Research
WestEd’s English Learner Services aims to improve instruction for English and Multilingual Learners by collaborating with districts, states, and federally funded centers to conduct research studies around various aspects of English and Multilingual Learner education, including:
- Implementation and outcomes of state and district policies
- Academic outcomes and trajectories for subgroups of English and Multilingual Learners such Migratory Students, newcomers, and long-term English Learners
- Potential impact of programs and interventions for English and Multilingual Learners
- Promising practices for supporting English and Multilingual Learners academically, socially, and emotionally
The findings of these studies help to describe and inform teacher practice and positively impact students’ educational experiences.
See our resources and recent publications for our most current work in the field of English and Multilingual Learner education.
Projects at a Glance
Our current research projects include:
- National Research & Development Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners
- Evaluating Policies, Programs and Strategies to Support English Learners: Multi-state Reclassification Study
- Exploring Trends and Heterogeneity in the Timing and Effects of English Learner Reclassification: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
National R&D Center
The National Research & Development Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners serves a dual charge to:
- Identify and describe the systemic barriers that prevent secondary English Learners from successfully accessing the general curriculum.
- Develop and test innovative educative curriculum materials that enable English Learners to reach their full potential in community, college, and career.
Through our work, we strive to connect research findings to policy and practice, engage in national leadership, build capacity, and promote compelling and actionable information that improves opportunities for secondary English Learners.
Evaluating Policies, Programs and Strategies to Support English Learners: Multi-state Reclassification Study
WestEd is partnering with Westat, WIDA, and Joseph Cimpian at New York University to conduct one of the largest studies of reclassification impacts ever attempted. Reclassification of English learners as English proficient is a high-stakes decision with implications for academic equity in the U.S. Premature removal of English learner status can deny students of language supports they need, and to which they are entitled. Prolonged time as an English learner, however, can compromise students’ access to the general curriculum and to rigorous learning opportunities. This study will apply a regression discontinuity design to data from approximately 30 states to understand how reclassification affects different groups of English learner students in different settings.
Exploring Trends and Heterogeneity in the Timing and Effects of English Learner Reclassification: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
The purpose of this project is to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of English learner reclassification studies. The study focuses on two important aspects of reclassification: (1) timing to reclassification and (2) effects of reclassification on student learning outcomes. A team of researchers at WestEd and the University of Oregon have conducted an extensive, systematic review of research on these topics, after which they will code information about the studies’ settings, designs, and findings, and analyze the results. The goal of this project is to advance the field’s understanding of when and after how long English learners are reclassified, as well as how they fare after being reclassified, across different contexts of time and geography.