Core Practices for Teaching Multilingual Students: Humanizing Pedagogies for Equity

This book provides practical and accessible resources for teaching multilingual students effectively, focusing on six core practices that humanize instruction and center equity and justice in practice. It offers real-world examples from ESOL teachers and includes templates and additional resources for teachers to use.

Format: Hardback
Length: 176 pages
Publication date: 27 January 2023
Publisher: Teachers' College Press

This practical and accessible resource is designed to help educators effectively and equitably teach multilingual students. The authors share real-world examples from the classrooms of ESOL teachers, unpacking their thinking about instruction and identifying six core practices that are foundational to teaching multilingual students:

Understanding Your Multilingual Students: Recognizing the unique backgrounds, languages, and cultures of your multilingual students is essential. This involves building relationships with students and their families, understanding their learning styles, and addressing their linguistic and academic needs.

Building a Positive Learning Environment: Creating a safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environment where students feel valued and respected is crucial. This includes promoting positive classroom behavior, providing opportunities for student collaboration, and fostering a sense of belonging.

Integrating Content and Language Instruction: Integrating content and language instruction allows students to learn academic concepts while developing their language skills. This involves using language-rich activities, providing opportunities for oral communication, and incorporating cultural references into the curriculum.

Supporting Language and Literacy Development: Supporting language and literacy development involves providing targeted instruction and support to students who are learning English as a second language. This includes teaching vocabulary, grammar, and reading skills, as well as providing opportunities for writing and reading in their native languages.

Using Assessment: Assessment is an essential tool for evaluating student progress and identifying areas for improvement. This involves using a variety of assessment methods, such as standardized tests, classroom observations, and student self-assessments, to measure student learning outcomes.

Developing Positive Relationships and Engaging in Advocacy: Developing positive relationships with students, their families, and the broader community is essential for promoting student success. This involves engaging in advocacy for multilingual students, addressing language barriers, and promoting policies that support multilingual education.

The book focuses on how K–12 teachers can use these core practices in ways that humanize their instruction, positioning students as whole human beings, valuing the assets and resources they bring to the classroom, actively involving them in rigorous instruction that draws on their experiences and knowledge, responding to each unique learning context, and disrupting traditional power dynamics in education. By implementing these practices, educators can create learning environments that are equitable, inclusive, and supportive of all students, regardless of their language proficiency.

The book also includes templates and additional resources that help teachers extend the use of core practices to their own planning. These resources include lesson plans, assessment tools, and classroom activities that are designed to engage and support multilingual students. Additionally, the book provides access to supplementary video clips depicting teachers as they engage in these practices and discuss their use. These videos offer a deeper understanding of the core practices and how they can be implemented in the classroom.

In conclusion, this book is a valuable resource for pre- and in-service teachers of multilingual students. It provides practical strategies and insights that can help educators effectively and equitably teach multilingual students, promoting student success and closing the achievement gap. By implementing these core practices, educators can create learning environments that are equitable, inclusive, and supportive of all students, regardless of their language proficiency.

Weight: 370g
Dimension: 235 x 163 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780807768211