The Future of Education

To address the needs of multilingual learners (MLs), we developed a year-long professional development for in-service educators working with MLs with and without disabilities in elementary schools with high enrollments of MLs. The curriculum was based on the most recent evidence-based practice guides and toolkits published by the U.S. Department of Education. The participants were recruited in teams from the same school to foster collaboration and consistency in the delivery of services. Using a longitudinal quasi-experimental approach, the effectiveness of the project was assessed through pre/post surveys, focus groups, family engagement events, and course performance. Results will be presented showing a significant difference between the pre-and post-surveys. 

Keywords: Professional development, multilingual learners, special needs

References

Burr, E., Haas, E. Ferriere, K. (2015). Identifying and supporting English learner students with learning     disabilities: Key issues in the literature and state practice (REL 2015-086). Washington, DC: U.S.           Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education  Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory West.   http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs.

U. S. Department of Education, Office of English Language Acquisition (2017). English learner tool kit for states and local education agencies (2^nd Rev. ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

WIDA (2020). WIDA English language development standards framework, 2020 edition: Kindergarten-Grade 12. Board of Regent of the University of Wisconsin System: University of Wisconsin-Madison.