FOCUS
Support at every level
To serve bilingual students, empower leaders
By Hilda Maldonado, Imelda L. Nava and Marco A. Nava
Categories: English learners, Leadership, Learning communities, School leadershipApril 2019
Vol. 40 No. 2
More than half of the world’s population is bilingual (Grosjean, 2010). In many countries, bilingualism is embedded within culture and identity (Callahan & Gandara, 2014) and is valued because it facilitates communication among diverse people, presents increased market-based opportunities, and improves the brain’s executive functioning capacities (Bialystok, Craik, & Luk, 2012). In the U.S., however, minority multilingual K-12 students’ linguistic, social, cultural, and academic assets are often not valued in many communities and institutions, including traditional school settings. Yet for immigrants and those learning English, denying or devaluing the native tongue can have negative impacts on academic outcomes, health, and behavior (Wilson, Ek, & Douglas, 2014). How might schools and districts leverage multiple languages as assets rather than deficits? What is the role of leadership,
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Categories: English learners, Leadership, Learning communities, School leadership
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