Oregon schools are filled with languages – 160 of them.* After English, the most common languages spoken by students in our region are Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, Russian and Ukranian. Multilingual students’ English fluency varies dramatically. Some are native speakers. Some have conversational skills, but need to build vocabulary and comprehension for academics. Some are just beginning to learn English. Supporting multilingual learners improves academic success in all subject areas; research shows eligible students who participate in English learner services are more likely to graduate from high school and attend college or career training programs. That’s why supporting English language learners is so important.
Oregon House Bill 3499, passed in 2015, dedicates more than $12 million over each two-year budget cycle to support multilingual learners in selected school districts and regionally through education service districts. Here at Clackamas Education Service District, we have two English learner specialists who support Oregon’s northwest region: Leah Hinkle and Dan Kimbrow. They focus on supporting districts with few English learners, as well as districts in need of extra or specific support from a regional team.
Support is different for every district and depends on students’ specific needs. House Bill 3499 funds are used for professional development for educators, supplemental instructional materials, interpretation and translation services, multilingual parent engagement activities, and any other resources or services related to enhancing the educational experience of and improving academic outcomes for multilingual learners.
For elementary students in Banks, Oregon, the support took the form of gifts of new reading material to share with their families. Emerging bilingual and multilingual Banks Elementary students chose books at their school’s Scholastic Book Fair, and English Learner Specialist Leah Hinkle purchased the books for the students with funds from House Bill 3499.
Teri Braun, Banks School District’s English language development teacher, says her students were overjoyed.
“As teachers, we know the magic that a book can hold to inspire wonder and imagination,” Braun explains. “The opportunity for each of these kids to choose their own books created a palpable excitement in my class that nothing else could. My hope is that energy and excitement for reading carried over as they shared their books with their parents and siblings.”
The students shared in their thank you cards to Hinkle that their books are already getting good use at home.
“Thank you for the books! I read them every day,” wrote one student.
“Thank you for the books. My favorite book was the Santa book with a Santa squishy. I read it to my baby sister Chloe,” another student shared.
*Oregon Department of Education’s 2019-2020 Oregon English Language Learner Report
