Research – MLRC

The Multilingual Learning Research Center (MLRC) is an interdisciplinary research center with the mission to advance educational outcomes for multilingual learners through innovative and socially just research and research-practitioner partnerships.

Our Focus

The MLRC focuses on inquiry related to the teaching and learning of multilingual learners through descriptive and hypothesis–testing studies that have an impact on teaching practice, teacher quality, and policy, in both local and global contexts. The center is home to a research–practice partnership with schools around the world that collaborate on research for educational change and equity.

Current Research Projects

Preparing Science Teachers Through Mixed-Reality Simulations to Enhance the Access and Engagement of Multilingual Learners in Science Argumentation

Funded by the National Science Foundation

January 2024 – December 2026

This project focuses on creating, testing, and implementing mixed-simulations to improve the quality of 6–12 grade level science education for multilingual learners around scientific argumentation, which will help multilingual learners participate more broadly in STEM fields both in school and as adults. Mixed-reality simulations create authentic, immersive learning experiences that harness the best in artificial and human intelligence in the preparation of future teachers. We will develop a tool to guide feedback for teacher candidates on their facilitation of scientific argumentation with an emphasis on including multilingual learners in their classrooms.

Publications

Bettney Heidt, E. (2023). Translanguaging Pedagogies as a Tool to Decolonize Multilingual Education in International Schools. In Zaidi, R., Boz., U. & Moreau, E. Transcultural Pedagogies for Multilingual Classrooms: Responding to Changing Realities in Theory and Practice. Multilingual Matters.
Bettney Heidt, E. & Nordmeyer, J. (2023). Shifting Linguistic Landscapes Within the Context of International Schools. In M. Barker, R. Hansen and L. Hammer, Handbook of Research on Critical Issues and Global Trends in International Education. IGI Global Publishing.
Bettney Heidt, E. (2023). A Critical Examination of Language Ideologies and Policies in an International School in Colombia. Teachers College Record.
Bettney Heidt, E. & Castano Rodriguez , C. (2023). Decolonizing an English as an Additional Language Curriculum: Addressing Cultural Violence in a Colombian School. In C. Carter and R.K. Dhungana, Educating for Peace through Countering Violence Strategies in Curriculum and Instruction. Taylor & Francis.
Nordmeyer, J. & Bettney Heidt, E. (2023). WIDA in the World: Leveraging a Global Network to Serve Multilingual Learners in K-12 Schools. In E. Ahn, Wisconsin in the World: Internationalization at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Information Age Publishing.
Nordmeyer, J. (2023). From Testing to Teaching: Equity for Multilingual Learners in International Schools. Teachers College Record.
Prasad, G. & Bettney Heidt, E. (2023). Be (com) ing multilingual listeners: preparing (monolingual) teacher candidates to work with multilingual learners in mainstream classrooms, Language Awareness, 1-21.
Bettney Heidt, E. (2022). “Speak English—don’t be lazy!”: Exploring decolonial approaches to multilingual education through a case study of an international school in Colombia, [Doctoral dissertation, University of Wisconsin–Madison]. ResearchGate.
Nordmeyer, J. & Bettney Heidt, E. (2022). Equity for multilingual learners: A global network response to the pandemic. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 24(2), 119–122.
Bettney Heidt, E. (2021). Denationalized or pluricultural: A case study exploring the negotiation of students’ national Identities in a bilingual school. Journal of Language, Identity, & Education, 20(4), 271–284.
Bettney Heidt, E. & Nordmeyer, J. (2021). Glocal network shifts: Exploring language policies and practices in international schools. Global Education Review, 8(2).
Nordmeyer, J. & Bettney Heidt, E. (2020). A global community of practice: Teaching multilingual learners online. International Schools Journal.
Castro, M. & Romero Johnson, S. (2020). Advancing equity in dual language programs: A guide for leaders. Velázquez Press.
Castro, M. (2018). Contesting language policies and practices in multilingual American classrooms. In M. Djuraeva & F. Tochon (Eds.), Language policy or the politics of language: Re-imagining the role of language in a neoliberal society. Deep University Press.