A. PURPOSE

The Bridgeton Board of Education is requesting proposals from companies able to provide professional development and coaching to bilingual and mainstream teachers on dual language, sheltered instruction strategies and best practices to address the needs of Multilingual Learners.

Scope: The ultimate goal of our Bilingual program is to ensure that our Bilingual and ESL students achieve academic and language proficiency. Therefore, we are seeking the services of an organization able to provide Dual Language Professional Development, Sheltered Instruction strategies and Best Practices designed to increase teachers’ abilities to meet the needs of our large Multilingual Learners placed in Bilingual and mainstream classes. In collaboration with the Director of Bilingual Education, the consultants should be able to provide professional development to specific groups of teachers based on their needs and proficiency dealing with Multilingual Learners.

B. SCOPE OF SERVICE

The services provided by the consultants shall include but shall not be limited to the following:

1. Conduct an overview of the district’s current Dual Language Program to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses.
2. Collaborate with the Director of Bilingual education to provide custom designed professional development to Dual Language teachers based upon common guidelines agreed with the Director and the consultant.
3. Collaborate with the Director of Bilingual education to design appropriate professional development and coaching to mainstream, bilingual and ESL staff on sheltered instruction strategies and best practices to address the needs of Multilingual Learners.
4. Provide custom designed professional development on socio-cultural issues to ensure our teachers understand the importance of Bilingualism and to create awareness on the needs of our diverse population.
5. Provide professional development addressing the similarities and differences between English and Spanish, as well as transferrable skills between the two languages with a focus on supporting Multilingual Learners placed in a mainstream or inclusion mainstream setting.
6. The provided professional development and coaching must emphasize the following components:
   1. Enhances meta-linguistic awareness of students
   2. Increasing cognitive skills
   3. Overall, higher language and academic proficiency
   4. Prepare students to meet rigorous standards
   5. Prepare students for Seal of Biliteracy
   6. Improves commitment to the learning community
   7. Increase socio-cultural awareness
   8. Improve teachers' professional practice
   9. Offer teachers with more time to teach on-grade level instruction and enrichment activities