Breaking Down the Monolingual Wall: Essential Shifts for Multilingual Learners Success

About Andrea HonigsfeldDavid NungarayIvannia SotoJoan R. LachanceLyn ScottMargarita Espino CalderonMargarita MarshallMargo GottliebRubí FloresSydney Cail Snyder

Ivannia Soto PhD is a professor of education and the director of graduate programs at Whittier College where she specializes in language acquisition systemic reform for English language learners (ELLs) and urban education. She began her career in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) where she taught English and English language development to a population of 99.9% Latinos who either were or had been multilingual learners. Before becoming a professor Soto also served LAUSD as a literacy coach as well as district office and county office administrator. She has presented on literacy and language topics at various conferences including the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) the California Association for Bilingual Association (CABE) the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and the National Council of Urban Education Associations. As a consultant Soto has worked with Stanford Universitys School Redesign Network (SRN) WestEd and CABE as well as a variety of districts and county offices in California providing technical assistance for systemic reform for ELLs and Title III. Recently Soto also directed a CABE bilingual teacher and administrator program across California. Soto has authored and coauthored 12 books including The Literacy Gaps: Bridge-Building Strategies for English Language Learners and Standard English Learners; ELL Shadowing as a Catalyst for Change a best seller that was recognized by Education TrustWest as a promising practice for ELLs in 2018; Moving From Spoken to Written Language With ELLs; the Academic English Mastery four-book series; the Common Core Companion four-book series for English language development; Breaking Down the Wall; and Responsive Schooling for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students. Together the books tell a story of how to equitably engage and include multilingual learners by ensuring that they gain voice and an academic identity in the classroom setting. Soto is executive director of the Institute for Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching (ICLRT) at Whittier College whose mission it is to promote relevant research and develop academic resources for ELLs and Standard English learners (SELs) via linguistically and culturally responsive teaching practices/ Sydney Snyder PhD is a principal associate at SupportEd. In this role Dr. Snyder coaches ML educators and develops and facilitates interactive professional development for teachers of MLs. She also works with the SupportEd team to offer technical assistance to school districts and educational organizations. Dr. Snyder has extensive instructional experience and has worked in the field of English language development for over 25 years. She started her teaching career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guinea West Africa. This experience ignited her passion for language teaching culturally responsive instruction and ML advocacy. Dr. Snyder is coauthor of Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners: Tools for Equity and contributing author to Breaking Down the Monolingual Wall. She served as an English Teaching Fellow at Gadja Mada University in Yogyakarta Indonesia. She earned her PhD in Multilingual/ Multicultural Education at George Mason University and her MAT in TESOL at the School for International Training. You can connect with her by email at Sydney@SupportEd.com or on Twitter at @SydneySupportEd. Dr. Margarita Espino Calderón born and raised in Juárez is a Professor Emerita/Senior Research Scientist at Johns Hopkins University. Her research and development projects have been funded by the US Department of Education National Institutes of Health the US Department of Labor The Carnegie Corporation of New York and various State Offices of Education. One of her empirical studies The Bilingual Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (BCIRC) is featured in the What Works Clearinghouse. The Carnegie Corporation of New York funded her five-year study to develop Expediting Comprehension for English Language Learners (ExC-ELL) to train math science social studies language arts and ESL teachers on integrating language reading and content in core content middle and high school classrooms. With a Title III National Professional Development grant she implemented A Whole-School Approach to Professional Development with ExC-ELL in Loudoun County VA. She replicated this approach in 29 schools in TX and NC. She served on the National Literacy Panel for Language Minority Children and Youth the Carnegie Corporation of New York Panel on English Language Adolescent Literacy Panel among other panels and national committees. She has over 100 publications on language literacy and professional development.  Margo Gottlieb Ph.D. is a staunch advocate for multilingual learners and their teachers. As co-founder and lead developer of WIDA at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2003 Margo has helped design and contributed to all the editions of WIDAs English and Spanish language development standards frameworks and their derivative products. Being a bilingual teacher facilitator consultant and mentor across K-20 settings she has worked with universities organizations governments states school districts networks and schools in co-constructing linguistic and culturally sustainable curriculum and reconceptualizing classroom assessment policy and practice. Margos passion has always been assessment in its many forms starting with her dissertation a K-12 multilingual test in Spanish Lao and English that integrated content and language. Since then she was appointed to national and state advisory boards served as a Fulbright Senior Scholar and was honored by the TESOL International Association in 2016 for her significant contribution to the field. In her travels Margo has enjoyed keynoting and presenting across the United States and in 25 countries. Having authored co-authored or co-edited over 100 publications including 20 books and guides Margos 3rd edition of her best-selling book Assessing Multilingual Learners: Bridges to Empowerment is the latest addition to her Corwin compendium. Andrea Honigsfeld EdD is Professor in the School of Education at Molloy University Rockville Centre New York. Before entering the field of teacher education she was an English-as-a-foreign-language teacher in Hungary (Grades 58 and adult) and an English-as-a-second-language teacher in New York City (Grades K3 and adult). She also taught Hungarian at New York University. She was the recipient of a doctoral fellowship at St. Johns University New York where she conducted research on individualized instruction and learning styles. She has published extensively on working with English language learners and providing individualized instruction based on learning style preferences. She received a Fulbright Award to lecture in Iceland in the fall of 2002. In the past twelve years she has been presenting at conferences across the United States Great Britain Denmark Sweden the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates. She coauthored Differentiated Instruction for At-Risk Students (2009) and co-edited the five-volume Breaking the Mold of Education series (20102013) published by Rowman and Littlefield. She is also the co-author of Core Instructional Routines: Go-To Structures for Effective Literacy Teaching K5 and 612 (2014) published by Heinemann. With Maria Dove she co-edited Coteaching and Other Collaborative Practices in the EFL/ESL Classroom: Rationale Research Reflections and Recommendations (2012) and co-authored Collaboration and Co-Teaching: Strategies for English Learners (2010) Common Core for the Not-So-Common Learner Grades K5: English Language Arts Strategies (2013) Common Core for the Not-So-Common Learner Grades 612: English Language Arts Strategies (2013) Beyond Core Expectations: A Schoolwide Framework for Serving the Not-So-Common Learner (2014) Collaboration and Co-Teaching: A Leaders Guide (2015) Coteaching for English Learners: A Guide to Collaborative Planning Instruction Assessment and Reflection (2018) Collaborating for English Learners: A Foundational Guide to Integrated Practices (2019) Co-Planning: 5 Essential Practices to Integrate Curriculum and Instruction for English Learners (2022).  She is a contributing author of Breaking Down the Wall: Essential Shifts for English Learner Success (2020) From Equity Insights to Action (2021) and Digital-Age Teaching for English Learners (2022). Nine of her Corwin books are bestsellers.   Dr. Joan Lachance is an Associate Professor of Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She directs the TESL graduate programs and undergraduate TESL Minor. She is the co-author of the National Dual Language Education Teacher Preparation Standards and the Director of the CAEP Specialized Program Association in Dual Language Education called EMMA: Education for a Multilingual Multicultural America. She received her undergraduate degree in Secondary Education Modern Languages and Linguistics from Florida International University. With Spanish as the language of program delivery she completed graduate coursework to earn her masters degree in School Counseling from Pontifical Catholic University in Poncé Puerto Rico. Dr. Lachance completed her doctoral work in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis on Urban Education Literacy and TESL at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.              Dr. Lachances research agenda encompasses dual language teacher preparation academic literacy development and authentic assessment with multilingual learners has resulted in over 25 publications including articles book chapters technical reports and state-level curriculum guides since joining UNC Charlotte. She serves on several journal editorial boards and is a board member of the Multistate Association for Bilingual Education Northeast (MABE). With the publication of her latest Corwin book she is specializing one aspect of her work further into collaboration and co-teaching for multilingual learners in the dual language context. She continues to work to support dual language education for the preservation of Native American languages currently and most-honorably collaborating with a K-8 school serving the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians EBCI.              In addition to her faculty position Dr. Lachances service agenda has resulted in over 100 conference presentations invited panels keynotes and roundtables to support the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and the nation at-large. Her service specializes in professional learning for teachers school counselors and school administrators. She co-created materials and professional learning institutes for myriad North Carolina state-led initiatives including Using the WIDA Standards The North Carolina Guide to the SIOP Model The North Carolina Guide to ExC-ELL and Dual Language/Immersion Program Support. The presentations webinars and asynchronous learning opportunities share innovative practices for multilingual learner academic language development equitable active multilingual learner engagement dual language program development sociocultural nuances in school counseling and international comparative education.               For fun Dr. Lachance enjoys camping its really glamping! with her husband Carl their son and their two rescue dogs. She is passionate about science astronomy the outdoors hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains and the preservation of the Appalachian Trail. While she lives and works in North Carolina she shares her heart deeply with New Mexico and has a passion for the Native American Pueblo Languages their ways of living and everything Hatch green chilies. Finally she is a former dual language parent who reached the point of watching multilingualism come to life in her own home. Marga Marshall is an Educational Consultant with experience in bilingual education in Spain and California. She opened the first TK-8 Two Way Dual Immersion English/Spanish School in Concord CA as part of the districts Magnet schools. Prior to becoming a principal Marga Marshall was a bilingual teacher an instructional coach an English Learners coach and a Dual Language coach. As an educator for over 24 years her passion is bilingualism biliteracy and offering students the opportunity to learn a second language. Marga Marshall has always developed relationships with the community staff and teachers. Her leadership also involves watching students grow providing the opportunity to learn in a multicultural and collaborative environment through the emphasis on collaboration critical and creative thinking and supporting teachers and staff so that they can reach their greatest potential while strengthening a connection between school and home and fostering a positive school culture. Marga Marshall has presented at state and national conferences on best practices for the bilingual classroom Creating Culturally Competent Schools Number Talks in bilingual classrooms Foundations for a Strong Successful and Sustainable Dual Language Program Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education strategies Foundations in Designated and Integrated ELD. Her work and collaboration with parents community and paraeducators has also led Marga Marshall to do online and in-person presentations for parents and paraeducators with strategies on how to support students during Distance Learning and at home and Biliteracy and Literacy Development from Home to School. She was awarded the MDEA Community Involvement Award during the 2015-2016 school year and she is also the recipient of the MDEA Outstanding Administrator Award for the 2017-2018 and 2020-2021 school years. She was also nominated as the ACSA Region 6 Elementary Principal of the Year for the 2018-2019 school year. During her leadership at Holbrook Language Academy her school was voted best Bilingual School by Parents Press for three consecutive years and she wrote the entry for the CSBA Golden Bell Awards - an award that promotes excellence in education by recognizing outstanding programs - leading Holbrook Language Academy to be the recipient of the 2021 Golden Bell Award in the Category of English Learners/Biliteracy. As an Educational Bilingual Consultant Marga Marshall partners with districts providing expert customized consulting and professional learning in the areas of biliteracy and English Learner education. David Nungaray is a forever dual language teacher and school leader at heart no matter what his current work title is. The children and families he worked with as an educator are one of his guiding forces in the work he continues to do in education. As a son of Mexican immigrants native Spanish speaker gay educator and a first-generation college graduate David is passionate about educational excellence and ensuring school systems best meet the needs of all learners. David began his journey in education as a founding corps member of Teach For America-San Antonio in 2010 where he served as a 4th dual language teacher. In his first year of teaching David was the districts Elementary Rising Star Teacher of the Year. Currently David works as a bilingual consulting partner at a national non-profit where he oversees partnerships in Texas and supports national strategy to integrate multilingual learners into all of the work at the organization. David has led teams focused on partnering with districts through strategic planning (bi)literacy visioning and implementation dual language supports stakeholder and family engagement high-impact tutoring learning acceleration and state-wide high-quality instructional materials adoption. With almost 13 years of experience in education David served as the principal of one of the flagship dual language schools in San Antonio ISD (SAISD) prior to his time at TNTP. During his tenure as principal the school community revised and renewed their in-district school charter and established a partnership with the University of Texas-San Antonio to create the first dual language teacher residency lab network of schools in Texas. David also served as co-chair of the Bexar County COVID-19 Pre-K-12 Consultation group in San Antonio focused on guiding the reopening of schools in the county. Prior to his role as principal David co-founded one of the first schools in the Innovation Zone of SAISD which spanned Pre K-12th grade as associate principal. The school focuses on project-based learning and also has a teaching and school administrator residency model. David serves on multiple non-profit boards focused on education and he holds his Masters in School Leadership from Trinity University where he has served as an adjunct professor in multilingual education school leadership and special education. Rubí P. Flores Torres M.A. is a native from San Luis Potosí Mexico Rubí is the Director of Professional Learning at the California Association for Bilingual Education.  She has extensive expertise working with schools on implementing and refining Dual Language and Multilingual Learner Programs.  Prior to this role Rubí has served as a bilingual teacher ESL specialist dual language teacher dual language instructional coach dual language program coordinator and biliteracy curriculum developer.  She has worked in schools across Texas Oklahoma El Salvador and California. She earned a Bachelors Degree in Bilingual Education from Texas State University and a Masters Degree in Bilingual and Bicultural Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a member of the Proyecto Maestría leadership development program through the University of Texas. Rubí holds a Multiple Subject teaching credential with a Bilingual Teacher Authorization in California and in Texas. She has presented her work with dual language programs and biliteracy instruction at CABE NABE TABE Adelante! Dual Language Conference La Cosecha CARLA and at multiple county and district level conferences and events in California Texas and México.  Her current work focuses on developing teacher capacity to support multilingual learners through coaching presenting authentic methods for biliteracy instruction and teaching strategies to support Spanish and English academic language development in Dual Language and Multilingual Learner settings.  As an immigrant and first generation college graduate Rubí is committed to honoring her parents courage to seek a better future by creating and advocating for culturally sustaining and high quality professional learning programs that will promote linguistic justice for multilingual learners.  Connect with Rubí at thebiliteracycoach@gmail.com    Lyn Scott Ph.D. a native of the rural Midwest is a credentialed dual language teacher in Massachusetts and California teaching in two-way immersion and transitional bilingual education classrooms for over two decades. As an elementary teacher he joined colleagues and parents in restructuring their neighborhood public school into a multi-aged dual language immersion public school. Inspired by the work of Paulo Freire he immersed himself in the Brazilian culture early in his teaching journey reflecting on adult literacy pedagogies relevant to the dual language development of young learners in American schools. Lengthy experiences in Taiwan China and Sweden stimulated his curiosity in national language policies impacting language diversity schooling and migration. His advocacy for linguistic human rights includes all students having access to education in their home language in addition to English and other languages. His doctoral dissertation at the University of California Berkeley investigated language policy in Mexican American homes in Arizona and California. Since 2012 he has served as a faculty member of the California State University system currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Cal State East Bay. He is past president of the California Association for Bilingual Teacher Education and co-author of Community-Owned Knowledge; The Promise of Collaborative Action Research published in 2022. He is biliterate in Spanish Portuguese Swedish and English and conversational in Mandarin Chinese.