Multilingual Learners

Multilingual learners now make up more than 10% of the US student population, and they include students who were born in the US as well those who have immigrated here. More than 75% of multilingual learners speak Spanish, and many schools and districts have more than 100 languages represented among their students. As noted by Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, multilingualism is a superpower!
Bright Ideas Across the Network

Four Instructional Practices for Bolstering English Learner Achievement in Grades K–12
Four Instructional Practices from R7CC to Bolstering English Learner Achievement in Grades K–12: This R7CC blog breaks down several evidence-based instructional strategies and activities to support English learners. The blog makes connections to video content provided by REL Northwest.

Supporting Integrated English Learner Student Instruction
This guide developed by R15CC and REL West, helps district and school site leaders assess the professional learning needs of elementary school teachers to implement research-based recommendations for the instruction of English learner students. It comprises two tools—the Teacher Self-Reflection Tool and the Classroom Observation Tool—and outlines a 10-step process to help districts align their professional learning decisions with the data collected from these tools.
Multilingual Assessment
R18CC and R19CC co-hosted a webinar on multilingualism and assessment on November 1, 2021. The key presenters were renowned author Dr. Margo Gottlieb and two immersion teachers, Ms. Lee Pangelinan and Ms. Lisa Emwalu, who both teach at Kagman Elementary School in Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
The webinar highlighted how assessment can be conducted in multiple languages, following the three assessment approaches “as, for, and of learning.” The presenters connected the assessment approaches with classroom applications, real-life examples of student language and cultural portraits, project-based learning, and student portfolios to amplify that yes, conducting assessment in languages other than and in addition to English is possible and easier than we may think.
Bilingual Educator Pipeline
Multilingual learners come to school with tremendous linguistic and academic potential. States, districts, and schools can support multilingual learners to manifest this potential by offering quality bilingual education programs, where teaching and learning occurs both in students’ primary language and English. Qualified instructional staff are at the heart of all strong bilingual education programs, yet across the United States, bilingual teachers are in short supply.
CCNetwork Resources

Examining Bilingual Education Programs and Policies

Bilingual Education Across the United States

Leveraging Flexible Teacher Certification Policies to Address the Bilingual Teacher Shortage

Bilingual Education: Lessons from Washington State

Addressing the Bilingual Teacher Shortage
High-Quality Instructional Practices, Resources and Materials for Multilingual Learners
Both teachers with certifications in bilingual education or English language development (ELD), as well as classroom teachers, can benefit from deepening their understanding of high-quality instructional practices for multilingual learners.
CCNetwork Resources

Four Instructional Practices for Bolstering English Learner Achievement in Grades K–12
Four Instructional Practices for Bolstering English Learner Achievement in Grades K–12: This R7CC blog breaks down several evidence-based instructional strategies and activities to support English learners. The blog makes connections to video content provided by REL Northwest.

Supporting Integrated English Learner Student Instruction

Culturally Responsive Practice as a Strategy for Diversifying the Educator Workforce
State and local education leaders were invited to join this Town Hall event featuring renowned researcher and educator, Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, on the importance of culturally responsive pedagogy, practices, and culture in recruiting, preparing, retaining, and supporting a racially diverse educator workforce. Dr. Ladson-Billings moderated a conversations with a panel of youth of color who shared their experiences and insights to illuminate our understanding of the importance of having racially diverse educators.

Selected Knowledge Base on Remote Learning Support for English Learners
This brief from R10CC summarizes a review of research, evaluation, resources, and stakeholder knowledge related to the topic of remote support for English Learners. The search for research on remote learning support for English Learners produced far more online “resource hubs” than peerreviewed articles. Findings have been separated into two tables: one includes links to online resources and one includes peer reviewed articles. Despite the difference in resource type, findings across resources share common themes to consider.
Participation of English Learners in the National Assessment of Educational Progress: Opportunity and Inclusivity
This R7CC blog post provides an overview of English learner (EL) student participation in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). It also covers the change in the percentage of EL students scoring at or above proficient from 2019 to 2022 and offers educators suggestions on supporting EL academic progress.

Selected Knowledge Base on Translation Services for Schools and Districts
This brief from R10CC summarizes a review of research, evaluation, resources, and stakeholder knowledge related to the topic of translation services for schools and districts.
External Resources
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Developing Educator Expertise to Work with English Learners
The Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA), in collaboration with the National Research & Development Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners, hosted this webinar on the development of teacher expertise to serve students classified as English learners (ELs).
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Improving Education for Multilingual and English Learner Students: Research to Practice (Webinar Series)
The series was designed to help engage educators with the publication and supporting their professional learning. The eight webinars aired from January through June 2021.
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Supporting Young English Learners at Home Supporting Young English Learners at Home
Learning together can be fun! These family and caregiver activities (FCAs) are designed to provide simple, fun activities families and caregivers can use with young English learner children at home to leverage cultural and linguistic assets and knowledge to strengthen language development in either the home language or English. The resources are based on the What Works Clearinghouse practice guide "Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School." They are available in multiple languages.
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Toward Comprehensive Effective Literacy Policy and Instruction for English Learner/Emergent Bilingual Students
A one-size-fits-all approach to reading instruction will not work for English learners and other multilingual children. Read our white paper to find out why.
Multilingualism and Assessment
In addition to participating in statewide content assessments, multilingual learners also take an annual English language proficiency assessment. Teacher also use formative and benchmark assessments, and can benefit from understanding how to use each of these assessment strategies for multilingual learners.
CCNetwork Resources
Participation of English Learners in the National Assessment of Educational Progress: Opportunity and Inclusivity
This R7CC blog post provides an overview of English learner (EL) student participation in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). It also covers the change in the percentage of EL students scoring at or above proficient from 2019 to 2022 and offers educators suggestions on supporting EL academic progress.
Multilingual Assessment
The Comprehensive Centers of Region 18 (R18CC) and Region 19 (R19CC) co-hosted a webinar on multilingualism and assessment on November 1, 2021. The key presenters were renowned author Dr. Margo Gottlieb and two immersion teachers, Ms. Lee Pangelinan and Ms. Lisa Emwalu, who both teach at Kagman Elementary School in Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
Multilingualism and Indigenous Students
Multilingual learners are a diverse population and include students who are American Indians and Alaskan Natives, students from Insular Areas and Freely Associated States, and indigenous students from Central and Latin America, among others. For many communities, preserving indigenous languages is as important, or more important, as learning English.
CCNetwork Resources

Advancing Equity for Indigenous Students
This brief describes a partnership between the Region 15 Comprehensive Center (R15CC), Region 13 Comprehensive Center (R13CC), and Regional Educational Laboratory West (REL West) that convened directors of Indian education at state education agencies (SEAs) to learn together, explore challenges and opportunities of practice, and advance equity for Native students.
Native Culture and Language Brief
Native Culture and Language Infographic
Multilingual Assessment
The Comprehensive Centers of Region 18 (R18CC) and Region 19 (R19CC) co-hosted a webinar on multilingualism and assessment on November 1, 2021. The key presenters were renowned author Dr. Margo Gottlieb and two immersion teachers, Ms. Lee Pangelinan and Ms. Lisa Emwalu, who both teach at Kagman Elementary School in Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
Native Culture and Language: Culture Quick Reference
External Resources
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Culturally Responsive School Practices to Promote the Success of Native American English Learners
Presenters from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of English Language Acquisition and the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Southwest present factors that contribute to the success and development of Native American and Alaska Native English learner students. Presenters will identify and discuss research-based and promising strategies to establish culturally responsive school environments that promote the academic achievement of Native American English learners and hear from practitioners working to implement these strategies.
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Getting to Know Pacific Island Students from the Freely Associated States Infographic Series
Families from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau have traversed the Pacific region for centuries, but over the past several decades, more families have moved from the islands to pursue education, work, and healthcare in the continental United States, Hawai'i, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. These growing populations of Pacific Island students in U.S. schools have prompted a need for a closer look at ways educators can provide culturally relevant, responsive, and sustaining education to students who are from or have family connections to the Pacific region.
The goal of this infographic series is to facilitate greater awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the diversity of cultures and experiences of Pacific Islanders and provide tangible methods for educators to meaningfully engage with Pacific students' communities inside and outside of the classroom.
Multilingual Learners with Disabilities
Identifying learning disabilities among multilingual learners can be complicated because it can be difficult to know the difference between language development and a learning disability. Multilingual learners with disabilities are at risk of remaining classified as English learners for more than five years, and educators can benefit from better understanding this population, from the process of identifying disabilities to providing targeted instruction to best meet their needs.
CCNetwork Resources

Strategies For Supporting Special Populations
External Resources
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Resourcing Supports for Young Multilingual Learners with Suspected Disabilities in California: Learning Collaborative Recommendations
This report focuses on recommendations for providing funding and resources to implement research-based strategies and practices that provide high-quality, language-rich, culturally and linguistically sustaining instruction to young multilingual learners and that prevent inaccurate special education referrals.
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Resources for Determining Special Education Eligibility of English Learners
From 2017 to 2020, REL Northeast & Islands staff worked with state and local partners in the region to learn about the policies and practices they use to identify disabilities among English learners and to provide resources to implement key policies and practices at the district, school, and classroom levels. The resources provided on this page can be used by teachers and administrators working with English learners both to provide high-quality instruction and to build practices to better determine special education eligibility.
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Toward Comprehensive Effective Literacy Policy and Instruction for English Learner/Emergent Bilingual Students
A one-size-fits-all approach to reading instruction will not work for English learners and other multilingual children. Read our white paper to find out why.
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Identifying English Learners with Disabilities
English learners are the fastest-growing group of students in U.S. schools. This infographic features three evidence-based recommendations to help educators identify English learners with disabilities.
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Multitiered System of Supports for English Learners
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Evidence-Based Tier 2 Intervention Practices for English Learners
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Identifying and supporting English learner students with learning disabilities:
State Frameworks and Data Use for Multilingual Learners
A number of states and districts have developed frameworks to guide their work with multilingual learners in order to provide coherent and comprehensive supports for their learning.
CCNetwork Resources

Improving Multilingual Student Outcomes in Nebraska

Region 2 CC Supports RIDE to Develop Multilingual Learner Blueprint
The Region 2 Comprehensive Center (R2CC) assisted the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) with the development of a Blueprint for Multilingual Learner (MLL) Success and accompanying Strategic Plan for implementation. With support from the R2CC, RIDE engaged a broadly representative group of stakeholders to develop these documents.
External Resources
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Guidebook on State Approaches to Incorporating English Learners Into Title I Accountability Systems
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Multilingual Toolkit
The Multilingual Learning Toolkit is an online hub for research-based key principles, instructional strategies, and associated, free, practical, and easy-to-use resources that are geared towards educators who teach PreK-3rd Multilingual Learners. As the resource library continues to grow, make sure you stay connected for the latest updates by filling out the short sign-up form at the bottom of the page.