Research Findings: Using a nationally representative sample of Head Start recipients, this study compared Head Start classroom contexts and English language and literacy skill trajectories for Spanish-speaking dual-language learners (DLLs) and English speakers from preschool through kindergarten. It also examined whether Head Start classroom…

Alternative methods of communication skill development, such as Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), are often used in speech therapy. PECS has been widely used for communication development in children with autism and has proven its efficacy in a large number of studies. PECS is used with people displaying a variety of communication…

The increasing diversity in classrooms throughout the U.S. calls for teachers who are culturally competent and have quality professional development in working with dual language learners (DLLs) in order to ensure children from diverse groups are receiving equitable and high-quality education. This study focuses on teacher characteristics that…

Though definitions vary, the literature on heritage speakers of Spanish identifies two primary attributes: a linguistic and cultural connection to the language. This article profiles four Anglo college students who grew up in bilingual or Spanish-dominant communities in the Southwest who self-identified as Spanish heritage speakers, citing…

This article describes nine phases of curriculum-development activities conducted by the Language and Reading Research Consortium (LARRC), the end result of which was to arrive at a research-based supplemental curriculum that could be used by teachers of English-speaking or bilingual Spanish-English-speaking children in prekindergarten and…

As the ethnic, racial, and cultural diversity of U.S. classrooms for young children continues to increase, it is more important than ever for early childhood educators to be prepared to meet the needs of the one in three U.S. children age 8 and under who are dual language learners (DLLs). High-quality early childhood education (ECE) programs can…

The widespread adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), since 2010, has led to a growing concern among education scholars and practitioners about how the new standards will impact the educational trajectories of students from minoritized linguistic, ethnic, and racial backgrounds (Bunch, Walqui, & Pearson, 2014; Hakuta, Santos,…

Early language ability is a strong predictor of later language and reading outcomes. Whilst young children with home languages that differ from the dominant language spoken in their country of residence may lag behind their peers in literacy and academic achievement, effective supports for young dual-language users may be overlooked in mainstream…

Articles in this issue examine (1) the primary sources of variability in reading and language achievement among Spanish-speaking English learners (ELs) in the United States, (2) the extent to which poor performance at the end of grade 2 is identifiable in developmental trajectories beginning in kindergarten, (3) the relations among core reading…

Early childhood teachers play a key role in addressing the needs of young English Language Learners, and a vast body of research is dedicated to assessing best practices for teachers. However, less research addressing the role of policymakers, program directors and administrators is available. Although teachers can make a difference in the lives…

Due to the increase in the number of preschool-aged dual language learners (DLLs), there is a need to understand their language development and how to better support them. Although DLLs' language development has traditionally been studied from a structuralist perspective, few have examined their language use from a functional approach, which…

Prominent discourses about emergent bilinguals' academic abilities tend to focus on performance as measured by test scores and perpetuate the message that emergent bilinguals trail far behind their peers. When we remove the constraints of formal testing situations, what can emergent bilinguals do in English as they engage in naturally occurring…

This article documents a collaboration between a second-grade teacher and a university-based literacy coach to implement dialogic instruction as part of a 14-week cross-disciplinary curriculum unit. The coach-teacher dyad used digital technologies to enhance a problem-solving approach to coaching. The authors describe the coaching interactions,…

Background: The phonological and morphosyntactic structures of English and Mandarin contrast maximally and an increasing number of bilinguals speak these two languages. Speech and language therapists need to understand bilingual development for children speaking these languages in order reliably to assess and provide intervention for this…

Metalinguistic skills are highlighted in the literature as providing bilinguals with an advantage in additional language (L3) learning. The extent to which this may apply to bilingual education and content-and-language-integrated-learning settings, however, is as yet little understood. This article reports on a study exploring and comparing the…