This week in EL:
OELA Announces Strategic Priorities for 2021:
Increasing family engagement: We will focus on developing tools to help parents understand and navigate education in America.
Expanding access to distance learning: Our goal is to partner with teachers and families to understand technology limitations impacting English learners (ELs) and adjusting our approach to ensure deficiencies are being identified, addressed, and mitigated.
Enhancing retention of heritage languages: We will promote new and different educational opportunities to students who speak two or more languages, including four-year degrees, translation certificates, and other technical career options.
Released: Biennial Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Title III State Formula Grant Program, School Years 2014-2016. The report presents self-reported data from state educational agencies (SEAs) from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Purto Rico on ELs served by Title III funds.
Join English Learner Educators Connect sessions for practical suggestions on connecting with ELs and their families, considerations for instruction, and ideas for goal setting with students.
For more information, or to access the recordings, explore English Learner Educator Connect (website)
Presentations featured the Social Justice Action Plans created by cohort members in the first ever Leaders of Social Justice in Education course. This course provided participants with a general overview of theory and research behind social just education, explored Teaching Tolerance resource materials and Social Justice Education Standards, and helped educational leaders and their students bridge connections to local organizations that do social justice work. Designed to empower educators to enact social justice through their educational practice, the course culminated with each participant designing a Teacher Tolerance Lesson Plan and carrying out a Social Justice Action project. On Saturday, November 21 they will publicly share their accomplishments with you.
Educators representing pubic, private, and charter schools taking the UH grad course Leaders of Social Justice shared projects they are managing that range from our own EL family member Tanya Mau's EL Connect sessions to finding creative ways to teach multilingual students interpretation skills. Let's all find ways to support these awesome attempts to increase equity in education!
Webinars are posted in the WIDA website's Secure Portal with a week after completion.
Free Webinars and Resources
Teaching in the Online Classroom for Teachers (Teaching Channel & Teach Like a Champion)
The Predictive Brain: How do predictions of threat and safety drive our behavior and the behavior of those around us? (Southern Arizona Trauma Informed Network)
Easy Tools for RTI in Action Session 1 (Riverside Insights)
Easy Tools for RTI in Action Session Two (Riverside Insights)
Understanding Structural Racism and Its Impact on Students (Catapult Learning)
Supporting Secondary English Learners at the Developing and Expanding Levels of Proficiency through Designated ELD (West Ed, recording)
Integrating ELD into Elementary Settings – ELA, Science, Social Studies (West Ed, recording)
Leading in high EL impact schools: A course in EL-centered school improvement (Leading for School Improvement, Dr. Karen C. Woodson, recording)
The Effects of Remote Testing on the ELL Population and What Can Be Done to Help (Dr. Pedro Olvera, Riverside Insights, recording)
Teaching in a Changing Landscape: How to support all you students and optimize your digital workflows (Joni Degner, Texthelp, recording)
The Distance Learning Playbook Webinar Series (Doug Fisher, Nancy Frey, Corwin/Teaching Channel, ongoing & recorded)
Saddleback Educational Publishing Webinar Series (ongoing, recordings of previous sessions available)
The Literacy Triangle: High-Impact Tools For Every Child (Saddleback, recording)
Assessing Student Learning During Remote Instruction (Saddleback, recording)
Bilingualism and Disabilities: Shedding Light on the Intersections (Saddleback, recording)
That's The way We've Always Done It: Disrupting the Systems to Provide Equity and Access for English Learners With Disabilities (Saddleback, recording)
Low-Tech, No-Tech, No Problem: Creative Approaches to Remote Learning for English Learners With Limited Technology (Saddleback, recording)
Integrating Reading Supports with Educational Technology: Tools For Explicit Multi-sensory Instruction (Saddleback, recording)
Part 1: Four Ways to Create Effective E-Learning (Saddleback, recording)
Part 2: Grading and Assessment for E-Learning And The Modern Classroom (Saddleback, recording)
The Power of Your School Librarian in a COVID-19 World: Harnessing Technology, Literacy, and Community (Saddleback, recording)
Creating a Culturally Responsive Learning Environment (Saddleback, recording)
Gamification in the Classroom for English Language Learners (Saddleback, recording)
Mitigating Trauma in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Settings: Tools for the Traditional or Virtual Classroom (Saddleback, recording)
Engaging EL Families in a Virtual World (Saddleback, recording)
Accelerating English Langaugae Learners' Literacy Skills (Saddleback, recording)
Social Story Narratives For Remote Learning: A Solution for Students With Special Needs And Newcomers (Saddleback, recording)
Supporting ELs With Remote Reading Lessons (Saddleback, recording)