During EDL 530, School Culture and Equity Leadership, I chose to focus on Leadership Disposition #3: promote culturally responsive teaching practices and Leadership Disposition #5: promote an inclusive school culture.  My leadership goal related to these dispositions was: I will represent Fort Collins High School on the Poudre School District (PSD) Dual Language K-12 Articulation collaboration.  The Department of Language, Culture and Equity is working in conjunction with the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) to refine its Language Instruction Education Program (LIEP) plan.  One of the language acquisition models for PSD is the dual-language model.  Although FCHS is not currently a dual-language program site, one of its main middle school feeder schools is a dual-language program site.  The collaboration will define vertical articulation and build a foundation of best practices for students whose LIEP plan has involved dual-language immersion.

These dispositions and goal align with Leadership Competencies from Transforming Professional Practice components 2a- Demonstrates competence as an educational leader, in that my goal requires research around new educational concepts.  This goal also aligns with component 3a- Champions and supports curriculum development, specifically demands equity and accessibility to curriculum and resources, as well as 3b- Advocates for instruction that supports the needs of all learners, specifically encourages student choice and ownership of one’s educational pathways.  Lastly, the goal aligns with component 4c- Upholds federal, state, and local laws, policies, and regulations and component 4d- Practices and refines resourcefulness in that the Dual Language collaboration is a gathering of administrators and educators working to complete the mandated LIEP (Strike et al., 2019).

To work toward achieving this goal, I followed the following action steps:

1.     Participate in the initial collaboration meeting of the Dual Language collaboration to gain an understanding of the purpose and goals of the group.

2.     Conduct background research around dual-language immersion programs, as this is not the model currently in place at FCHS. 

3.     Attend future collaboration meetings for the refinement of the LIEP plan for PSD.

The collaboration team includes district-level and school administrators and educators who have a vested interest in dual language programming as a model of language acquisition.  To date, the dual language collaboration team has gathered twice to establish purpose and goals, and to develop a common understanding of best practices around Dual Language programming.  We collaboratively drafted a philosophy/vision statement for Dual Language programming within PSD.  See a version of the draft philosophy statement presented here.  We analyzed evidence-based Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education based on the work from the Center for Applied Linguistics.

The work of the dual language collaboration team will continue throughout the 2024-2025 school year.  As a group we will continue to evaluate existing practices within the dual-language programs and identify areas of potential improvement, based on the Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education.  We will determine the feasibility of vertical articulation to the high school level, and possibility of expanding the middle school program.  I suggested conducting site visits to schools with dual-language programs in place to further understand the possibility of program expansion.

The leadership goal around the dual-language program collaboration meets leadership dispositions #3 and #5: promote culturally responsive teaching practices and promote an inclusive school culture.  Based on the draft philosophy statement, through dual-language programming in PSD, we are committed to empowering students through development of multilingualism.  It describes how we value the cultural diversity of our school community and use cultural capital as a means for developing empathy and open-mindedness among our students.  It maintains that the dual-language program in PSD is one with rigorous expectations.  We believe all students are capable of academic success, no matter their background, and to achieve this PSD is committed to providing equitable support.  Through the dual-language program in PSD, we strive to create a sense of belonging for students where they are valued for the contributions of their diverse identities.   Clearly defining this vision statement for the program allows us to relate all aspects of the dual-language program back to these guiding principles that are devoted to creating an inclusive school culture through culturally responsive teaching practices.  I am fortunate to be a part of evaluating, refining and shaping how dual-language programming might fit within the Language Instruction Education Program for PSD.  I look forward to continued collaboration across the district in engaging in this important work in developing multilingualism.

References: 

Center for Applied Linguistics. (n.d.). Guilding principles for dual language education. Retrieved October 22, 2024, from https://www.cal.org/publications/guiding-principles-3/

Strike, K. T., Sims, P. A., Mann, S. L., & Wilhite, R. K. (2019). Transforming professional practice: A framework for effective leadership (2nd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.