 2017, English learners made up 10.1% of the total student population. Research suggests that in their transition to English, non-native speakers…

Historically, students who are English learners and students with disabilities have experienced inequitable schooling opportunities. These inequities are heightened when considering those individuals who are not only English learners but also have a significant cognitive disability. This particular dually classified group, while not large in…

This article aims to highlight the challenges faced by schools when addressing a wide range of learning needs--specifically English language learners (ELL) and students with exceptionalities. Both populations of students have a history of being isolated rather than included with sameaged peers due to non-traditional learning profiles. Many…

This report provides an overview of major provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). It also includes a table showing annual appropriations for ESEA programs for FY2017 through FY2022, as well as a table showing the transition in authorized programs and related appropriations from FY2016, when No Child Left Behind Act of 2001…

With the 2015 passage of the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA), the oversight of language policy in U.S. schools shifted from federal to state governance. Although the education of students officially designated as English learners (ELs) has historically been grounded in federal law, we argue that ELs' educational experiences are also…

These are the appendixes for the report, "English Proficiency and the Pandemic: How Texas English Learner Students Fared during the COVID-19 Pandemic. REL 2023-144." This study examined levels of English proficiency before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among English learner students in grades 3-12 in Texas. In 2020-2021, nearly…

Schools are required by the U.S. Constitution, federal and state legislation, and court rulings to ensure equity and excellent education for emergent bilingual students. This literature reviews those policies, related funding and the history of poor quality of instruction provided to these learners. It also describes the research on bilingual…

Public education in the United States acts as a governmental tool of neoliberalism, through which state power and sovereignty are deployed and transformed in daily life. Here, I examine how the divergence of sovereignty is exerted over refugee students and their families in US public education. Drawing on 42 months of ethnographic data collected…

Although current and former English Learner (EL) or "ever-EL" students comprise one of the fastest-growing K-12 populations, we still know relatively little about the factors that influence their college-going. Using Perna's seminal college-going model as a launching point, we propose a policy-driven empirical approach to explore how…

The Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 mandates that English language proficiency (ELP) standards align with content standards. As the fast-growing population of English learners (ELs) is expected to meet college- and career-ready content standards, the purpose of this article is to highlight key issues in aligning ELP standards with content…

New Mexico's Every Student Succeeds Act state plan set the goal for all English learner students to attain English proficiency within five years. The Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest English Learners Research Partnership conducted this study to better understand progress toward English proficiency among American Indian English learner…

The "English Language Development among American Indian English Learner Students in New Mexico" study examined ways to better understand progress toward English proficiency among American Indian English learner students. The study examined two statewide cohorts of American Indian students identified as English learner students at initial…