This qualitative case study explored the perspectives of school administrators on implementing structured English immersion (SEI) and dual-language bilingual education (DLBE) programs serving emergent bilingual learners at one urban Arizona elementary school. Using a sociocultural policy perspective, I analyzed findings from a series of interviews…

Research is mixed about which program approaches are most effective, but researchers agree that English learners (ELs) perform better academically and achieve greater language proficiency when they have some type of English language instruction. Program approaches vary widely, but the most common types include: (1) English as a Second Language:…

A growing body of research has demonstrated that neoliberal discourses have negatively impacted dual language bilingual education (DLBE) for students designated as English learners. This study uses the concept of expropriation to refer to the co-opting and dispossessing of educational resources, opportunities, and rights from language-minoritized…

It is well-documented that there is a strong relationship between vocabulary and reading comprehension in school-age children. Limited vocabulary knowledge can impact a student's reading achievement, as may be the case for school-age English Learners (ELs). This study aims to analyze the role of vocabulary in predicting reading comprehension…

Multilingual learners (MLs) are the country's fastest-growing student population: One in five students speak a language other than English at home, and 10 percent of the student population across the country is identified for language development services in school. Despite these students' growing presence nationwide, relatively few best practices…

Children who are English learners (ELs) comprise a large, diverse, and growing student group in U.S. schools. ELs face systemic educational challenges rooted in language, race, class, and nativity. The Century Foundation and Children's Equity Project constructed a first-of-its-kind database covering more than 1,600 dual-language immersion (DLI)…

This three-article dissertation examined how policy choices in three key policy areas -- initial enrollment, service provision, and reclassification -- impact English learner (EL)-classified students. The first article examined the national landscape of state statutes, regulations, and state education agencies' (SEA) guidance that support…

Presently, across the nation, immigration headlines grip the public's attention with negative messages, under the assumption that immigrants are stereotyped as either individuals with criminal intent or people who are unpatriotic to the United States. Under this thought, politicians scramble to meet the needs of their state by protecting their…

Assessment "as," "for," and "of" learning complement effective curricular and instructional practices, however, the complexities of assessment for multilingual students are too-often overlooked and misunderstood. What if multilingual learners, teachers, and educational leaders all had opportunities to plan for and use…

This study examined the knowledge, motivation, and organizational (KMO) influences that shape how dual language immersion program (DLIP) administrators sustain these programs on their campuses in a California public school district. Using a modified version of Clark and Estes' gap analysis model, a qualitative case study explored the assumed KMO…

The purpose of this study was to create and prototype a dual language assessment task that allows young English learners to use their entire cadre of linguistic resources (language and non-verbal resources) to obtain information about their emergent language abilities. We developed a dual language assessment task in which students described a…

This ex-post-facto quasi-experimental research design was conducted by selecting a convenient sample of approximately 2,000 3rd grade ELLs who took the regular reading and math English STAAR test during the 2014-15 school year in an urban southern Texas school district. This study was conducted using a quantitative research method of data…

This study investigates second language acquisition of learners enrolled in a dual language/two-way bilingual immersion program. Two groups of third-grade students participated in this study. The first group was composed of Spanish-dominant participants learning English, and the second group was composed of English-dominant students learning…

We argue the emergence of a shift in U.S. language education policy discourses from an equity/heritage (EH) framework focused on equity for English learners and non-English heritage languages, toward a global human capital (GHC) framework linked to neoliberal considerations of the language skills of individuals and nations. This discursive shift…

This report summarizes existing evidence on the impact of mixed language classroom instruction, providing a summary of 2017 Austin Independent School District elementary students' performance on the state's reading test.