• Description

In the fall of 2014, the Heising-Simons and McKnight Foundations provided support for a National Research Summit on the Early Care and Education of Dual Language Learners (DLLs) in Washington, DC. The goal of the two day summit was to engage and extend the established knowledge base accrued by the Center for Early Care and Educational Research Dual Language Learners (CECER-DLL), while simultaneously informing the future potential efforts by the Heising-Simons and McKnight Foundations specific to the early care and education of dual language learners. Day two centered on the presentation of five McKnight-commissioned papers, the topics of which included:

  • Research Based Models and Best Practices for DLLs across PreK - 3rd grade
  • Perspectives on Assessment of DLLs Development & Learning, PreK - 3
  • Human Resource Development and Support for Those Serving DLLs
  • The Critical Role of Leaderships in Programs Designed for DLLs, PreK - 3
  • Policy Advances & Levers Related to DLLs in PreK - 3rd grade
The report attempts to provide a short summary and synthesis of the topics covered in these papers and the discussion generated at the National Summit on Early Care and Education of Dual Language Learners. In addition, a set of recommendations are presented for each topic with regard to the implications drawn from these synthesis and of particular relevance to the supporting foundations' future investment considerations related to DLLs.