Multilingual Learners

The Maine Department of Education supports schools with resources, guidance, and professional learning regarding strategies for teaching and assessment, educational equity, state and federal policies, and many other related topics.

(Multilingual learners were formerly referred to as English learners. See Honoring and Celebrating All Languages Spoken By Maine Students With the Shift to Multilingual Learners Terminology.)

Multilingual learners are students with a primary or home language other than English who are in the process of acquiring English. They bring many valuable assets with them to school, and high-quality programs for multilingual learners leverage those assets through individualized supports and equitable academic opportunities. Students who are multilingual learners receive English language development services from teachers who specialize in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), as well as supports throughout their instructional day provided by all of their teachers.

Multilingual Learners News

ESOL Programs, Migrant Education, & McKinney-Vento Collaboration

ESOL Programs staff, McKinney Vento liaisons, and Migrant Education Program staff frequently collaborate to support students that qualify for their programs. Oftentimes, Multilingual Learners, Migratory children, and Students Experiencing Homelessness qualify for one, two, or all three of these programs. Therefore, in order to best identify and serve all children who may qualify for these services, the Maine Department of Education recommends these screener forms to be included as part of enrollment packets for every student, every year:

• Migrant Education Program School Survey
• Maine's Multilingual Learner Identification Policy and Language Use Survey
• Sample McKinney Vento Screener Form

Please follow each program's policies and guidelines for the implementation of these forms and contact each program's corresponding administration for follow-up and questions.

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Together with the Maine School Boards Association, Maine School Superintendents Association, Maine Administrators of Services for Children with Disabilities, Maine Education Association, Maine Principals Association, and Maine Curriculum Leaders Association, the Maine Department of Education has shared a Joint Statement of Commitment and Support for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Maine Schools. The ESOL & Bilingual Programs team's work aligns with the commitments expressed in this statement.

From the statement:  

“We recognize and commit to our role and duty as Maine public education leaders to actively partner with all schools in constructing a new educational paradigm, founded on the certainty that every student can and will be successful when: 

• School is a welcoming, safe place for all school community members to bring their whole identities with them 
• Social-emotional and behavioral supports are understood as critical prerequisites to academic learning 
• Students’ primary and home languages are recognized as assets, cultivated, and leveraged 
• Every educator in every role shares the responsibility for ensuring equity for every student and participates in equity education, both in teacher and administrator preparation programs and ongoing throughout their careers 
• Families are meaningfully engaged as partners in their children’s education and welcomed into our schools 
• All academic and non-academic programming is culturally responsive and co-constructed with community members”