State education agencies (SEAs) across the country are responsible for ensuring that all educators and school staff, not just English language professionals, understand and support multilingual learners of English (MLEs).
But how can SEAs do this in a scalable, effective, and flexible way without adding burden to their district or school staffs?
The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) found the solution: partnering with TESOL International Association to create MLE Basics: Building Foundational Understanding for All Educators, a fundamentals course for all educators in the state.
Now we’re offering this course to all states and districts with customization options to adapt it to your specific needs.
The Challenge
School leaders consistently tell us:
- “We need consistent MLE awareness across all educators.”
- “We don’t have the capacity to build a full course in-house.”
- “Districts want flexibility, but we need alignment.”
- “Professional learning must be practical, credible, and scalable.”
- "What's good for MLEs is good for all students."
In partnering with TESOL, RIDE found a professional development solution that addressed these challenges in a format that worked for their educators and staff
The Solution
MLE Basics: Building Foundational Understanding for All Educators.
Rooted in TESOL's The 6 Principles this course is on-demand, self-paced, and designed to give all educators and staff a clear and practical understanding of how to support multilingual learners.
To adapt this course to your specific needs, TESOL will:
- Build the course directly in the state’s LMS (Canvas)
- Provide communication-ready language and graphics for statewide rollout
- Collaborate closely with education department staff throughout development
- Manage and maintain the course post-launch at no additional cost
This customization gives you a version of the course that is state-branded and state-aligned, not an external product you educators have to adapt to meet your needs.
Why It Works
TESOL International Association is the professional home for thousands of English language professionals worldwide. Just as our experts created a custom version of the MLE Basics course to meet RIDE’s specific goals, regulatory requirements, and learning management systems, we can do the same for your state.
About the MLE Basics Course
The MLE Basics course provides educational professionals with a clear, practical understanding of MLEs. The course supports Rhode Island educators in meeting its state MLE awareness requirements while ensuring consistent quality across districts. Let TESOL do this for your state!
The course is:
- Adaptable for your state’s needs, requirements, and learning management system
- Fully online and self-paced (no live facilitation required)
- Designed for statewide rollout
- Grounded in research-based MLE competencies
- Practical, classroom-connected learning activities
- Flexible enough for individual or group use
The course supports Rhode Island educators in meeting state MLE awareness requirements while ensuring consistent quality across districts.
Course Modules
Taking less than 15 hours to complete, this course is organized into to five core competency modules:
- Language and Literacy Learning
- Sociocultural Context
- High-Quality Instruction and Support for MLEs
- Assessment and Evaluation
- Collaboration and Leadership
Participants complete fundamental activities in each module, building both understanding and confidence in supporting MLEs.
Upon completion, participants receive a downloadable certificate of completion.
Want to take this experience further? TESOL can prove a facilitator guide to blend this online opportunity with an in-person professional development session
Customize MLE Basics For Your State
Go beyond “off-the-shelf” PD.
MLE Basics provides a strong, research-based foundation for your educators and staff. TESOL will customize this program to reflect local context, policy, and priorities in your state.
TESOL works collaboratively with state education agencies to ensure the course:
- Aligned with state-specific MLE regulations and guidance
- Reflected local terminology, frameworks, and initiatives
- Incorporated state-approved resources and examples
- Was built directly within the state’s learning management system
- Adjusted scope, pacing, and emphasis based on state needs and educator audiences
This approach ensures that the final course feels state-owned, state-aligned, and immediately relevant—not like a generic, off-the-shelf product—while maintaining consistency with nationally recognized MLE competencies and best practices.
We have the solutions your state needs.
Let TESOL be your trusted partner in supporting multilingual learners. Learn how we can save your team time and resources by developing a version of MLE Basics that fits your specific needs.