Wright gives keynote at PDE ELD Professional Learning Conference
Wayne E. Wright prepares for his virtual keynote for the Pennsylvania Dept. of Education conference (Photo/D. Starr)
Wayne E. Wright gave a virtual keynote presentation to the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s (PDE) English Language Development (ELD) Professional Learning Conference (Nov. 19).
Wright is the associate dean for research, graduate programs and faculty development and professor and Barbara I. Cook Chair of Literacy at Language in the Purdue University College of Education. His keynote, “Foundations for Teaching English Learners,” drew from the new editions of his bestselling books, Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice (2025, Brookes Publishing, 4th ed.), and Foundations of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism (2025, Multilingual matters, 8th ed., co-authored with Colin Baker). Both books have been key texts for training mainstream, English as a Second Language (ESL), and bilingual teachers, and have provided support and guidance for education programs for multilingual learners classified as English Language Learners (ELLs) across the U.S. and around the world.
Wright’s presentation focused on the most recent research and policy developments in the field and their implications for providing effective practices for ELL-classified students.
“His opening keynote lit a fire for the day that shone bright and strong straight to the last second of the last breakout session,” said Andrea G. Kolb, senior vice president and chief education officer at Pennon Education. “Not only do I have every book [of his], I have every edition of every book!”
About 1,700 educators from 19 states and several foreign countries attended the conference.
“I am always excited to connect with teachers and educational leaders across the country who care deeply about their multilingual learners and who are seeking opportunities to further develop their knowledge and skills to improve instruction,” Wright said. “This was also a great opportunity to highlight the impactful academic research and educational resource development happening here at Purdue in the College of Education in support of schools to provide high-quality education for all learners.”
About Dr. Wayne E. Wright
Besides serving on the administrative team of the Purdue College of Education, Wright is co-principal investigator (with PI Trish Morita-Mullaney) on over $9M in federal grants focused on improving ELL and bilingual education in Indiana. He was a Fulbright Scholar in Cambodia and is a former ESL and bilingual teacher in Long Beach, CA, where he helped establish one of the first Cambodian bilingual programs in the U.S. He is co-editor (with Hyun-Sook Kang) of the Journal of Language, Identity, and Education; editor of the Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement; and co-editor (with Nancy Hornberger) of Multilingual Matters’ Bilingual Education and Bilingualism book series. He the author/editor of 11 books, including four published in 2025.
About the conference
The annual PDE ELD Conference is made possible by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and coordinated by Pennon Education.
Source: Wayne E. Wright