ELL News Headlines

Some incoming kindergartners will be learning in two languages starting next fall, as the Olathe School District launches a dual-language Spanish immersion program in two elementary schools.

Lake Tahoe Community College prides itself on being a beacon in the community, especially for latinx and other minority students, through the Equity Program. The Equity Program helps students who are minorities, homeless, low-income, a former or current foster youth or first generation college students navigate college life and thrive.

Last month's release of Hawaii student performance results on the 2019 "Nation's Report Card" showed little change from the previous assessment in 2017, except in one area: reading and math scores among Hawaii’s fourth grade English language learners. English learners at that grade level posted double digit gains in both subjects, a spike that was so dramatic, even Hawaii's own testing officials took pause.

Diversity, understanding bias, and the power of human kindness were main themes in all three conference keynote speeches at the Association of American School Librarians (AASL) National conference. Ellen Oh, author and co-founder of We Need Diverse Books, educator Adolph Brown, and graphic novelist Jarrett J. Krosoczka also spoke of the profound influence libraries had on their childhoods and lives.

Records obtained by the Houston Chronicle show that thousands of elementary and middle school children in HISD rarely take home books from their campus library, limiting opportunities to hone literacy skills and a love for reading at a critical time in their development. In at least seven HISD schools, all of which serve predominantly low-income students, a majority of children did not check out a single book in 2018-19, the records show. The paltry checkout rates are indicative of HISD’s relatively low investment in library services, which has drawn criticism for more than a decade from librarians, literacy advocates and some district leaders.

The U.S. Supreme Court's conservative majority signaled Tuesday that it may let the Trump administration shut down the Obama-era program that granted temporary protection from deportation to roughly 700,000 young people, commonly known as DREAMers.

Currently only one in four Illinois children shows up to kindergarten prepared, according to results of a state kindergarten readiness assessment. One reason: While the state has invested in quality programs, they reach too few children. A September analysis by the group Illinois Action for Children illustrated vast inequities in how preschool seats are distributed. Some communities have no seats for children from low-income families, while others have an overabundance. How Illinois can fortify its system, which is recognized nationally for its high quality but only reimburses centers between $24 and $32 a day to care for preschoolers, is one of the questions facing the administration of Gov. J.B. Pritzker. 

As Denecia and her 9-year-old daughter Elianna browse through the rows of books in this special branch of the Queens Library, both begin to beam. She’s actually kind of "old school" when it comes to books, Denecia says. Ever since she was a kid growing up in Brooklyn, she found the local library a special place, an escape both from digital noise and some of the other tumult in her life. A combination of factors, including the loss of her job and the costs of finding child care, left Denecia and her two children, including her 6-year-old Elise, without a home over a year ago. Today the Queens mobile library has come to her, parking outside the family shelter where she and 254 other families now live.

The DACA program has not only provided many long-term economic, educational and other benefits to the more than 800,000 young immigrants who are working and studying in the U.S. without fear of deportation, but it has also bolstered the nation's workforce and contributed billions of dollars to the economy, a study released Thursday found.

November marks the 50th anniversary of public television's "Sesame Street," a cultural landmark widely praised for its approach to children's programming. But beyond the songs and fun, "Sesame Street" does some serious work for those in need, providing special support and guidance for military families and addressing topics like autism and addiction. Hari Sreenivasan reports.