2020 Guidelines for Implementing the Seal of Biliteracy

November 21, 2020

Guidelines for Implementing the Seal of Biliteracy

After several years of implementing the Seal of Biliteracy at the state and local levels, many lessons have been learned, many questions have arisen, and many ideas have been piloted and evaluated. To share what has been learned from these experiences, seven organizations present these updated guidelines for implementation of the Seal of Biliteracy. The organizations that have partnered to present these updated guidelines are:/

  1. ACTFL
  2. MLA (Modern Language Association)
  3. NABE (National Association for Bilingual Education)
  4. NAELPA (National Association of English Learner Program Administrators)
  5. NCSSFL (National Council of State Supervisors for Languages)
  6. SealofBiliteracy.org and Californians Together
  7. TESOL International Association

The goals for presenting these guidelines are to:

  1. Strengthen existing strategies for implementing the Seal of Biliteracy
  2. Encourage expansion of practices at the local and state levels
  3. Connect all language learning programs across institutional lines (including primary, secondary, and postsecondary institutions) to support all learners to achieve the Seal of Biliteracy, regardless of learners’ native or heritage languages

The goals for presenting these guidelines are to:

  1. Advocacy - Purpose
  2. Pathways to Biliteracy
  3. Equity and Access to Opportunity to Earn the Seal of Biliteracy
  4. Implementation Guidelines for State Education Agencies (SEAs)
  5. Implementation Guidelines for Public School Districts
  6. Implementation Guidelines for Non-Public Entities

We begin with Advocacy because, although the Seal of Biliteracy has spread quickly across the country since it was first introduced in California in 2011, there are still many students who do not yet have access to a State Seal of Biliteracy. We move next to Pathways to Biliteracy to make it clear that states, districts, and schools need to nurture and develop English and other languages and varieties starting wherever the learners are and helping learners develop both languages to higher levels of proficiency. We put a focus on Equity and Access to Opportunity because even though the Seal has grown in popularity, too many languages and students are still left behind. Earning the Seal of Biliteracy requires multiple years of acquisition, study, or use of a language in order to reach the target proficiency levels. Many learners do not have opportunities to nurture the languages and enroll in bilingual programs to develop biliteracy in the language they use at home and in their community. Finally, we share Implementation Guidelines for State Education Agencies, Public School Districts, and Non-Public Entities because they are the critical institutions typically responsible for implementing the Seal of Biliteracy.