In January 2024, MLRC School Network Researcher Esther Bettney Heidt and Director of the Wisconsin Center for Education Research and Professor of Learning Sciences Courtney Bell visited MLRC School network partner schools and their university partners in Guatemala. These partners are committed to growing their expertise and capacity to serve multilingual learners, their families and their teachers.
American School of Guatemala (CAG)
We are grateful to the American School of Guatemala (CAG) for hosting our 3rd and final MLRC Research Symposium for the 2023-2024 academic year. Twenty educators from North, Central and South America explored relevant research about multilingual learning and developed their own action research projects.
In addition to being wonderful hosts for the symposium, CAG provides innovative leadership in the region through their dual language program, their extensive student scholarship program and their Teacher Induction project for local Guatemalan teachers. CAG was one of our recent Featured Partners. Check out more about their school on our featured partner post. Thank you to CAG for your ongoing partnership and your commitment to providing excellent education for multilingual students. In particular, thank you to CAG leaders, including Tracy Berry-Lazo (Deputy Director), Don Francis (General Director) and the Curriculum, Teaching and Learning (CTL) department, including Pamela Samayoa (CTL Associate), Samantha Olson-Wyman (CTL Specialist), Lissette de Aguilar (CTL Specialist), and Teté de Chacon (CTL & Technical Director), CAG leadership team for your support of the symposium and for your ongoing partnership.
Universidad del Valle de Guatemala
To learn more about this partnership, Courtney, Esther and CAG Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning Specialist, Samantha Olson-Wyman, visited the UVG campus, located steps from the CAG early childhood classrooms. At UVG, they met with Rodrigo Rivera Fong, UVG Academic Outreach Specialist, who provided a tour of the UVG STEAM Makerspace where CAG students and students from other schools around Guatemala City can engage with STEAM tools and activities. The Makerspace provides encouragement for students of all backgrounds to consider future careers in STEAM.
UVG has also partnered with CAG as part of their Teacher Induction program. As Induction teachers seek to satisfy their teaching degree requirements, CAG provides a space for them to complete their professional practice while also benefiting from professional growth opportunities hosted by CAG itself.
Colegio Maya
Esther and Courtney also visited MLRC School Network partner school, Colegio Maya. Colegio Maya was founded in 1958 and offers a U.S. curriculum to Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12 students of all nationalities. They met with members of the Colegio Maya leadership team, led by Director Michael Pettersch, as well as Board members, to discuss Colegio Maya’s current program and opportunities to partner with the MLRC to support the language growth of all students. A strong team of administrators and teachers from Colegio Maya attended the MLRC Research Symposium to build on this commitment to ongoing growth and capacity building for their faculty.
Thank you to Colegio Maya for the warm welcome. We are excited to begin this new partnership with you!
