Hear from MILE team member Dr. Ana Taboada Barber at her upcoming talk, Reading Science for Emergent Bilinguals: Evidence from Bilingual Cognition, as part of the University of Maryland’s Human Development Colloquium Series.

Schedule

• 12:00-12:30 PM: Lunch

• 12:30-1:30 PM: Talk

• 1:30-2:00 PM: Q&A

(Bring your own drink)

Abstract

Over half the world is bilingual or multilingual, and multilingual learners (MLLs) constitute 10.6% of all public-school students in the United States (NCES, 2024). MLLs often meet grade-level expectations in word reading while struggling with reading comprehension—especially in their second language, and sometimes even in their home language. Traditional vocabulary instruction alone may not address these challenges. In fact, the Simple View of Reading (SVR) offers a limited framework for explaining the reading difficulties faced by MLLs. Emerging research in cognitive science highlights the importance of Executive Function (EF) skills—such as working memory, cognitive flexibility, and executive control—as key contributors to reading comprehension in both monolingual and multilingual learners. This presentation draws on research in EF and bilingual cognition across monolingual and bilingual contexts in students in the elementary grades, with considerations for supporting curricular implications for multilingual readers.