MLRC

MLRC at NEOLAiA International Symposium on Language Policy
2026-06-18 08:00 - 2026-06-20 17:00 (America/Chicago)
Connect with the MLRC in Spain! Dr. Esther Bettney Heidt, MLRC School Network Researcher, will be an invited guest speaker at the upcoming NEOLAiA International Symposium on Language Policy in Jaen, Spain on June 18th – 20th, 2026. Esther will discuss a new MLRC-wide research focus on exploring language policies across diverse contexts, including international schools and U.S. states.
Esther is grateful for invitation from Dr. María Luisa (Marisa) Pérez Cañado, Full Professor at the University of Jaén and recent MLRC Glocal Scholar at the Research Symposium in Spain in January. Dr. Pérez Cañado is also co-founder of ICBERG, the International and Comparative Bi-/Multilingual Education Research Group.
Esther looks forward to connecting with scholars at the conference focused on critical approaches to language policy. To set up an individual meeting with Esther, please email her at bettney@wisc.edu.

Speaker Series: Ying Chu
2026-04-23 09:00 - 10:00 UTC
On Thursday, April 23, 9:00-10:00 AM US Central Time, Ying Chu will present “Implementation of High-Quality Dual Language Immersion Programs in International Schools.” This presentation will share findings from a qualitative study on implementing high‑quality Chinese–English dual language immersion programs in an international school context. Drawing on interviews with program leaders from seven international schools, the study identifies a phased implementation process and highlights the role of linguistically and culturally responsive leadership in achieving the core goals of dual language education: bilingualism, biliteracy, academic achievement, and sociocultural competence.
Please register in advance.

AMISA EdCon
2026-04-22 08:00 - 2026-04-24 17:00 UTC
Esther Bettney Heidt, MLRC School Network Researcher, will present at the upcoming AMISA EdCon in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on April 22-24! Esther has been involved in bi/multilingual education in the AMISA region since 2006, as a classroom teacher, school administrator, teacher trainer and educational researcher. Esther will be available to meet with educators to discuss their current pressing questions about best practices in serving bi/multilingual students.
Dr. Esther Bettney Heidt, MLRC School Network Researcher, will be presenting various sessions!

Inclusive Language Policies: Tools for Administrators and Teachers
Translanguaging in Practice: Research-Informed & Compassionate Strategies for Multilingual Learners
Neuro-Multilingualism: Bridging the Gap Between EAL and Learning Support with Lorreine Draper and Claudia Lyon from International School Nido de Aguilas

School Improvement Playbook Webinar
2026-04-15 08:00 - 09:00 UTC
The MLRC will host the second webinar of the series, which will focus on the MLRC School Improvement Playbook. Register here to learn about this powerful collection of tools, activities, and protocols designed to help schools reflect, evaluate, and strengthen their approach to serving multilingual learners.
In this session, you will learn about the Playbook’s four-step process toward school improvement, grounded in the MLRC School Improvement Framework:

Familiarize: Build shared understanding of the Framework and the research that underpins it through structured activities such as Research Jigsaw, KWL Charts, and Key Terms protocols.

Inventory: Engage teams in identifying strengths and areas for growth using collaborative inventory approaches, such as the Snowball or Survey Inventory.

Deep Dive: Gather evidence and multiple perspectives on certain aspects of the Framework with activities such as ML Student Shadowing, Policy Audit or ML/EAL Handbook.

Action Plan: Prioritize and plan next steps using structured decision-making tools like Diamond Ranking and Effort/Impact Analysis.

The Playbook can help your school catalyze inquiry, discuss strengths & areas for growth and build capacity to better serve multilingual learners. As a research-practice partnership, we encourage schools to adapt, remix, and build upon these tools to meet their local context, strengthening the connection between research and day-to-day practice.
We hope you will join us as we demonstrate how the MLRC School Improvement Framework and Playbook can guide meaningful, sustained improvement for multilingual learners!

Download Webinar Handout
Download MLRC School Improvement Webinar: Playbook PDF

School Improvement Framework Webinar
2026-04-08 08:00 - 09:00 UTC
Interested in strengthening your school-wide approach to serving multilingual learners?
The MLRC will be hosting the first of two free webinars introducing the MLRC School Improvement Framework on April 8 at 8:00 AM US Central! Register here and join us to stay grounded in current research, the Framework will help you and your team:

Examine your current approach to serving multilingual learners across 4 levels: school, program, classroom & student

Draw on 14 research-backed themes to clarify best practices

Identify strengths and areas for growth

Build a roadmap for sustained improvement

If you’re committed to improving learning outcomes for multilingual learners, this School Improvement Pathways webinar is for you! Register today and begin strengthening your school’s approach to success for multilingual learners.

Download Webinar Handout
Download MLRC School Improvement Webinar: Framework PDF

2026-03-05 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
On March 5th, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM US Central Time, Ofelia Castro Schepers will present “Beyond Individual Trauma: Linguicism, Accountability, and Teachers’ Perceptions of How Trauma-Informed Practices Support Multilingual Learners.” This presentation will look at how trauma-informed teaching connects with issues like linguistic racism and the pressures of high‑stakes testing. Drawing on qualitative data from a longitudinal mixed-methods study of P–12 educators, it explores how teachers understand and use trauma-informed practices with multilingual students. While many teachers are becoming more aware of the emotional side of learning a new language, few recognize how language discrimination or English‑only accountability systems can create trauma themselves.
Please register in advance.

MLRC @ CLADES 2026
2026-02-25 08:00 - 2026-02-26 17:00 UTC
At the upcoming CLADES Conference (Belgium) from February 25-26th, Dr. Esther Bettney Heidt (MLRC SchooL Network Researcher) will facilitate a workshop titled “From Ideology to Action: Designing Equitable Language Policy in Practice.” Drawing on the collaborative expertise of the MLRC School Network’s Language Policy Working Group, this workshop introduces a 7-stage framework designed to help schools navigate the complexities of policy development—from building local language profiles to defining a vision that resists dominant, restrictive ideologies. By focusing on a systematic, research-informed process, the session demonstrates how schools can develop language policies aligned with their values and informed by their community.
This work is part of a larger center-wide focus on investigating how language policy functions as a tool for equity across diverse educational contexts. By sharing applied examples from the MLRC network, the workshop offers a roadmap for cultivating language awareness and building more inclusive, multilingual school communities.

MLRC at NAELPA 2026
2026-02-09 08:00 - 2026-02-10 17:00 UTC
Come see the MLRC at NAELPA 2026! Carrie Parker, MLRC Co-Director, will present Strengthening the Educator Workforce for Multilingual Learners: A Toolkit for Aligning Educator Recruitment with ML Programs and Services.
This workshop will walk attendees through a tool to support districts to align their vision for ML learning and their ML programs and services with the development of pathways for, retention and ongoing professional learning of teachers of MLs.
Join NAELPA in Chicago, February 9–10.
Register here!

Speaker Series: Janette Avelar
2026-02-05 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
On February 5th, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM US Central Time, Janette Avelar will present “Who is Seen as Gifted? Intersectional Patterns in Multilingual Learners’ Identification and Educational Opportunities.” This presentation will examine which multilingual learners are identified for Talented and Gifted programs and how access to advanced coursework varies after identification. Using statewide longitudinal data from Oregon and a multilevel, intersectional analytic approach, the study documents uneven patterns of course access among multilingual learners labeled as gifted.
Please register in advance.

MLRC at the EARCOS 2025-2026 Webinar Series
2026-01-31 09:00 - 10:30 (Asia/Shanghai)
Multilingualism in International Schools: Looking Back, Looking Ahead
We have worked in and with international schools for over three decades, and we have seen incredible growth in schools and in the field. We have also seen persistent challenges and enduring themes. This webinar is based on a recent series of articles in TIE Online, offered as an honest and unapologetic conversation about hopes, fears, and “probletunities” in teaching multilingual learners in international schools. We will name and frame some of these issues in the hope that we can help today’s schools think their way into solutions that serve current and future multilingual students.
Register here: https://www.earcos.org/2025-26_upcoming_events.php

Research Symposium: Manila
2026-01-24 08:00 - 2026-01-25 16:00 UTC | International School of Manila, University Pkwy, Taguig, Metro Manila, 1634, Philippines
Held in Manila at the International School of Manila, the MLRC Research Symposium brings educators together for two days of hands-on learning, deep discussion, and action research planning. Participants explore key themes such as inclusive EAL, translanguaging, and collaboration, grounded in research. After the symposium, school teams receive sustained MLRC support as they carry out action research to elevate multilingual learning in their home schools.
Registration open now!

Pricing:
Early Bird : $525 USD
Regular: $625 USD
* Early registration ends November 28th at midnight Central time
**Regular registration ends January 10th at midnight Central time

Research Symposium: Malaga
2026-01-17 08:00 - 2026-01-18 16:00 UTC | British School of Málaga, C. Centaurea, 8, Málaga-Este, Málaga, 29018, Spain
Hosted at the British School of Málaga in Málaga, the MLRC Research Symposium provides a two-day in-person workshop where educators dive into the research in fostering inclusive and multilingual classrooms. With sessions focused on translanguaging, collaboration, and inclusive EAL, participants collaborate in teams to create action research plans that address their school’s unique needs. Following the workshop, participants remain connected through virtual MLRC support as they explore their own action research projects and translate research into practice.
Registration open now!

Pricing:
Early Bird : $525 USD
Regular: $625 USD
* Early registration ends December 12th at midnight Central time
**Regular registration ends January 3rd at midnight Central time

Research Symposium: Beijing
2025-12-06 08:00 - 2025-12-07 16:00 UTC | International School of Beijing, 10 Anhua St, Shunyi District, Beijing, 100103, China
Hosted at the International School of Beijing, the MLRC Research Symposium offers a two-day immersive experience for educators committed to enhancing multilingual education. Through practical workshops, research exploration, and team-based planning, participants build actionable insights around a problem of practice. Post-symposium, school teams engage in ongoing collaboration and receive virtual support from the MLRC as they implement research projects tailored to their school contexts.
Registration open now!

Pricing:
Early Bird : $525 USD
Regular: $625 USD
* Early registration ends October 3rd at midnight Central time
**Regular registration ends November 22nd at midnight Central time

Research Symposium: Panama City
2025-11-15 08:00 - 2025-11-16 16:00 UTC | International School of Panama, 3GHH+357, Panama City, Panamá Province, Panama
The MLRC Research Symposium in Panama City is a vibrant two-day, in-person gathering that brings together educators from across the region to explore multilingual learning through collaborative research. With a focus on translanguaging, inclusive EAL, and collaboration, participants dive into real-world strategies for supporting multilingual learners. After the event, teams receive continued support from the MLRC team and fellow educators as they apply action research in their own school communities across Panama and beyond.
Registration open now!

Pricing:
Early Bird : $525 USD
Regular: $625 USD
* Early registration ends September 12th at midnight Central time
**Regular registration ends November 1st at midnight Central time

La Cosecha
2025-11-11 08:00 - 2025-11-15 17:00 UTC
Connect with the MLRC in Alberqerque, New Mexico where Mariana Castro, MLRC Director of Qualitative Research, will present three different workshops at the upcoming La Cosecha 2025 Conference on November 11th-15th.

Leading Between Languages: The Power of Transliderazgo
Beyond One Language: Embracing Translanguaging to Empower Student Voices
Unpacking Identity and Ideologies: Validating Knowledge through Translanguaging

MLRC @ NESA 2025 Fall Leadership Conference
2025-10-16 08:00 - 2025-10-19 17:00 UTC
Connect with the MLRC in Istanbul, Turkey, where Jon Nordmeyer, MLRC School Network Director, will present at the upcoming at the Near East South Asia Council of Overseas Schools 2025 Leadership Conference on October 16-19th. Jon will present,” Global and Local: Leading in Today’s International Schools,” where he will share interactive practices to support leaders in maximizing both English as medium of instruction and home languages as tools for learning.
At the conference, Jon will be available to meet with educators to discuss upcoming MLRC research opportunities in the region, including the MLRC Research Symposium in Panama City on Nov. 15-16.

MLRC @ ICQE 2025 Conference
2025-10-12 08:00 - 2025-10-16 17:00 UTC
Carrie Parker and Mariana Castro, MLRC Research Co-Directors, will present,” Languaging and Translanguaging in Multilingual Learners’ Education,” and represent the MLRC at the International Society for Quantitative Ethnography Conference on Quantitative Ethnography, which will take place in Mexico City from Oct 12-16.

Mariana @ SREE Conference 2025
2025-10-08 - 2025-10-11
Mariana Castro, MLRC Qualitative Director, will represent the MLRC at the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE) Conference in Chicago, IL, on October 8-11. She will present a paper on her study related to the training of science pre-service and novice teachers through the use of mixed-reality simulations to enhance their capacity to support multilingual learners. She will also present on the validity and utility of established and emerging measures of teaching quality, a systematic review in collaboration with Courtney Bell, Director of the Wisconsin Center of Education Research (UW Madison), Verena Jorg, Mareike Kunter and Jenny Oloff (Goether University), and Xin Xie (UW Madison).
SREE is dedicated to advancing research relevant to practice, from early childhood through post-secondary education. The SREE Conference brings together scholars to share new knowledge about education and its application in new contexts and across fields. MLRC’s participation at SREE highlights our commitment to high quality research that will improve the education of multilingual learners.

Festival of Education Workshop
2025-10-04 15:00 - 16:00 UTC
Jon Nordmeyer, MLRC School Network Director will be holding his workshop,” Translanguaging: Multilingualism as a Superpower,” at the Festival of Education, hosted by St Andrew’s Episcopal School in Potomac, MD.
Jon’s workshop dives more into independent and international schools that are fortunate to include students from many language backgrounds, and translanguaging is one way to build on multilingualism as an asset. Translanguaging is both the complex and fluid language practices of multilingual, as well as the pedagogical approaches that leverage those practices (Garcia & Lin, 2016). Whether translanguaging is a new concept or familiar idea, many educators have important questions or doubts about how it might apply to their classrooms and schools. Teachers ask: “How do I support translanguaging if I’m not bilingual?” Leaders wonder, “How might parents respond if we introduce translanguaging at our school?” In this hands-on workshop, you will engage with current research about translanguaging practices and pedagogies, while considering practical application to diverse classroom contexts. You will engage with current debates about translanguaging and leave with resources to guide next steps at the classroom and school level.

MLRC Speaker Series: Andrea L. Ochoa
2025-10-02 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
Andrea L. Ochoa, Ph.D., examined interview data collected from school principals across California during the 2022–23 academic year. Using a modified social justice policy implementation framework, her analysis revealed themes related to principals’ depth of understanding regarding their staff and community, how their school policies address or neglect the needs of multilingual learners, and the extent to which school leaders’ beliefs and perceptions inform practical decision making. This talk will elucidate how the principals’ understanding of the needs and characteristics of a school community informs their policy and program decisions.

MLRC @ SREE 2025 Conference
2025-10-10
Come join the MLRC, WIDA, and UW-Madison researchers at the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE) Conference in Chicago, IL, on October 10., sharing their work on “AI and Multilingual Learners: Bridging Research, Systems, and Innovation for Equitable Education.”

Carrie Parker, MLRC Quantitative Research Director, will facilitate the four-paper panel: Virtual Classrooms, Real Impact: Leveraging AI and Mixed-Reality Simulations in Teacher Preparation for Multilingual Learning by Mariana Castro (MLRC);
Blurring the Language Boundaries: Developing Translanguaging Large Learning Models for Multilingual Classrooms by Shamya Karumbaiah (UW Madison) and Kaycie Barron (UW Madison);
Exploring the potential of AI-based writing assessment for multilingual learners by Mark Chapman (WIDA) and Grace Li (WIDA); and
Characterizing Language Model Biases Using Linguistic Variations In Translanguaging by Shamya Karumbaiah (UW Madison) and Kaycie Barron (UW Madison).

These four studies offer a broad and in-depth analysis of AI’s potential to reshape ML education by providing valuable insights into the opportunities and limitations of AI in their education.

MLRC Speaker Series: Elenita Irizarry-Ramos
2025-09-04 13:00 - 14:00 (America/Chicago)
Dr. Irizarry-Ramos will share findings from a mixed-methods study examining how Massachusetts supports sustainable, high-quality dual language bilingual education through data-informed policy and technical assistance. Integrating quantitative and qualitative data, her research examines program characteristics, implementation barriers, and policy needs—insights that have directly informed new state guidance for fostering equitable DLBE programs. Register in advance.

Intro to the MLRC School Network Webinar
2025-08-05 08:00 - 09:00 (America/New_York)
Learn about the Multilingual Learning Research Center (MLRC) School Network. This webinar is for educators and administrators at independent and international schools who want to learn more about joining the MLRC School Network, or for new members who want to get the most out of their membership.
Register
8:00-9:00am Central Daylight Time (GMT -5)

Speaker Series: June 12th Dr. Nicolette Grant Presents "The Lived Experiences of International Dual Language Immersion Teachers Working in North Carolina"
2025-06-12 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
Substantial longitudinal research indicated that well-implemented dual language immersion programs are highly effective instructional models for multilingual learners (Thomas and Collier, 2017). With the increased popularity of these programs and a shortage of certified educators across the United States, securing bilingual teachers is challenging. This presentation shares the findings from a qualitative study of seven international Latinx teachers in North Carolina and provides recommendations for the onboarding and retention practices.
Please register in advance!

Speaker Series: Christine Montecillo Leider & Christina L. Dobbs
2025-05-01 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
Drs. Montecillo Leider and Dobbs present “Conceptualizing Teachers’ Beliefs about Linguistic Diversity: The Relationship between Beliefs about Language Learning and Sociopolitical Beliefs about Language” Research shows that teacher dispositions significantly influence their practices, particularly regarding cultural, linguistic, and ethnic diversity. In language education, these dispositions encompass beliefs about language learning and attitudes toward language diversity. This study examines teacher dispositions holistically, revealing through factor analysis a nuanced relationship between beliefs about how language is learned and views on language diversity, emphasizing the complexity of teaching culturally and linguistically diverse learners.
Registration required

Speaker Series: Narék Sahakyan
2025-04-03 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
Examining Multilingual Learners’ Proficiency on Standardized Assessments: Trends and Disparities Across the WIDA Consortium
Narék Sahakyan, Researcher at WIDA
Thursday, April 3, 2025 1 – 2 p.m. CST on Zoom
Register
Each year, hundreds of thousands of students enroll in American schools and are identified as English learners (ELs). These multilingual students retain their EL status until they reach state-established criteria for English proficiency, as measured through annual standardized English language assessments. Dr. Sahakyan’s work examines multilingual students’ English proficiency in WIDA Consortium states, assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on outcomes and documenting disparities between multiple EL subgroups.
Learn more about the MLRC Speaker Series

MLRC Speaker Series: Igone Arteagoitia
2025-03-06 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
Igone Arteagoitia presents Exemplary Dual Language Bilingual Education Programs: What does it take?

Dual language bilingual education (DLBE) programs are diverse in contexts, and have variation in implementation, making it more difficult to determine what factors contribute to their success. For that reason, it is critical to compile evidence from successful DLBE programs to provide a basis for replication and to achieve better fidelity of implementation of these programs, especially as the demand continues to grow. Using the Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education (Howard et al., 2018) as a framework, we set out to document some of the characteristics observed in two DLBE programs on the basis of students’ reading performance (Arteagoitia & Yen, 2020).
Register in advance

Research Symposia: Argentina
2025-02-21 - 2025-02-22 | Lincoln – The American International School, Andrés Ferreyra 4073, La Lucila, Provincia de Buenos Aires, B1637AOQ, Argentina
The MLRC Research Symposia are two-day in-person workshops focused on 1) evidence about teaching multilingual learners and 2) designing action research projects. After the workshop, teams receive ongoing synchronous and asynchronous virtual support from the MLRC and from their fellow participants as they engage in action research projects to explore problems of practice in the local context.
Registration open now!
Pricing:
Early Bird : $450
Regular: $550

* Early registration ends December 20 at midnight Central time
**Regular registration ends February 7 at midnight Central time

MLRC Speaker Series: Trish Morita-Mullaney
2025-02-06 13:00 - 14:00 UTC
Dr. Trish Morita-Mullaney from Purdue University will present “Lau and Brown at Odds? Historicizing Language Rights and Racial Integration for Transformative Education”
This talk will explore two landmark Supreme Court cases: Lau v. Nichols (1974) and Brown v. Board of Education (1954). Dr. Morita-Mullaney will examine how these cases intersected and sometimes conflicted in their approaches to racial and linguistic equity in education. The presentation will focus on the perspectives of Chinese American educators and activists, offering insights into the complexities of building both racial and linguistic equity in our educational systems. Register in advance.

Research Symposium: Italy
2025-01-18 08:00 - 2025-01-19 17:00 UTC | Marymount International School Rome, Via di Villa Lauchli, 180,, Roma, 00191, Italy
The MLRC Research Symposia are two-day in-person workshops focused on 1) evidence about teaching multilingual learners and 2) designing action research projects. After the workshop, teams receive ongoing synchronous and asynchronous virtual support from the MLRC and from their fellow participants as they engage in action research projects to explore problems of practice in the local context.
Registration open now!
Pricing:
Early Bird : $450
Regular: $550

* Early registration ends November 22 at midnight Central time
**Regular registration ends January 3 at midnight Central time
