Early Edge Presents at EdTrust-West’s 2024 Education Equity Forum
California is home to the largest percentage of Multilingual Learners (MLs) in the nation, with nearly sixty percent of children, birth to age five, in the state coming from homes where a language other than English is spoken. As Transitional Kindergarten (TK) in our state expands to serve all 4-year-olds, it is imperative that California is intentional about building in supports for MLs and their families.
On September 24th, Early Edge California’s Director of Policy, Carolyne Crolotte, presented at EdTrust-West’s Education Equity Forum 2024: Authenticity & Action in Oakland alongside Californians Together’s Deputy Director, Xilonin Cruz-Gonzalez, a session on supporting this specific population of students. Their session titled, Supporting Multilingual Learners in Transitional Kindergarten Expansion and Implementation, which was developed in partnership with EdTrust-West’s K‑12 Policy Analyst Pamela Low, uplifted best practices in supporting these students in TK, opportunities to expand bilingual programs and pathways, and highlighted recent efforts to ensure TK embeds developmentally appropriate practices for MLs.