10-3 Policies and Standards

Children who are multilingual learners and their families count on you, the educator, to be their advocate. That’s one of the reasons you’re probably taking this course–to gain information that will help you look out for the best interests of children who are multilingual learners and stand up against oppressive or discriminatory policies and practices.

Part of advocating for children who are multilingual learners is knowing the current policies, standards, and requirements that affect their learning on a larger scale. We’re going to talk about a few of these now.

Federal Policies

Federal policies have been established to advocate for children who are multilingual learners and their families. Keep in mind this list is not exhaustive, but it gives an overall idea of a few ways the United States government has increased support for children who are multilingual learners and their families.

• The Head Start Act requires programs to provide parents of children who are multilingual learners information that is in a language they understand, to the extent practicable. It also requires programs to develop procedures that identify children who are multilingual learners, ensure they develop and learn (including English), and accommodate them appropriately when assessing their development.
• Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its Implementing Regulations (Title VI), prohibits discrimination against recipients of federal financial assistance based on race, color, or national origin. Among other things, school districts and states must communicate with parents in a language they can understand. This ensures children who are multilingual learners have access to programs and activities, whether curricular, co-curricular, or extracurricular, including prekindergarten programs.
• The Native American Languages Act states that it is the policy of the United States to preserve, protect, and promote Native Americans’ rights to use their indigenous languages anywhere, including as a medium of instruction in schools.

Early Learning Guidelines

States also play a central role in proactively developing a high-quality early childhood system that meets all children’s developmental and learning needs.

States should ensure that children who are multilingual learners are incorporated across all domains in their early learning guidelines (ELGs), and that their ELGs have specific indicators unique to children who are multilingual learners. For example, one indicator unique to children who are multilingual learners from the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework reads, “Children who are dual language learners may demonstrate more complex communication and language in their home language than in English.”

States could begin by reviewing their current ELGs to determine if they are appropriate for children who are multilingual learners. ELGs that were developed based only on monolingual children who speak English are unlikely to address all areas of development and learning sufficiently for children who are multilingual learners.

States should consider ELGs that include specific guidelines for language development in both English and the children’s home languages. States should also include components of home language development as a normative part of the early education experience for children who are multilingual learners. States should consider how various aspects of development may differ across monolingual and bilingual children and adjust standards and expectations to fit these developmental differences.

Your State’s Early Learning Guidelines

Take a moment to research the early learning guidelines in your state. You can conduct a search by typing in your state’s name and “early learning guidelines” as keywords, or you can navigate to the Child Care Technical Assistance Network and search their database.

• How are the early learning guidelines inclusive of children and families who are multilingual learners? How can they be improved?

Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS)

States should also include indicators for children who are multilingual learners in their quality rating and improvement systems (QRIS). States could establish tiered reimbursement systems, where programs that meet higher benchmarks receive greater compensation.

Examples of indicators specific to supporting children who are multilingual learners might include:

• Having a systematic process for identifying children who are multilingual learners at program enrollment
• Establishing written plans for working with children who are multilingual learners and procedures to enhance and continuously improve communication with their families, across all aspects of the early childhood program
• Providing information to families in their primary language
• Implementing an evidence-based curriculum as well as a clear and intentional plan for how to support children’s home language development and English language development in the early learning environment and at home
• Requiring professional development for staff in culturally and linguistically responsive practice
• Employing at least one bilingual staff person with appropriate credentials who is proficient in the home language of most of the children who are multilingual learners in the program

Your State’s QRIS

Now take a moment to research your state’s quality rating and improvement system (QRIS). You can conduct a search by typing in your state’s name and “QRIS” as keywords, or you can navigate to the National Center on Early Childhood Quality Assurance and search their database.

• Does your state have any indicators that match the list above?
• How might your state’s QRIS be improved to better support children who are multilingual learners and their families?

Kindergarten Entry Assessments

Furthermore, states should ensure kindergarten entry assessments (KEAs) are appropriate for use with children who are multilingual learners, including ensuring that assessment tools demonstrate sufficient levels of validity and reliability for this population. As with all assessments and screenings, KEAs should be culturally appropriate, account for children’s language abilities, and be administered by professionals who have cultural competence and speak the language in which children are most proficient. Families should be involved in the process as sources of information and valuable partners in interpreting results. Caution should always be taken when interpreting results, particularly if the tool has not been normed or validated with the specific population for which it is being used and/or if those conducting the assessments do not have sufficient cultural or linguistic competence.

Reflect

We just covered a lot of detailed information surrounding policies and standards that apply to children who are multilingual learners. Take a moment to think about what you discovered.

• Were any of the policies and standards new to you or surprising?
• How do your teaching experiences in your program relate to broader federal policies and state standards?