English Learner Policy and Indigenous Students: Understanding Policy and Promoting Linguistically and Culturally Sustaining Education

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

English learner (EL) policy and services typically center the needs of first- and second-generation immigrant students with a non-English primary language. However, an important group of EL-classified students are Indigenous (American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian). The historical stripping of Indigenous heritage language use, paired with an exception made in federal EL law, mean that many Indigenous EL-classified students are not only not of immigrant origin, but speak English as their primary or sole language. This symposium brings together three studies, ranging from qualitative to quasi-experimental, all focused on how EL policy does or does not support these students, and how policy can be adapted to better ensure linguistically- and culturally-sustaining education for Indigenous EL-classified students.

Sub Unit

• SIG-Bilingual Education Research

Chair

• Ashley Pierson, American Institutes for Research

Papers

• A 50-State Review of Policies for Identifying Indigenous English Learners - Taiyo Itoh, University of Oregon; Ilana M. Umansky, University of Oregon

• Alaska Native Students as English Learner Students: Examining Patterns in Identification, Service Provision, and Reclassification - Ilana M. Umansky, University of Oregon; Lorna Porter, WestEd; Elijah Moreno, Center for Indian Country Development; Ashley Pierson, American Institutes for Research

• The Impact of English Learner Classification Among Alaska Native Students - Ilana M. Umansky, University of Oregon; Manuel Vazquez Cano, Education Northwest & University of Oregon; Lorna Porter, WestEd

Discussant

• Mandy Smoker-Broaddus, Education Northwest