News

We asked WIDA Fellows how English language development specialists can best develop a collaborative relationship with content-area teachers in the classroom. They emphasized structured co-planning and co-teaching strategies, creating consistent and accessible materials and staying flexible as the teaching partnership evolves.

The MODEL Online platform is updated on a rolling basis. This year, significant enhancements are coming in July to align with the new academic year. Read on to learn about the upcoming enhancements.

Learn how the upcoming standard setting event impacts 2026 WIDA ACCESS scores.

Multilingual learners with disabilities and their caregivers have legal and civil rights. Educators must understand these rights so they can advocate for and support students who need language and disability services and ensure that all learners have access to rigorous instruction and meaningful educational opportunities.

How do you connect with families to help students grow? We asked educators this question at the 2025 WIDA Annual Conference, and their responses centered around prioritizing inclusivity, holding events to welcome the community and supporting family success alongside student success. 

WIDA is pleased to announce that Nichole Austion has been named the organization’s new Chief Communications and Marketing Officer. She joins WIDA from the National Math and Science Initiative where she was Vice President of Marketing Communications.

Science classrooms offer rich opportunities for multilingual learners to explore, communicate and make sense of the world through hands-on, language-rich experiences. By integrating phenomena-based learning, discourse strategies, and collaborative sensemaking, educators can foster curiosity, critical thinking, and language development in every student.

Indigenous communities are designing educational programs and assessments that reflect their own linguistic, cultural and pedagogical practices. WIDA’s role in this work is collaborative, helping document validity, co-develop tools and connect partners while keeping Indigenous leadership and ownership at the forefront. 

Beginning in 2021, WIDA launched a multi-year effort to thoughtfully redesign Kindergarten ACCESS for ELLs. The result is the new WIDA ACCESS for Kindergarten that became available in the 2025-2026 school year.

TESOL International Association and WIDA are collaborating to create a webinar series designed to support educators, researchers and leaders who serve multilingual learners. The three-part webinar series titled “Assessment in Action: Supporting Multilingual Learners Through Data and Practice” will explore how research-backed assessment practices can generate meaningful insights that strengthen instruction and improve outcomes from multilingual learners.