New NAM Grants Awarded
The U.S. Department of Education is awarding more than $2.8 million in grants under OELA’s Native American and Alaska Native Children in School Program (NAM). These funds will be used to support Native American students who are ELs. The grants are a great resource for promoting equity and addressing outcome disparities for Native American and Alaska Native kids. The goal is to support the teaching, learning, and studying of Native American languages while also increasing their English language skills.
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Just Released: English Learners in Secondary Schools Podcast
The latest episodes from OELA’s podcast series have just been released! Dr. Aída Walqui from WestEd, Dr. Ilana Umansky from the University of Oregon, and Dr. Karen Thompson from Oregon State University reunited for a two-part podcast to answer questions submitted during the English Learners in Secondary Schools: Trajectories, Transition Points, and Promising Practices webinar hosted by OELA in early 2021. In part 1, the panelists discuss how to support ELs in meeting graduation requirements, mitigate risks that may lead ELs to drop out of school, and provide English language development instruction.
In part 2, the panelists discuss the needs of students with limited or interrupted formal education, professional learning opportunities for educators of secondary ELs, and promising practices that can help educators meet the needs of ELs in secondary schools.
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Research-to-Practice: Meeting the Needs of ELs With and Without Disabilities (Brief 1)
Projects ELITE, ELLIPSES, and LEE — three model demonstration projects funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs — have released a new series of briefs on their work to improve outcomes for ELs with or at risk of disabilities in Grades 3 through 5 using a framework for multitiered instruction.
The first brief in the series, Multitiered Instructional Systems for ELs, describes a multitiered instructional framework focused on the language and learning needs of ELs and highlights key questions and considerations that educators often encounter when implementing tiered instruction for bi/multilingual learners. The brief also highlights the three model demonstration projects and gives an overview of the essential components of a multitiered system of supports for ELs with and without disabilities.
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Confronting Discrimination Fact Sheet Available in New Translations
This resource provides information about public elementary and secondary schools’ obligation to enroll all children, regardless of national origin or immigration status, and to provide language assistance services to ELs.
Eight new translations of this fact sheet are now available in the following languages:
Please share these new translations widely with educators, families, students, and community members.
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This webinar from REL West, the first in a two-part series, will expand knowledge and provide practical, evidence-based examples of systems, policies, and practices that are culturally affirming — what they are and what they are not — to inform instruction, school climate-related practices, and everyday decisions that shape the academic and social-emotional well-being of students and their families. |
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The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) has developed a Dual Language and Immersion (DLI) family education program for two-way bilingual immersion programs, which can be modified for one-way and indigenous programs. In this session, they will showcase samples of the materials, share program participant perspectives, and unveil a website with materials in English, Spanish, and Hmong. |
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October 13–15
Hybrid Conference
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The National Family Engagement Summit is being held in-person AND virtually this fall. Join family engagement practitioners from around the country to reimagine what family engagement looks like in this new post-pandemic world. |
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Hosted by the U.S. Department of Education, this event will promote the importance of mentoring for the Hispanic community. It will look at the effective practices of mentoring from different organizations, focusing on different parts of the educational spectrum. Each organization will share about their work, what motivates their work, and why mentoring matters for the Hispanic community. |
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October 14
Hybrid Conference
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Register for this 1-day virtual event that is open to members of the WIDA Consortium, international educators, and higher education faculty and staff. Registration includes access to live sessions, presentation handouts and materials, interactive breakout group opportunities, and all recorded content through the end of 2021. The keynote speaker will be Viet Thanh Nguyen, a professor at the University of Southern California. |
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October 18–22
Virtual Conference
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Join Lexia® for Emergent Bilingual Week, a virtual conference celebrating emergent bilingual education. Learn about tools and strategies to ensure the academic success of this unique and growing group of students. |
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October 25–27
Virtual Conference
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The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) Families Learning Conference is where passionate people go to discover innovative strategies, evidence-based best practices, and resources to help families succeed in accomplishing their educational and economic goals. Over 80 sessions will be available to choose from in six content strands, including adult education, early childhood education, family and community leadership, library, K–12 education, and research and policy. |
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November 10–13
Hybrid Conference
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La Cosecha 2021 will be a hybrid event, comprising both a virtual and an in-person conference. La Cosecha Conference offers you the unique opportunity to share best practices, resources, and current theory; build networks; and fuel community efforts to build a better future for our children as we “harvest” the best of our multilingual and multicultural communities. |
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November 19–21
Virtual Conference
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Join language educators at ACTFL’s virtual conference, featuring keynote speakers Omekonga Dibinga, Marcia Tate, and Shiza Shahid. The conference includes educational sessions and hands-on learning environments that will provide resources, ready-to-use techniques, and current trends in language education. |
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REL Southwest
American Indian students make up almost a fifth of ELs in New Mexico. To assist the state in supporting these students, the Southwest English Learners Research Partnership worked with New Mexico partners at the state, district, and school levels to develop a three-part learning series for teachers on implementing culturally and linguistically responsive practices.
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The 74
During the 2020–21 school year, various obstacles posed by remote learning triggered a disproportionate jump in EL absenteeism. Although ELs had the highest rates of attendance nationwide prior to the pandemic, during the pandemic, chronic absenteeism among ELs quadrupled in some districts, surpassing the absenteeism rates of the general student population. This report explores absenteeism data, potential reasons for such high absenteeism rates for ELs, and what can be done to support ELs in returning to in-person learning during the current school year.
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Press Herald
A grant from the Schuler Access Initiative is offering to match $50 million for a Bates College initiative to enroll more students from low-income families and undocumented immigrants. The money from the foundation will allow the college to increase the number of low-income and undocumented students by 50% and attract talented and ambitious students who will bring a wide range of perspectives and life experiences.
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Internationals Network
This new open-access report from Internationals Network shares data, strategies, and recommendations for serving ELs, immigrant students, and all multilingual learners (MLLs) across the U.S. for the year ahead.
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Internationals Network
Internationals Network supports and transforms education for MLLs in a network of public secondary schools across the U.S. This resource bank includes ideas, strategies, and tools that encapsulate what the organization has learned and tried while supporting MLLs over the past 30 years, including promising practice videos, classroom strategies, example projects, and complete workshops. Resources are relevant to both in-person and remote settings.
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Colorín Colorado
This article provides recommendations to educators on how schools can partner with Afghan refugee families who will be arriving to the U.S. in the coming months. The resource provides links to information about Afghan refugees and to refugee support resources from school districts.
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UCHICAGO Consortium on School Research
This study examined outcomes from two samples of ELs in pre-k and the early grades at Chicago Public Schools with the purpose of providing new knowledge about what student and school characteristics are associated with EL success. The study identified several factors that contribute to EL achievement in language development, literacy, and early reading skills. These factors include attending a full-day classroom, enrolling in pre-k prior to age four, receiving language support, and attending higher-rated schools.
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NABE is accepting applications for the following award competitions: 2022 Student Essay Contest, 2022 Teacher of the Year, 2022 Bilingual Teacher Scholarship, and the 2022 Outstanding Dissertation. Visit NABE online to download the guidelines for the competitions.
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Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL): Virtual Institutes, October 18–November 18
CAL is offering these virtual institutes this fall:
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Leading Dual Language Programs for Student Success, October 18–28: This live interactive institute will prepare school leaders to gain a solid understanding of the benefits of dual language education, explore how they can develop a program that promotes student success in two languages, and increase their impact as leaders. The institute is based on Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education, 3rd Edition.
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Newcomers in Your School: Cultural Connections and Instructional Strategies, November 4–18: Participants in this 2-day virtual institute will receive practical resources they can use right away to create a welcoming environment for newcomer students and facilitate their learning. This institute is designed for pre-K–12 teachers, administrators, and other practitioners who work in educational settings with newcomer students and their families, such as social workers, counselors, and after-school specialists.
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Institute of International Education
Washington, DC
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Brooklyn Excelsior Charter School
Brooklyn, NY
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Spotlight on ELs with Interrupted Formal Education (SIFE)
ELs who are students with interrupted formal education, or SIFE, often face many serious challenges when attending school in the U.S. Educators also often encounter difficulties in meeting their needs. In this two-part podcast, Francisco Lopez, an Education Program Specialist from OELA, speaks with educators on research and practices in the field related to SIFE.
In part 1, Dr. Margarita Calderon, professor Emerita at Johns Hopkins University, describes her research on ELs who are SIFE and provides information to educators on research-based best practices for supporting this population of students. In part 2, Teresa Vignaroli, an English Learners Supervisor from Loudoun County Public Schools in Virginia, discusses practical considerations and the day-to-day programming involved with serving ELs who are SIFE.
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Send your alerts, upcoming events, resources, and job postings to AskNCELA
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National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA)
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Disclaimer: NCELA Nexus is intended to share information that can be of use to educators, parents, learners, leaders, and other stakeholders in their efforts to ensure that every student, including ELs, is provided with the highest quality education and expanded opportunities to succeed. The information and materials presented on NCELA Nexus do not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by NCELA, the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA), or the U.S. Department of Education.
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