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Table of Contents
- MATSOL News
- Community News
- Links & Resources
Submission Welcome
Submit an item for publication in the monthly MATSOL E-Bulletin. Details...
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MATSOL 2016 Conference Registration is Open!
Conference Keynotes
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Sonia Nieto, Professor Emerita, Language, Literacy & Culture, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
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Anne Sibley O'Brien, Author & Illustrator of Multicultural Books
Pre-Conference Institutes
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Common Core Standards in Diverse Classrooms: Essential Practices for Developing Academic Language and Literacy - Dr. Susan O’Hara & Dr. Bob Pritchard
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Harness the Power of Partnerships for Student Engagement and Achievement - Dr. Debbie Zacarian
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SLIFE Institute II: Developing Academic Language Proficiency and Scaffolding Academic Content - Andrea DeCapua, Ed.D. & Helaine W. Marshall, Ph.D.
Information & Registration: 2016 Conference Webpage Early registration rates end on February 15.
MATSOL News
Call for Awards Nominations/Proposals
Members of the MATSOL community are invited to submit nominations/proposals for MATSOL 2016 Awards. Due March 2.
- MATSOL Teacher of the Year: Recognizing excellence in the education of English language learners.
- Anne Dow Award for Excellence and Creativity: The 2016 award will be granted to an educator for addressing the needs of refugee students. It includes an honorarium of $1,000.
- Linda Schulman Innovation Grants: Grants of up to $1,000 for pedagogical projects that promote English language learning and embody a spirit of creativity, sensitivity and community.
MATSOL Calendar
View calendar and registration links...
- Feb 15: Early rates end for MATSOL 2016 Conference Registration
- Mar 2: Nominations/Proposals due for MATSOL Awards
- Mar 4: MA English Learner Leadership Council (MELLC) Meeting
- Mar 7: Low Incidence SIG Meeting
Seal of Biliteracy Pilot Project
A Seal of Biliteracy Pilot Project is currently underway in Massachusetts, with over 30 schools or school districts participating. The Seal of Biliteracy awards students at all levels who have attained intermediate or greater proficiency in speaking, listening, reading and writing in two or more languages, presenting them with a silver, gold or platinum “seal” award. Participants in the pilot program are laying the groundwork for passage of a bill to establish a state Seal of Biliteracy.
How can you support this work?
- Ask your school or school district to join the pilot and help build support for the Seal of Biliteracy:
- Download the Seal of Biliteracy toolkit, which provides guidelines for local implementation of the Seal. This toolkit was developed by a working group made up of Massachusetts teachers and leaders from one-way immersion, two-way immersion, bilingual, English language development, and world language programs.
- Join the Seal of Bilitercay MA Google Group to discuss details of implementation with other educators involved in the pilot group.
- Ask your state legislators to support the passage of the Language Opportunity for Our Kids (LOOK) (H.492/S.262) and Seal of Biliteracy (H.422/S.336) bills.
This work resulted from the collaboration between members of the Language Opportunity Coalition, led by MATSOL, Massachusetts Association for Bilingual Education (MABE), and Massachusetts of Foreign Language Association (MaFLA). For information please visit www.languageopportunity.org
Community News
Brockton To Offer Portuguese Immersion Program
A recent article in The Boston Globe featured news of the new Portuguese Immersion Program in Brockton. The article and photo gallery includes MATSOL Vice President Vula Roumis and Past President Kellie Jones, and also mentions MATSOL's role in supporting development of this new program.
Petition: Change the label of "English Language Learners" to "Multilingual Students"
The term English Language Learner carries negative connotations and does not value the other languages and cultures that students come from. This can negatively impact students’ self esteem and academic performance. The students of Seven Hills Charter Public School decided instead to propose the adoption of the label Multilingual Students. The strengths-based label highlights the fact that being bilingual is a highly desired and valuable skill. It more accurately represents their intelligence and abilities and enables students to see themselves in a more positive light than the deficit based ELL label. By successfully advocating to change the label, students were able to significantly impact school culture. This has also led to an increase in students’ confidence, ambition, and resiliency. Sign the Petition
Feb 16: Film Screening of I Learn America
Attend screening of a documentary film I Learn America on February 16 and a follow-up workshop on February 17 hosted by Preparing Excellent Teachers of All Language Learners (PETALLs) project at UMass Lowell Graduate School of Education. The film director, Jean Michel Dissard, will facilitate. The film screening (on 2/16) will feature the voices and experiences of five newly arrived immigrants. Film directors will hold an interactive workshop the following day (on 2/17) to help teachers and prospective teachers understand how to create welcoming learning environments and best meet the needs of immigrant learners in their classrooms. Only people who attend the film screening are eligible to participate in the workshop.
- 2/16, I Learn America Film Screening: 5 - 8 pm, Inn and Conference Center, Ballroom
- 2/17, Workshop: 1 - 3 pm, Inn and Conference Center, Lower Locks
All attendees will receive certificates of attendance for each event. Please contact [email protected] for registration.
Feb 26: Deadline to Submit a Proposal for MCAE Network 2016
2016, the signature professional development event sponsored by the Massachusetts Coalition for Adult Education (MCAE) will be held on Friday, May 13, 2016 at the Best Western Royal Plaza hotel in Marlborough, MA. More than 500 educators gather at NETWORK to share knowledge and skills that will enhance their abilities to help adults learn English, gain a high school equivalency diploma, and build their basic literacy, numeracy and technology skills. Details...
Links & Resources
NEWSLETTER
TESOL Connections
MATSOL members receive free access to TESOL Connections, TESOL's monthly online newsletter. The latest issue includes articles You've Flipped Your Class and... , Vocabulary in Context: A Systematic Approach and Lesson Plan: Altered Stories for Language Production. Read the latest issue...
WEBINAR
Building a Career Pathways System: Policy Tools for Adult Educators
Big changes are underway in the adult education world thanks to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). In particular, the law's emphasis on career pathways is sparking efforts to better align programs across the adult education, youth services, and workforce development fields. But what does good alignment look like? And how can adult educators take action to drive policy, and its resulting practices, rather than be buffeted by external forces? Learn about key policy considerations for adult educators in this new landscape. Free and on demand from Coalition on Adult Basic Education. View resource...
REPORT
Trends in Unaccompanied Child and Family Migration from Central America
After reaching record high levels during the spring and summer of 2014, the flow of Central American unaccompanied children (UACs) and families arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border declined sharply. Data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) show a resurgence in the numbers of child migrants and families from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras arriving in the United States in the summer and fall of 2015. From Migration Policy Institute. View report...
REPORT
A Profile of U.S. Children with Unauthorized Immigrant Parents
The research literature finds that growing up with unauthorized immigrant parents places children—nearly 80 percent of whom were born in the United States—at a disadvantage. These children are more exposed to a number of risk factors than children of immigrants generally and all U.S. children, including lower preschool enrollment, reduced socioeconomic progress, and higher rates of linguistic isolation, limited English proficiency, and poverty. From Migration Policy Institute. View report...
REPORT
College-Educated Immigrants in the United States
The number of immigrants with higher education has grown at more than twice the rate of the same population among the U.S. born. Between 1990 and 2000, the college-educated immigrant population increased 89 percent from 3.1 million to 5.9 million, and a further 78 percent between 2000 and 2014. From Migration Policy Institute. View report...
RESOURCE
Raising Young Children in a New Country: Supporting Early Learning and Healthy Development Handbook
A tool designed to support Head Start and Early Head Start, Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS), Refugee Resettlement staff, and other early care and education providers in using and applying concepts from the Handbook. It includes staff self-reflection activities, team planning strategies, and approaches to family engagement. Supplemental tip sheets include conversation starters, cultural considerations, and additional resources for each of the handbook's themes. Resources are also available in English, Spanish, and Arabic. From the Office of Head Start National Center on Cultural and Linguistic Responsiveness. View resource...
RESOURCE
Moving Toward a More Common Definition of English Learner: Collected Guidance for States and Multi-State Assessment Consortia
The guidance offers a four-stage framework to help states in “analyzing issues and strengthening policies and practices for defining ELs.” The stages are: Identify potential English-learner students; Classify English-learner students; Establish an “English proficient” performance standard on the state or consortium English proficiency test; and Reclassify students to former English-learner status through the use of multiple exit criteria. From Council of Chief State School Officers. View resource...
View past issues of the MATSOL E-Bulletin online!
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