ELL News Headlines

'A compelling blend of free verse, expository text, and artwork illuminates the life and times of Japanese American activist Fred Korematsu…(who paved) the way for the Civil Liberties Act of 1988…Primary source documents vividly bring the period to life, while time lines and descriptions of contemporary struggles for equality by Chinese, Mexican, and African Americans, among others, offer meaningful context. An endnote provides suggestions for young people who wish to take action against injustice as well as a poignant statement from Korematsu's daughter. An invaluable profile of a civil rights hero whose story deserves greater attention. Middle schoolers will take to the superb writing and original format."

Sesame Workshop has introduced Julia, a muppet with autism, to the world of Sesame Street — an important move that advocates feel will increase visibility and acceptance of autism. Drawing upon footage of Julia's behavior, Laura Anthony, a clinical psychologist with the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders at Children's National Health System, explains the top three ways teachers can support children like Julia in the classroom.

With the start of baseball season in sight, millions of Latino fans in the U.S., the Caribbean, and Latin America will be rooting for their favorite players, many of whom are transplants from places like Venezuela, Dominican Republic, and Cuba. But Spanish-speaking fans, millions of whom watch Spanish-language broadcasts of baseball games, will have little idea of the lingering challenge some Latino players in the States have long faced: inadequate language support from the minor and major leagues.

In this essay, Ambree Tariq, who started the Instagram account @brownpeoplecamping, reflects on what the outdoors meant to her as she struggled to assimilate to a new life in America. She writes, "One day, my father came home and told us about how people in Minnesota go camping, and that there were free, clean, beautiful parks for us to enjoy, too. My parents pieced together just enough information and money to take our first steps into the outdoors, buying a tent and a few sleeping bags for our new adventure. We did it our own way: eating kabob and roti at the campsite, telling jokes in our own language and laughing loudly. We didn’t know much about the outdoors culture, and we certainly didn’t look like the other families on the campground, but we took in stride the discomfort of being minorities in yet another American space. In doing so, I developed a profound and sentimental love for the outdoors."

Five years ago, Miami-Dade schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho and Daniela Pelaez walked out of North Miami High School hand-in-hand. Pelaez, the valedictorian of her high school class, faced an imminent deportation order after a federal immigration judge denied her request for a green card. The two have kept in touch since she moved to New Hampshire to attend Dartmouth College in the summer of 2012, setting aside time to chat every three to four months about classes, family, and work. The tone of their conversations on the topic of immigration have shifted from hopeful to harrowing amid the aggressive enforcement policies ordered by the Trump administration. As she prepares to graduate in June with a degree in anthropology and health studies, with plans to attend medical school in the future, Pelaez’ immigration status remains tenuous while awaiting word on the fate of DACA.

On the Navajo Nation, kids with the most severe developmental disabilities attend a school called Saint Michael's Association for Special Education. More than one-third of the Navajo Nation — which is the size of West Virginia — doesn't have running water. And at some of the places that do, like Saint Michael's, people don't want to drink it because it smells, tastes funny and looks bad. Many of the kids at Saint Michael's are medically fragile. So they have equipment that needs to be cleaned daily. The staff refuses to use the tap water to wash equipment. Instead, they use 5-gallon jugs of filtered water trucked in from many miles away.

The passage of Proposition 58 in November 2016 removes restrictions on bilingual education programs for California’s English Learner (EL) students, allowing California school districts to more easily create or expand bilingual and immersion programs. Now, schools and families have greater latitude to seek bilingual education, which will likely lead to increased demand for teachers with bilingual authorizations. Teachers in bilingual programs must be fluent in both English and the second language of instruction, as well as pedagogically skilled to support language acquisition and academic content mastery. Teacher shortages pose a unique challenge in this context. As districts and schools attempt to create or expand bilingual programs, they will have to vie for an already limited supply of fully prepared teachers, in addition to recruiting teachers with bilingual authorizations.

New York has become the first state in the country to make tuition free at public four-year colleges and universities, but it has sparked objections by imposing a key restriction on students who receive the assistance. It requires students to live and work in New York state for as many years as they received free tuition. If they don't, they'll be required to pay off the tuition amount as if it were a loan.

English language learners are the fastest-growing segment of the school population in Rhode Island, comprising 7 percent of all public school students, or almost 10,000 students. That's why Gov. Gina Raimondo is asking the General Assembly to set aside a specific amount of money each year for this group of students. The governor last year targeted $2.5 million for these students, and wanted to make this funding stream permanent, but the legislature chose to fund it for only one year.

A new photo collaboration between Getty Images and a website for Muslim women is seeking to change the perception of women in Islam.  The project between the photo licensor and MuslimGirl.com was launched last month and includes a collection of diverse images of Muslim women and girls that go beyond the head-to-toe burqa.  "One of the ways I open up my talks is by asking the audience to search 'Muslim women' images on their phone browsers, which is always met with their awe at the unsettling results," Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, founder and editor-in-chief of MuslimGirl.com, said in a statement. "I don't want to be able to use that example anymore."