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This brief is the third of a four-part series that focuses on bilingual education, bilingual educators, and addressing the bilingual teacher shortage in contexts across the United States. This research was commissioned by the New Jersey State Department of Education, which is committed to providing quality bilingual education to its linguistically diverse student population. More than half of U.S. states are experiencing bilingual teacher shortages, with shortages most acute in states that provide bilingual education to the greatest numbers of English learners (ELs) and those that require teachers to obtain specific bilingual endorsements (for more information on the term "English learner," please refer to our previous brief, Bilingual Education Across the United States). These states experience a persistent tension between: (1) requiring educators to comply with certification requirements and (2) meeting the increasing demand for bilingual teachers, driven by the growing population of ELs and the increasing popularity of dual language programs. States have created various policy solutions to broaden their bilingual teacher pool by diversifying the ways in which teachers may gain certification. In this brief, we share strategies that state education agencies may use to provide more flexibility in teacher certification policies and thereby mitigate bilingual teacher shortages, including: (1) providing educators multiple pathways to certification; (2) offering prospective teachers a menu of certification requirements; (3) allowing educators to earn probationary certifications; and (4) creating flexible reciprocity policies.

This brief is the fourth of a four-part series that focuses on bilingual education, bilingual educators, and addressing the bilingual teacher shortage in contexts across the United States. This research was commissioned by the New Jersey State Department of Education, which is committed to providing quality bilingual education to its linguistically diverse student population. In this brief, we describe Washington state's approach to bilingual education and detail the ways in which state leaders have leveraged policy and funding to expand access to it. We also offer specific policy considerations for strengthening bilingual education and developing bilingual educators in states across the country.

This brief is the second of a four-part series that focuses on bilingual education, bilingual educators, and addressing the bilingual teacher shortage in contexts across the United States. This research was commissioned by the New Jersey State Department of Education, which is committed to providing quality bilingual education to its linguistically diverse student population. Many specialized subject areas face shortages of teachers who can fill positions, and bilingual education is no exception. More than half of states nationwide are experiencing bilingual teacher shortages, and the states with the most acute shortages are those that provide bilingual education to the greatest numbers of English learners. In this brief, we share strategies that can help mitigate bilingual teacher shortages and provide considerations for state and district leaders who are interested in addressing these shortages.

This brief is the first of a four-part series that focuses on bilingual education, bilingual educators, and addressing the bilingual teacher shortage in contexts across the United States. This research was commissioned by the New Jersey State Department of Education, which is committed to providing quality bilingual education to its linguistically diverse student population. Multilingual learners and students classified as English learners (ELs), a growing population nationwide, come to school with tremendous assets, among which are proficiency in a language other than English and the potential to become bilingual. Yet without school-based opportunities to develop biliteracy--that is, literacy in both their home language and English--their linguistic potential can remain underdeveloped. Many states recognize these students' multilingual potential and have prioritized bilingual education: Some states require bilingual education, while others encourage or allow it in certain contexts. In this brief, we define some of the key terms in bilingual education and then provide an overview of the different state policies for the provision of bilingual education to English learners.