TWBI/DLI Resources
When Young Children Return to the Classroom: Helpful strategies and protocols from Alissa Alteri Shea at Edutopia.
Making TWBI/DLI Programs Viable in a Virtual Learning Reality: This brief was written and edited by a team of program experts and is a compilation of meetings held in June 2020 with experienced TWBI/DLI Kindergarten teams and administrators.
Grow Your Own Teachers: A 50-State Scan of Policies and Programs.
¡Chispas!
Dr. Kathleen Contreras, professor and well known Latina author of children’s books, works with Two-Way & Dual Language organizations to scan the airwaves for news about Two-Way Dual Language programs throughout the U.S.A. This work is invaluable as she works to keep us in the know of the latest developments in the field. Here is her latest ¡Chispas! for you to review.
Translanguaging Origins
The article traces the Welsh origins of ‘‘translanguaging’’ from the 1980s to the recent global use, analysing the development and extension of the term. It suggests that the growing popularity of the term relates to a change in the way bilingualism and multilingualism have ideologically developed not only among academics but also amid changing politics and public understandings about bilingualism.
Wyoming’s News
Casper grade school will offer English-Spanish dual language program in fall.
A dual language program will begin teaching students in Spanish and English at Park Elementary School in Casper this fall.
Natrona County School District trustees unanimously approved the program at a meeting.
Oregon Department of Education
ATDLE is proud to announce its new contract with the Oregon Department of Education! ATDLE will support the ODE Dual Language Collaborative effort throughout the State. Seven sites from throughout Oregon make up the collaborative and are working to initiate and/ or re-align their TWBI/DL Programs. Dr. Kathyrn Lindholm-Leary will be working to establish clear evaluation guidelines for the programs. The work with ODE will commence in January and continue for 2-3 years!
3 Interesting Articles on Education Week
Bilingual Educator Grant Program Empowering Bilingual Teachers And Students: Read Conmigo is an educator grant program from The Kemper Foundation to support bilingual (Spanish-English) elementary education teachers and Hispanic and Latino students. The grants are dedicated to providing needed tools, resources, and supplies for the classroom, and professional development opportunities for teachers.
School Climate Survey: ATDLE, in partnership with professor/DLE researcher (and former DLE teacher) Nicholas Block at Biola University, invites you to participate in a survey that explores the social climate in our DLE schools, especially those schools where there is also a mainstream English strand. The survey should take about 10-12 minutes.
10 Teacher Picks for Best Tech Tools: Teachers and administrators from pre-K through 12th grade named these tools their top picks for this year and beyond.
Starting Out the School Year Virtually – Resources: Here is a good listing of resources available to support your virtual instruction at the PreK-1st grade level. Remember that the languages should not be mixed. Many of these resources are in both languages…use them appropriately in your Dual Language classroom.
SSB COVID-19 Guidance Letter – July 2, 2020
Updated Guidance for Awarding the State Seal of Biliteracy
The California Department of Education (CDE) will continue to award the State Seal of Biliteracy (SSB) during the 2019–20 and 2020–21 school years. As always, local educational agencies may order insignias through the online Insignia Request Form located under the “Procedures, Requirements, and Forms” tab on the CDE SSB web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/el/er/sealofbiliteracy.asp
Distance Learning Parent Newsletter – July 2020
DEAR PARENTS,
The Distance Learning Parent Newsletter was published weekly during the transition to distance learning. Starting with the June 2020 issue, the newsletter will now be published monthly.
This issue focuses on talking to kids about social justice. With race and racism in the news, children of all ages are likely to have questions. Talking to children about race and racism is important, but it can be difficult to know how to handle these conversations in an age-appropriate way. For that reason, this newsletter provi
Fluency in a Second Language
Fluency in a Second Language: Should it Be Part of College and Career Readiness?
The rise in popularity of dual-language programs in public schools has been well documented in recent years—I did a story about it two years ago—and there’s even been a small, but growing policy push to encourage students to become bilingual and biliterate. (There are now official state seals of biliteracy given to high school graduates who qualify in California, New York, Illinois, and, most recently, Texas.)
I have no doubt that dual-langauge programs will continue to proliferate, especially as they continue to gain favor with middle class families.
Additional Resource Articles on TWBI/DLI Education
New Ways of Seeing: How Multilingualism Opens Our Eyes and Trains Our Minds for a Complex World
Washington Post, Speaking two languages may help the aging brain (December 2018)
Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA), What the Research Says About Immersion
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), What the Research Shows
CARLA: How Can Learner Language Inform Mandarin Immersion Teaching? (October 2018)
NPR, 6 Potential Brain Benefits of Bilingual Education (November 2016)
New York Times, The Superior Social Skills of Bilinguals (March 2016)
Education Week, Is Language Immersion Right for My Child? (March 2016)
RAND Corporation study of Portland Public Schools Mandarin immersion programs, Portland Immersion Students Become Better Readers, English Speakers (November 2015)
New York Times, Dual-Language Programs Are on the Rise, Even for Native English Speakers (October 2015)
Washington Post, Parents Want Elementary Pupils to Learn Foreign Languages — But Where? (October 2014)
Psychology Today, Cognitive Advantages of Second Language Immersion Education (January 2014)
Education Week, What Research Tells Us About Immersion (September 2012)
Wall Street Journal, More Area Schools Embrace Chinese-Immersion Method (August 2012)
Asia Society, Chinese Language Learning in the Early Grades: A Handbook of Resources and Best Practices for Mandarin Immersion (2012)
Collier & Thomas, 2004: The Astounding Effectiveness of Dual Language Education for All
Grancois Grosjean: Psychology Today: 10 Questions on Bilingualism https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-cultures/201607/10-questions-bilingualism
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/life-bilingual/201311/second-language-learning-bilingualism-in-schools
Kaja Perina: Psychology Today: Beyond Words: The Benefits of Being Bilingual
