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There are 5 million English Learners attending public schools in the United States. California has the greatest number of English learners attending public schools with Texas representing the second most populous state of English learners. Every educator must be prepared to teach literacy to these students. This session will describe the research on the components of a comprehensive approach to literacy instruction among English Learners. The additional cross-linguistic features for instruction will be described. Participants will also learn the evidence-based practices for developing English Learners’ vocabulary and oral language skills in a systematic and explicit manner. Lesson samples will be modeled and practiced, so every educator will be prepared to teach language and literacy skills to this diverse population of students.

This presentation will include handouts and will be recorded and shared on the IDA NorCal website for 60 days following the event.

Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan, Ed.D.

Dr. Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan is a Bilingual Speech Language Pathologist, Certified Academic Language Therapist, Certified Dyslexia Therapist and Qualified Instructor. She is the President of Valley Speech Language and Learning Center in Brownsville, Texas which was established in 1993. She also works with Texas Institute for Measurement Evaluation and Statistics at the University of Houston. Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan is the author of Esperanza (HOPE), a Spanish language program designed to assist students who struggle with learning to read. Her research interests include the development of early reading assessments for Spanish-speaking students and the development of reading interventions for bilingual students. She was the co-principal investigator of a longitudinal study funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Institute for Education Sciences that examined the oracy and literacy development in English and Spanish of Spanish-speaking children. She is currently working with the American Institute for Research on a national project for Response to Intervention among English Learners, which is sponsored by the Office of Special Education. Elsa currently serves as Chairperson of the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities. She is a past Vice-Chairperson of International Dyslexia Association (IDA) and served for 6 years as the Executive Editor in Chief for IDA publications. Elsa continues to participate on the IDA Global Partners Committee and is the International Dyslexia Association’s Conference Chairperson. Elsa is the former Chairperson for the Texas State Dyslexia Advisory Board and the State Board of Examiners for Speech Pathology and Audiology. She also served as a board member for the Academic Language Therapy Association. She has authored scholarly articles, curricular programs, book chapters, and journal articles related to the oracy and literacy development for English language learners. Elsa is the recipient of the Luke Waites Service Award by the Academic Language Therapy Association, the Champion of Dyslexia Award by the Texas Education Agency, the Outstanding Alumni Award of the University of Houston- College of Education and the Spirt Award on behalf of Saint Mary’s School for the Catholic Diocese of Brownsville. Elsa co-founded the non-profit organization, Brownsville READS! and continues to be dedicated to improving evidence-based literacy instruction for ALL students especially those with learning disabilities.