Multilingual Learners in Early Childhood in Illinois

Improving supports for young multilingual children is critical, as access to high-quality early childhood experiences and, specifically, preschool bilingual programs are related to better performance in later schooling. This statewide project was designed to understand and improve services for multilingual children in community-based childcare settings. IWERC partnered with Latino Policy Forum and thirteen Illinois childcare organizations to understand the landscape of current and ideal practices for multilingual children in early childhood, as well as to study how new tools and professional learning around multilingual learners was received in childcare settings.