ASSETS

You don't want to miss this episode of ASSETS! This month, Dr. Lawrence welcomes a dear friend, retired Lieutenant Colonel Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, a 20-year U.S. Army Veteran. Follow along as Lt. Col. Kickbusch shares her remarkable story of overcoming the challenges of poverty and being a daughter of immigrants, from discrimination and illiteracy to becoming rich in culture, tradition, values, and faith.

This time on ASSETS the podcast, we turn the spotlight inward with a very special "Meet the Host" episode. Our host and creator, Dr. Jobi Lawrence, shares the personal journey that led her to pursue a career in education, specifically with bilingual/multilingual learners. From early inspirations and challenges to the pivotal moments that shaped her career, this episode will give a deeper understanding of who Dr. Lawrence is and why she is so passionate about the topics discussed on ASSETS the podcast.

From living below the poverty line during the farm crisis of the 1980s to being a first-generation college graduate, Dr. Lawrence relates her experiences to the lives of many of our multilingual learners.

Back by popular demand, we welcome Dr. Nooshan Ashtari for a very special Part 2 episode on the ASSETS Podcast. Join us as we discuss questions and topics provided by our listeners and take a deeper dive into technology and language education research studies.

Dr. Ashtari is involved in virtual reality (VR) in teacher training, reading in Second Language Acquisition, accents and multilingualism, linguistic racism, and is a heritage language development researcher.

English Learner (EL) Avatars for Pre-Service Teachers

VR Avatars and Language Acquisition

Using a Mixed-Reality Classroom Environment Including English Learners: The Perceptions of Teacher Candidates

Examining the Impact of a Simulation Classroom Experience on Teacher Candidates' Sense of Efficacy in Communicating with English Learners

Mixed Reality Environments in Teaching and Learning English Book Chapter

Virtual Reality and Language Education

Virtual Environments: The Past, Present, and Future

Technology, Toucan, and Language Education

Toucan: A New Tool in Our Teaching Toolbox

Computer Science Innovations and Language Acquisition

Languages, Tech Design, and the 21st Century: Meeting People Where They Are

Optimal Input

The Optimal Input Hypothesis: Not All Comprehensible Input is of Equal Value

Dr. Noam Chomsky, Dr. Stephen Krashen, Dr. Nooshan Ashtari on Issues in Modern Linguistics

This month, Dr. Lawrence welcomes Dr. Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan to discuss universal screening and literacy best practices for English and ​multilingual ​learners. Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan is a bilingual speech and language pathologist, certified dyslexia specialist, certified academic language specialist, qualified instructor, and ​President of the Valley Speech Language and Learning Center in Brownsville, Texas. ​She​ has spent the last 24 years working on national research projects sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, and the Office of Special Education Programs.

Follow along as Dr. Lawrence and Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan discuss universal screening​ measures​ and ​their​ impact on literacy achievement for English and multilingual learners and Dr. Hagen's path to working with multilingual learners.

This month on the ASSETS Podcast, Dr. Lawrence welcomes Mr. Steve Gill to discuss the identification of English learners with disabilities/dually identified English learners. Listen in as Mr. Gill shares his journey from being a school psychologist in a district with a high EL population to creating the ELL Critical Data Process, used by over 21,000 educators across 2,000 districts in multiple states and at least 12 countries worldwide. Dr. Lawrence and Mr. Gill also discuss technology and how it is being used to enhance language education. You don't want to miss this conversation!

This month on ASSETS, we welcome a special guest from the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Monique Dixon.

Ms. Dixon was appointed in February 2021 by the Biden-Harris Administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy for the Office for Civil Rights. In this role, she manages the program's legal group, which develops policy guidance, fact sheets, regulations, and technical assistance materials to ensure pre-K through 12 schools and colleges comply with the legal obligations that OCR enforces.

Follow along as Dr. Lawrence and Ms. Dixon dive into the opportunities and challenges related to meeting the legal obligations of supporting our multilingual learners and their families.

Resources mentioned during the podcast: Equal Education Opportunities for English Learners; Civil Rights Data | U.S. Department of Education; and File a Complaint: Foreign Language Discrimination Forms | U.S. Department of Education

This month, Dr. Lawrence welcomes the Deputy Secretary and Director for the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) at the U.S. Department of Education, Montserrat Garibay. Follow along as Ms. Garibay shares her journey from being an undocumented immigrant from Mexico City to becoming a U.S. citizen, National Board-Certified teacher, with a Master of Education from the University of Texas-Austin. She has proudly served as a bilingual pre-kindergarten teacher. Dr. Lawrence and Ms. Garibay dive into some key opportunities, as well as, critical challenges that English/multilingual learners face in the U.S. education system and how OELA and the U.S. Department of Education are working together to address those challenges and leverage opportunities for collaboration

In January, the ASSETS Podcast released its first episode of a TWO-PART series to reflect on the 50th anniversary of Lau v. Nichols, a landmark legal case affecting English learners and educators.

Follow along as Dr. Lawrence and Mr. Edward Steinman, the attorney who successfully argued the Lau v. Nichols case, continue to reflect on the ruling that helped pave the way for the passing of the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 in Congress, which required that school districts take action to remove barriers to the equal participation of all students, increased funding to the Bilingual Education Act, and effectively made additional English language development instruction mandatory in public schools across the U.S.

The ASSETS Podcast is releasing its first-ever TWO-PART series in January and February to reflect on the 50th anniversary of Lau v. Nichols, a landmark legal case affecting English learners and educators. On January 21, 1974, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that, under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the San Francisco Unified School District must provide non-English-speaking students with English language instruction to ensure they receive an equal education.

This ruling helped pave the way for the passing of the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 in Congress, which required that school districts take action to remove barriers to the equal participation of all students, increased funding to the Bilingual Education Act, and effectively made additional English language development instruction mandatory in public schools across the U.S.

To commemorate and reflect on this anniversary, Dr. Lawrence sat down to interview Mr. Edward Steinman, the attorney who successfully argued the Lau v. Nichols case. Mr. Steinman remains active as a civil rights attorney and also serves as a professor at the Santa Clara University School of Law. He has argued numerous times before the U.S. Supreme Court.

You do not want to miss this! The ASSETS Podcast is releasing its first-ever TWO-PART series in January and February to reflect on the 50th anniversary of Lau v. Nichols, a landmark legal case affecting English learners and educators. On January 21, 1974, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that, under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the San Francisco Unified School District must provide non-English-speaking students with English language instruction to ensure they receive an equal education.

This ruling helped pave the way for the passing of the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 in Congress, which required that school districts take action to remove barriers to the equal participation of all students, increased funding to the Bilingual Education Act, and effectively made additional English language development instruction mandatory in public schools across the U.S.

To commemorate and reflect on this anniversary, Dr. Lawrence sat down to interview Mr. Edward Steinman, the attorney who successfully argued the Lau v. Nichols case. Mr. Steinman remains active as a civil rights attorney and also serves as a professor at the Santa Clara University School of Law. He has argued numerous times before the U.S. Supreme Court.