In this week's episode, we're looking closely at teaching and learning academic language with our friends Diane Staehr Fenner and Sydney Snyder. We discuss the need to bring in sociocultural context and background knowledge that our students bring with them. We also get into how we can avoid taking a one-size-fits-all approach and personalize learning to accelerate learning. Of course, Diane and Sydney also share some simple and effective strategies from their book Unlocking Multilingual Learners' Potential: Strategies for Making Content Accessible and Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners: Tools for Equity. that you can use right away.

You can download the full episode transcript here, and visit our EL Community blog for additional free resources on EL education.

Diane Staehr Fenner, Ph.D., is the author of eight books on multilingual learner education, including the co-author of Unlocking Multilingual Learners' Potential: Strategies for Making Content Accessible and Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners: Tools for Equity (2nd ed.). She is a former ELD teacher and the founder and president of SupportEd, a woman-owned small business that provides professional development, technical assistance, and curriculum support to empower MLs and their educators. You can reach her at [email protected] or on social media at @DStaehrFenner.

Sydney Snyder, Ph.D., is the co-author of Unlocking Multilingual Learners' Potential: Strategies for Making Content Accessible and Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners: Tools for Equity. She is a Principal Associate at SupportEd. In this role, she provides professional development, coaching, and technical assistance to educators framed around advocacy and educational equity for multilingual learners and their families. You can connect with her at [email protected] or on X at @SydneySupportEd.