Developing Learning and Reading Materials

One of the challenges to mother tongue-based multilingual education (MTB MLE) in non-dominant language communities is a lack of materials that affirm and build on students’ knowledge and experience to help them learn new concepts and skills. Materials developed for “mainstream” students who are fluent in the official school language are usually inappropriate for young students who do not speak the dominant language or understand the dominant culture. Children in MTB MLE programs need stories about familiar people doing things that are interesting to them. They need learning materials that use what they already know to challenge them to learn what is new.

SIL supports language communities and their supporting partners in developing the range of learning and reading materials that MTB MLE students will need in order to be successful learners in each grade and in all subjects. We use tools like Bloom to help the community create enough reading materials to teach students to read.

Bloom:  Let's Grow a Library 

Resources for Developing Learning and Reading Materials