Grounded in authentic teaching and learning experiences, this book shows elementary school educators how to create spaces that more respectfully and humanely address the needs of emergent bilinguals with disabilities. While the fields of bilingual education and disability studies have been traditionally kept separate, Martínez-Álvarez argues that many of the constructs researchers and educators employ in their respective fields can be combined to improve instruction. This book establishes a dialogue among important constructs such as issues of assimilation and ableism, and the expansion of identity, agency, and humanistic pedagogies. It then looks at how these constructs can be used to better understand children who have been assigned inflexible labels that do not cohesively represent their bilingual/bicultural identities and their varied ways of learning. The text explores the limitations of categorizing children into “boxes,” particularly those of minoritized backgrounds, and focuses on actual practices that will engage and empower learners. Book Features: Combines the fields of bilingual education and disability studies so that bilingual students with disabilities can be understood and taught from a strengths-based perspective.Includes activity invitations to help teachers create high-quality learning spaces.Provides sample work from diverse elementary school–aged children, as well as children’s responses to the learning activity. Proposes curriculum to expand what identity and agency look like in schools embracing more humanistic pedagogies.

Using an interdisciplinary perspective to discuss the intersection of language development and learning processes, this book summarizes current knowledge and represents the most critical issues regarding early childhood research, policy, and practice related to young bilingual children with disabilities. The book begins with a conceptual framework focusing on the intersection between the fields of early childhood education, bilingual education, and special education. It goes on to review and discuss the role of bilingualism in young children’s development and the experiences of young bilingual children with disabilities in early care and education settings, including issues of eligibility and access to care, instruction, and assessment. The book explores family experiences, teacher preparation, accountability, and policy, ending with recommendations for future research which will inform both policies and practices for the education of young bilingual children with disabilities. This timely volume provides valuable guidance for teachers, administrators, policymakers, and researchers.

Recent educational reform initiatives such as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) largely fail to address the needs--or tap into the unique resources--of students who are developing literacy skills in both English and a home language. This book discusses ways to meet the challenges that current standards pose for teaching emergent bilingual students in grades K-8. Leading experts describe effective, standards-aligned instructional approaches and programs expressly developed to promote bilingual learners' academic vocabulary, comprehension, speaking, writing, and content learning. Innovative policy recommendations and professional development approaches are also presented.

Recent educational reform initiatives such as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) largely fail to address the needs--or tap into the unique resources--of students who are developing literacy skills in both English and a home language. This book discusses ways to meet the challenges that current standards pose for teaching emergent bilingual students in grades K-8. Leading experts describe effective, standards-aligned instructional approaches and programs expressly developed to promote bilingual learners' academic vocabulary, comprehension, speaking, writing, and content learning. Innovative policy recommendations and professional development approaches are also presented.

This unique guide for special education teachers, teachers of English language learners, and other practitioners provides the foundational information needed to determine whether the language difficulties experienced by English language learners (ELLs) result from the processes and stages of learning a second language or from a learning disability (LD). The book addresses the following critical factors in detail: determining whether an ELL's struggles with reading in English are due to LD or language acquisition; characteristics of language acquisition that can mirror LD; different types of ELLS and why these differences are important; considering a student's "opportunity to learn" when determining whether he or she may have LD; common misconceptions and realities about ELLs and the second language acquisition process; ways that learning to read in English as a second or additional language differ from learning to read English as a first language, and how the differences can be confusing for ELLs; how schools can establish structure to facilitate the process of distinguishing between language acquisition and LD; how families are involved in the process; guidelines for determining which ELLs should be referred for evaluation; and what it means to use an ecological framework to determine whether ELLs have LD.

Bilingual students with disabilities have an established right to be educated in their most proficient language. However, in practice, many culturally and linguistically diverse students still do not receive the quality of education that they are promised and deserve. Multilingual learners with disabilities must be acknowledged for the assets they bring and engaged in classroom learning that is rigorous and relevant. Bilingual Special Education for the 21st Century: A New Interface addresses the complex intersection of bilingual education and special education with the overlay of culturally and linguistically sustaining practices. This work provides practical solutions to current dilemmas and challenges today’s educators of multilingual learners with disabilities face in the classroom. Covering topics such as dual language education, identification practices, and transition planning, this book is an essential resource for special education experts, faculty and administration of both K-12 and higher education, pre-service teachers, researchers, and academicians.

This book provides a comprehensive and interdisciplinary examination of dual language education for Latina/o English language learners (ELLs) in the United States, with a particular focus on the state of Texas and the U.S.-Mexico border. The book is broken into three parts. Part I examines how Latina/o ELLs have been historically underserved in public schools and how this has contributed to numerous educational inequities. Part II examines bilingualism, biliteracy, and dual language education as an effective model for addressing the inequities identified in Part I. Part III examines research on dual language education in a large urban school district, a high-performing elementary school that serves a high proportion of ELLs along the Texas-Mexico border, and best practices for principals and teachers. This volume explores the potential and realities of dual language education from a historical and social justice lens. Most importantly, the book shows how successful programs and schools need to address and align many related aspects in order to best serve emergent bilingual Latino/as: from preparing teachers and administrators, to understanding assessment and the impacts of financial inequities on bilingual learners. Peter Sayer, The Ohio State University, USA