National Research & Development Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners

The National Research & Development Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners at WestEd seeks to increase the capacity of educators, policymakers, and researchers to serve students who are English Learners equitably and with quality.  The Center conducts studies that aim to bridge English Learner research and practice bidirectionally, and provides compelling and actionable information to improve opportunities for English Learners in secondary schools.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, the Center’s portfolio of studies builds upon previous research indicating that English Learners need 1) high challenge and high support opportunities to learn, 2) educational decisions and policies informed by longitudinal development, and 3) a toolbox of ecological solutions to overcome existing systemic barriers.

Current Center studies seek to identify and describe the systemic barriers that prevent secondary English Learners from successfully accessing the general curriculum and gaining credits for valuable course work. Center researchers are currently developing and testing innovative educative curriculum that aims to develop teacher expertise and English Learners’ autonomy so they can reach their full potential in community, college, and career.

The National R&D Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners is comprised of a world-class research team from WestEd; the University of Oregon; Oregon State University; and the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) at the University of California, Los Angeles.