Boosting Achievement: Reaching Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education

is a guide to help educators and school districts navigate the challenges and learning opportunities unique to SIFE (Students with Interrupted Formal Education). Circumstances such as upheaval due to war and political turmoil in their native countries may have contributed to minimal education experiences, thus prompting current educators to adopt an innovative approach in meeting students’ cognitive, affective, and linguistic needs.

In the pages of this teacher-friendly framework, educators will explore interactive and engaging learning strategies which maximize English language development as students learn academic content. A distinctive thread woven through the pages is the growth mindset belief that with effort and targeted strategies, students are able to accelerate their learning despite challenges they may have faced. Boosting Achievement encourages a practical approach to instruction that incorporates authentic learning experiences while leveraging students’ unique backgrounds and perspectives to enrich our classrooms and learning environments.

In this much anticipated 2nd edition, we bring you the following:

1. Additional classroom activities plus an activity index for easy reference Carol Salva’s doctoral research on persistence of SLIFE
2. A program leader’s guide based on current research findings
3. Updated research on second language acquisition as well as effective literacy practices for multilingual learners
4. An expanded section on “Rapid Literacy for Older Emergent Bilinguals”
5. A suggested scope, sequence, and flow of the newcomer class