September 18, 2024

EL Family Toolkit Tip Sheets – Now Available 

Are you a fan of OELA’s EL Family Toolkit but in need of a more concise version to share with families? Check out the EL Family Toolkit Tip Sheets in English and Spanish! These easy-to-follow sheets highlight key points from all six chapters, offering valuable support for ELs and their families.

Just Released: English Learners Who Are Black

Nationally, there are 213,832 EL students who identify as Black, making up 4% of all ELs in public schools. This community brings a wealth of diverse languages, countries of origin, and cultural identities to communities across all 50 U.S. States. Explore OELA's new infographic, English Learners Who Are Black, for critical data across States. 

Hispanic Heritage Month National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Data

For Hispanic Heritage Month 2024, NCES has released data on the educational experiences of Hispanic/Latino students and the characteristics of Hispanic/Latino teachers and faculty. “Of the 49.6 million preK–12 students enrolled in public schools in fall 2022, approximately 14.4 million were Hispanic/Latino.”

Learn more on NCES Fast Facts for additional insights.

Applications for New Awards: High School Equivalency Program and College Assistance Migrant Program

The Federal Register recently posted the High School Equivalency Program (HEP) and College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) Notices Inviting Applications (NIAs). These NIAs include Seal of Biliteracy and multilingualism priorities, aligning with ED’s Raise the Bar initiative to support multilingualism. 

Join the Hunt Institute on September 19 at 2 p.m. ET for a conversation into the role of engaging and nurturing multilingual learners (MLs) in their reading development and discover the significance of fostering a culturally inclusive approach to literature education.

This WIDA webinar explores five critical, research-based aspects or “guideposts” of reading instruction for multilingual learners (MLs). For each guidepost, attendees will receive an overview of the current research and strategies and tips for how the guidepost translates to classroom instruction.

Are you a K-12 teacher or administrator? Discover how to set up a language-rich learning environment through effective scaffolding and peer learning strategies for the upcoming school year. You will receive practical tools you can immediately apply in your classroom, a live Q&A session with our ML experts, and a one-hour PD certificate upon completion.

The Coalition of Community-Based Heritage Language Schools Conference brings together everyone who is interested in learning about and collaborating with community-based heritage language schools. This hybrid event will take place both on-site at American University in Washington, DC, and online on October 4–5, 2024. Follow these links to visit the conference website, learn about the plenary speakers, and register.

The WIDA Annual Conference is the premier event for educators of Pre-K through Grade 12 multilingual learners, giving educators from around the globe the opportunity to share best practices and discover innovative classroom strategies. The in-person conference will take place October 16–18, 2024, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A curated virtual option will be available on October 15 that includes a sampling of sessions from the in-person WIDA Annual Conference and an exclusive virtual keynote speaker.

The in-person portion of this year’s Texas Association for Bilingual Education (TABE) conference will be held at the Kalahari Resorts & Conventions in Round Rock, TX, from October 17–20. Virtual participation is also available. Conference registration opened on June 1.

November 12–16

La Cosecha Dual Language Conference

Conference

Are you, or someone you know, looking for a conference focused on providing instructional and programmatic support to best serve your ELs and emerging bilingual students? La Cosecha 2024 will feature more than 280 professional presentations and workshops for supporting two-way and one-way immersion, developmental bilingual, and heritage/tribal language immersion programs and will bring together educators, parents, researchers, and practitioners from across the United States.

Chalkbeat Colorado 

How the Durango, Colorado, District Supported Newcomer Students to Practice English This Year

Due to the growing population of ELs and multiple requests from the community, the Durango School District hosted a 4-week summer program to help newly arrived ELs practice English prior to the start of the school year. The program proved to be a success, allowing students to practice and improve English language proficiency as well create art projects that they presented to the district’s educators.

The Beacon Kansas City

Wichita Schools Are Adapting to Help More English Learners Succeed

To accommodate the growing numbers of ELs, Wichita Public Schools is expanding language support services to all its elementary schools. Through this expansion, ELs can be placed into intensive English classes for up to 2 years. District educators hope that these support services will increase the academic achievement of ELs and decrease the language support opt-out rates.  

Leander ISD

Former LISD Custodian Becomes Kindergarten Teacher at Whitestone Elementary

This article tells the inspirational story of Milagros Noa, an immigrant from Peru. Noa, a teacher in her home country, worked as a custodian at a school in Leander ISD. With persistence and dedication, Noa attended English classes and worked as a teacher assistant before finally earning her teaching license and becoming a dual language kindergarten teacher at Whitestone Elementary School.  

U.S. Commission of Civil Rights

NEW RESOURCES: Education Adequacy and Disparities for Native American Students in New Mexico

“The New Mexico Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (Committee) issued a report on educational adequacy for Native American students in the state. The report was issued after a series of public hearings where the Committee heard from individuals, organizations, and professionals with specific knowledge of and experience with education in New Mexico.”

Language Magazine

NEW RESOURCES: Dual Language Expectations

This article outlines multiple aspects associated with bilingualism in children. The author highlights the benefits of bilingualism and the mechanisms involved in becoming bilingual. The author also provides suggestions for fostering bilingualism in children.

Evidence-Based Writing Practices to Support English Learner Students

New Mexico prioritizes equitable educational opportunities and achievement for EL students. This Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Southwest infographic outlines two approaches that support effective writing instruction by introducing Write to Succeed, a professional learning program that aims to improve English proficiency among EL students as well as literacy skills for all students.

Developing Trauma-Sensitive Classrooms: Training and Coaching Series Introduction

The four-part Developing Trauma-Sensitive Classrooms series was designed to help educators understand and implement evidence-based practices to support students and educators experiencing trauma. This introduction provides an overview of the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) program and REL Appalachia team, the Developing Trauma-Sensitive Classrooms training series, and the local and State contexts establishing the need for a training and coaching series on supporting students and educators experiencing trauma and secondary traumatic stress. An accompanying handout includes an annotated list of the resources mentioned throughout the series.

The four sessions in the series are:

1.    Understanding Trauma and Its Impacts on Schools

2.    Identifying Students Who Need More Intensive Trauma-Sensitive Supports

3.    Creating a Trauma-Sensitive School Environment and Classroom

4.    Educator Self-Care

Internationals Network for Public Schools: Immersive Experiences

Have you ever wondered what it looks like when a school is designed to center on the experiences of multilingual high school students? Come visit an Internationals Network school!



There will be seven different school visits over the course of the coming school year, each with a different focus and topic. These experiences will include a full-day visit to a school and a half-day debrief the following day. Every Internationals Network professional development experience, including school visits, is designed to be participant-centered. Activities will be hands-on, exploratory, and collaborative, modeling many of the ideals that make the schools tick.

You will:

• See classrooms.
• Talk with teachers, students, and leaders.
• Explore student-facing materials.
• Build community with like-minded educators.
• Engage in discussions about how it all connects to your own work.
• Take part in a half-day debrief to support reflection and planning.

International and Newcomer Services Manager

Chicago Public Schools (CPS)

Chicago, IL

Family Support Specialist

Careers at Community Action Partnership of Ramsey & Washington Counties

Saint Paul, MN

English Learners and Postsecondary Education Podcast: Part I and II  

This two-part podcast from ED’s OELA is hosted by Beatriz Ceja, Deputy Assistant Secretary at OELA, and addresses topics associated with ELs’ access to postsecondary education. 

In the podcasts, explore the transition of ELs from high school to postsecondary education, discover their experiences in accelerated learning, and gain insights from a Q&A session.

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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 all students, including English learners, are provided with the highest quality education and expanded opportunities to succeed. The information and materials presented in NCELA Nexus do not necessarily constitute or imply endorsement, recommendation, or partiality by NCELA, the Office of English Language Acquisition, or the U.S. Department of Education.