edWebinars
«Back to all edWebinars- This event has passed.
Multilingual Learners: 3 Ways to Build Knowledge
Tuesday, March 11, 2025 @ 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm EDT
Presented by Dr. Jana Echevarría, Professor Emerita, California State University, Long Beach
Sponsored by Savvas Learning Company
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
Research shows that students’ background knowledge is a key predictor of reading comprehension, thus students’ ability to understand grade-level content area texts. How can teachers strategically build students’ knowledge of the world to help them access content area texts and materials?
Join renowned English learner expert and researcher Dr. Jana Echevarría as she explores what the research base says about background knowledge and its implications for classroom practice, with a focus on supporting the unique needs of multilingual learners. In this edWebinar, Dr. Echevarría shares three proven strategies for building background knowledge. As part of this presentation, viewers gain:
- Practical ideas for connecting multilingual students’ own lived experience and knowledge to lessons
- Techniques for tapping into students’ previous learning
- Strategies for fostering word knowledge, especially with English learners
In addition, Dr. Echevarría shares a lesson-planning framework for making grade-level content accessible and engaging for English learners while simultaneously advancing their academic language development. All educators who work with multilingual learners—especially K-12 classroom teachers, reading coaches, literacy leaders, instructional leaders, special educators, and curriculum directors—are encouraged to view this recorded edWebinar.
About the Presenter
Jana Echevarría, Ph.D. is Professor Emerita at California State University, Long Beach where she received her university’s Outstanding Professor award for excellence in scholarship, teaching, and service. A founding researcher and creator of the SIOP® Model, Dr. Echevarría has published widely on effective instruction for multilingual learners, including those with learning disabilities. She has presented her research throughout the U.S. and internationally, including at Oxford University (England), Wits University (South Africa), Harvard University (U.S.), Stanford University (U.S.), University of Barcelona (Spain), and South East Europe University (Macedonia) where she was a Fulbright Specialist. Dr. Echevarría was inducted into the California Reading Hall of Fame and served as an expert on English learners for the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. Prior to receiving her UCLA doctorate, she was a teacher in bilingual, ESL, and special education programs.
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
Join the Helping ELL, ESL, and Bilingual Students Succeed community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.
At Savvas, we believe learning should inspire. By combining new ideas, new ways of thinking, and new ways of interacting, we design engaging, personalized, next-generation K-12 learning solutions that give all students the opportunity to succeed. Our award-winning, high-quality instructional materials span every grade level and discipline, from evidence-based, standards-aligned core curricula and supplemental and intervention programs to state-of-the-art assessment tools and the industry’s most innovative portfolio of college- and career-readiness solutions—all designed to meet the needs of every learner.
