Barriers toward Equity: Recognizing Biliteracy of All Students in Minnesota

Education actors in the United States are increasingly promoting language skills development of our students. The Seal of Biliteracy (SoBL) has grown into a popular initiative to promote biliteracy and recognize students who demonstrate skills in English and another language. However, the language used to promote biliteracy and the criteria put in place to award the SoBL risk exacerbating differences in opportunities between linguistic communities rather than promote speakers of all languages. Minnesota introduced the SoBL through a law explicitly aimed at supporting education for English language learners. This paper critically reviews the goals of the SoBL initiative, describes the approaches Minnesota has taken to support English language learners to earn the seal and discusses the practical challenges schools and districts face. States and districts need to explicitly address these barriers to avoid increasing inequities through the SoBL.