Teaching Multilingual Learners in Rural Schools: Four Movements for Educators

Teaching Multilingual Learners in Rural Schools is a call to action and a guide to empower educators to build strong, just, and multilingual rural communities.

The book offers a research-informed framework for transforming how rural schools serve multilingual learners (MLs). Using the metaphor of a symphony, the author organizes the work around four “movements”: Representation and Belonging, Shared Vision, Centering Families, and Collaboration. Each movement harmonizes research, policy, and practice to create equity-driven learning environments where rural ML students can thrive academically and socially.

Set against today’s rapidly changing educational landscape, this resource provides educators and policymakers with strategies for designing inclusive, locally grounded programs. Through case studies, field insights, and reflective questions, you will discover how rural schools can honor place, language, and identity while advancing excellence and opportunity for all learners.

Maria R. Coady, Ph.D., is the Goodnight Distinguished Professor in Education and Professor of Multilingual Education at North Carolina State University. With over three decades of experience in multilingual education, Dr. Coady is a leading voice in rural education equity and advocacy for English learners.