What’s the purpose of this guide?
By 2025, 1 in 4 students will be a multilingual learner. While so many of us are teaching Multilingual Learners (ML), and the ML population is growing in public education, even those of us with experience and knowledge do not consider ourselves experts. What’s the reason for this?
We want to honor the expertise that we do have in this field, and we want to ensure ML teachers and leaders have a resource where they can do a quick check, and say, “wait a second, we do implement these practices, our teachers do know how to do this” and recognize their own expertise.
Why Mindset Shifts?
In education, learning is continuous for students – and adults. Teaching Lab’s Shifts and Practices tool was designed while considering past literacy teaching to Multilingual learners (MLs) and reflecting on necessary instructional shifts to uplift the unique assets these students bring to school.
The tool of instructional practices focuses on transitioning from outdated and/or harmful pedagogies to responsive practices that center learners, their languages, and cultures, driven by a belief in the importance of a growth mindset in education.
Our Design Process
Why was this guide created?
California has invested heavily in universal and transitional pre-K, foundational literacy, support for Multilingual learners, and dual language programs. However, the history of literacy instruction with Multilingual learners in California is fraught. Proposition 227 and other political efforts led to inappropriate and unfair literacy policies for non-English-speaking families.
This resource - coined the Multilingual Learner Action Guide for Literacy - supports schools in implementing research-based best practices in literacy instruction for K-2nd grade Multilingual learners, while also acknowledging the specific set of skills and expertise required to help these students thrive as readers and writers.
How was this guide created?
A Design Group of expert educators in the field of Multilingual Learners (MLs) - most of whom identify as multilingual learners themselves (predominantly with Spanish as a heritage language) - supported Teaching Lab’s process of creating the Multilingual Learner Action Guide for Literacy.
The tool's design was primarily driven by teachers with the intention of providing a digital learning environment deeply rooted in teacher reflection on effective teaching practices, the synthesis of literacy and language research, and ongoing professional learning.
It includes a set of artifacts, resources, and models that support both educators (teachers and leaders) and students in addressing the challenges and opportunities associated with literacy development for Multilingual Learners.
The Multilingual Learner Action Guide Team
A very huge thanks to everyone who made this guide possible.
Teaching Lab Team
Michele Morenz
Dr. Molly Branson Thayer
Jessika Davidson
Dr. Sarah Johnson
Claudia Conroy
Dr. Debbie Ellis
Senior Advisory by English Learners Success Forum
Design Group Experts
Sandra Prades-Bertran
Dr. Bernadette Pilar Zermeño
Cidelia Martinez
Monica Collazo
Jennifer Jackson
Tywanda Walker
Anna Lee-Villarreal
Heather Mann
Cindi Lyon
Jane Ching Fung
Cristina Rojas López
Amairani Juarez
Cynthia López
Monica Aguilar
Esther Villahoz Cana
Irene Villahoz Cana
Gabriela Fuentes
Nicolet Diaz
How can I contribute to the guide?
If you’d like to contribute additional resources of your own, see that something is missing or want to talk about a future collaboration on this project, please email us at michele.morenz@teachinglab.org