This article captures a convergence of its authors' life experiences and existent data, made possible by Complex Instruction (CI). There is a pressing need to study and support the foundational practice of "assigning competence," which requires that a teacher first recognise students' strengths and publicly name their academic…

Although they constitute twenty percent of Israel's citizens, Arabs have no significant opportunity to study their own language in Israel's academic institutions. Academic courses are conducted in Hebrew, the official language of the country. This has implications for the Arab students' academic achievement as well as for their sense of belonging…