Resources/Recursos

WIDA Video Contest Winner

Andy Mizell plans engaging instruction that scaffolds learning for the wide range of English proficiency levels in his middle school ELL class. He begins by assessing his students and collaborating with other teachers to extend his academic language instruction across subject areas.

Released June 2015

WIDA Video Contest Winner

Mindy Lewis-Hitch develops a grade-level, standards-based unit and provides her ninth graders with clear modeling and guided practice using game-type activities for Romeo and Juliet. Mindy also demonstrates working with colleagues to help raise awareness of scaffolding lessons so all learners can be engaged.

Released June 2015

Regardless of the growth model, aggregate test-score-based models of student growth require large and longitudinally connected samples of student data. When sample sizes are small it becomes impossible to reliably estimate and disentangle district, school and teacher effects from student growth data.

Published June 2015 
Author: Narek Sahakyan

Released June 2015

Los fundamentos de los estándares de WIDA: Principios que guían el desarrollo lingüístico.

Released January 2015

This book explores academic literacy and how its development can be assessed in adolescent multilingual students. The contributing authors provide divergent definitions of academic literacies and use dissimilar theoretical and methodological approaches to study literacy development. Nevertheless, all chapters reflect a shared conceptual framework for examining academic literacies as situated, overlapping, meaning-making practices.

Released January 2015

This book provides practical strategies to implement a unique process for formative assessment. This book, which is a result of work completed during the Carnegie Corportation grant FLARE project, demonstrates what good language assessment for formative purposes is, explains the cycle of formative language assessment, and shows how it unfolds stage-by-stage in a school setting. 

Released January 2015

This report summarizes and further develops ideas discussed at a national working session held in 2014 to examine issues and options associated with initially classifying English learners (ELs). It is the third in a series of guidance papers intended to support states in large-scale assessment consortia that are expected to move toward a common definition of English learner as part of their assessment grant requirements.

Released January 2015

This report summarizes and further develops ideas discussed at a national working session held in 2014 to examine issues and options associated with reclassifying English learners (ELs) to fluent English proficient (R-FEP) status. Participants agreed that EL reclassification policies and practices can and should be strengthened, made more coherent, and standardized within states.

Released January 2015

This report examines how Alternate ACCESS for ELLs serves as a tool that identifies English proficiency attainment for English learners with significant cognitive disabilities.

Published December 2014 
Author: H. Gary Cook

Released December 2014

This WIDA Focus Bulletin addresses how English Language Learners engage with technology within the classroom.

Published October 2014 
Authors: Meagan Rothschild, Julia Cortada

Released September 2014

This research report provides a description of a study examining school districts in the WIDA Consortium whose English language learners (ELLs) exhibit consistently high growth on the ACCESS for ELLs (ACCESS) assessment.

Published August 2014 
Authors: Narek Sahakyan, H. Gary Cook

Released August 2014

This 2012 report describes the development, validity and reliability of the WIDA MODEL assessment for Grades 6-8 and 9-12.

Released July 2014

The WIDA Spanish Language Development (SLD) Standards, Kindergarten – Grade 12, 2013 Edition is a resource for planning and implementing language instruction and assessment for emergent bilinguals who are learning academic content in Spanish. This publication will also offer information on where the WIDA SLD Standards fit within the larger WIDA system for instruction and assessment and how to use the SLD standards to have a broader understanding of the linguistic profile of students.

Vea y descargue en español.

Released May 2014

This research brief reports preliminary results from a study of teachers’ successful experiences engaging English learners in collaborative learning with peers.

Released May 2014

This report describes key components of high quality professional development for educators of English language learners.

Published May 2014 
Author: Daniella Molle

Released May 2014

This WIDA Focus Bulletin explores the integral connection between language and culture for American Indian English Language Learners.

Published May 2014 
Authors: Rosalie Grant, Paula White, Julia Cortada, Sookweon Min

Released May 2014

This document articulates the theoretical foundations for the 2012 Amplification of the WIDA English Language Development Standards, Kindergarten-Grade 12. The 2012 Amplification and its theoretical foundations are in the process of being retired. For the most up-to-date information, please see Appendix F: Theoretical Foundations in the WIDA ELD Standards Framework, 2020 Edition.

The 2012 Amplification of the WIDA ELD Standards drew on multiple theories and approaches in an effort to describe language use in academic contexts, as this is the language students must acquire and negotiate to participate successfully in school. These multiple theories and approaches formed a theoretical foundation that supported the 2012 WIDA ELD standards framework. This document articulates that theoretical foundation.

Released March 2014

Developing a Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Approach to Response to Instruction and Intervention (RtI²) for English Language Learners: Connecting to WIDA Standards, Assessments, and Other Resources

Response to Intervention or Responsiveness to Instruction (RtI) is one example of a multi-tiered system of support that helps educators identify the needs of all students as they develop more culturally and linguistically responsive educational systems. This guide includes tools and resources to help states, districts and schools address some of the unique needs of ELLs within a culturally and linguistically responsive RtI² system.

Released March 2014

Los estándares del desarrollo del lenguaje español de WIDA, desde Kínder hasta el Grado 12°, edición 2013, constituyen un recurso para la planificación, la instrucción y la evaluación del lenguaje de bilingües emergentes que están aprendiendo el contenido académico en español.

View and download in English.

Released November 2013

This paper finds that many educators see the WIDA English language proficiency standards as a tool that can guide them in differentiating instruction and supporting language development among English language learners.

Released November 2013