3.4 Multilingual Learners

    Welcome to the Louis Riel School Division’s Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP) 2023-27 action pages. For each strategic action, we are diligently taking steps to achieve our goals. Together, these goals strive to create the best possible educational environment for students, staff, and community. On these pages, you will find answers to two key questions: What have we done so far? And where do we plan to be by 2027?

    What have we done so far? 

    The Louis Riel School Division has made strides towards creating significant and far-reaching supports for our schools’ thriving and diverse newcomer community, guided by the goal of creating a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism. 

    To assist staff in supporting multilingual learners in their new language development, an access point on the Teaching and Learning Portal has been established in the EAL section.  In there are guiding principles, processes, procedures, assessment, evaluation and reporting related to supporting multilingual learners at all levels. These resources are also aligned with the objectives outlined in the Manitoba Kindergarten to Grade 12 Curriculum Framework for English as an Additional Language (EAL) and Literacy, Academics and Language (LAL).

    So far, we have:

    • The EAL section of the Teaching and Learning Portal has been developed to provide easy access for all LRSD staff to a wide array of resources created collaboratively by LRSD teachers from Early Years, Middle Years, Senior Years, Student Services, the LAL Program and the School & Classroom Support team from English and French Immersion Schools, and clinicians. 
    • LRSD has centred its work related to supporting newcomer students on the Ethic of Hospitality (as outlined by Dr. Claudia Ruitenberg), to ensure all students and families feel a sense of belonging and safety. 
    • Provided annual staff learning sessions through the School & Classroom Instructional Support Team (SCST) to equip teachers with skills to support multilingual learners. 
    • Hosted a staff learning session for those in and out of division with Dr. Nadia Prokopchuk on Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy: Using Prior Learning & Cultural Knowledge to Promote Academic Success. 
    • Adopted Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching to value multilingual learners’ skills and experiences and to shift mindsets to an asset-based perspective. 
    • Established divisional MLL committees to build leadership capacity among teachers and student services teachers (SSTs). 
      • 2022 - 2023: Divisional Multilingual Learners and Specialized Assessments Committee was comprised of 33 LRSD teachers and clinicians. 
      • 2023 - 2024: Divisional Multilingual Learners Committee: Building Capacity was comprised of 15 LRSD teachers. 
      • 2024 - 2025: To begin in 2025, a Divisional Multilingual Learners Committee: School Leadership. 
    • Secured a Manitoba Teachers’ Society Collaborative Learning Team Grant to explore equity, inclusion, and anti-racism practices   to support LRSD’s vision for all learners to excel and contribute to a democratic and sustainable world. 
    • Updated and expanded the EAL library at Monterey to include current, robust resources on supporting multilingual learners. 
    • Used Power BI to identify student diversity, enabling tailored support based on languages spoken and countries of origin. 
    • Published monthly articles in the divisional newsletter, The Learning Circle, on topics like immigration, translanguaging, and culturally responsive pedagogy. 

    Where do we plan to be by 2027? 

    The Louis Riel School Division is committed to expanding educational supports for multilingual learners (MLLs) to address the growing enrolment of newcomers and MLLs. These efforts ensure equitable and inclusive teaching and learning opportunities for all students. To achieve this, we will: 

    • Launch a Middle Years Language, Academics, and Literacy (LAL) Program (grades 7-8) in the 2025-2026 school year for students with significant schooling disruptions or no prior schooling. 
    • Ensure every school has an identified teacher leader to support their school teams in clarifying processes, procedures, pedagogy, and the divisional vision for MLLs.  
    • Establish and maintain a divisional resource sharing system to help school teams share effective resources and ideas with other colleagues across the division.
    • Information sessions for newcomer families will be hosted by all families of schools for their community.  
    • Targeted training related to supporting MLLs will be integrated into the Teachers New to LRSD annual sessions hosted by the SCST.
    • Working with the Bureau de l’éducation française and other provincial partners, a clear, systematic approach will be established to support newcomer students in French Immersion, including a planning framework to address the unique language challenges MLL students face in early immersion, particularly with the introduction of English in Grade 2. 
    • All high schools will have implemented the new provincial EAL and LAL Literacy and Numeracy courses. 
    • LRSD's MLL leaders will continue to be an integral partner working with the Metro EAL Team to share resources, inform policy, and influence practice. 
    • The School & Classroom Support Team will continue to support teacher leaders in building their capacity. 
    • The EAL section in the Teaching and Learning Portal will be regularly monitored, so that it contains the most current, evidence-based information to support multilingual learners. There will be rich, robust and comprehensive resources that will be helpful for all staff groups.