District committee pilots Bridges from Vista as preferred ELD curriculum for middle schools

District staff told the Lawndale board on March 27 that middle school English language development (ELD) teachers piloted three publishers and recommended Bridges from Vista for district adoption.

Doctor Julie Kane described the 2024–25 adoption process as following the California Department of Education’s local instructional materials guidance and the CDE adoption toolkit, with multiple committee meetings of middle school ELD teachers and ELRTs. She said the district evaluated iLit for English Learners, Bridges from Vista (Bridges), and English 3D and that teachers “overwhelmingly selected Bridges from Vista for our pilot and for our adoption.”

Kane said teachers are already using the Bridges pilot materials, that the publisher produces materials aligned with the district’s newcomer curriculum (facilitating movement between levels), and that Bridges includes pre‑made assessments aligned to the Local Educational Agency’s LPAC processes and both computer‑based and paper checks. She said, if approved, the plan is to adopt Bridges for the 2025–26 school year and to bring a formal recommendation to the board for approval at the April 17 meeting.

Board members asked clarifying questions. Trustee Morales asked whether students had provided feedback; Kane said students are giving feedback during the pilot. Kane said the selection committee included the two middle‑school ELRTs and all of the middle‑school ELD teachers.

Why it matters: Instructional materials and alignment to assessment requirements affect how English learners move through reclassification and secondary readiness. The committee emphasized continuity from newcomer materials through higher proficiency levels.

Next steps: Staff offered board members samples and online access to the materials and indicated formal adoption would be on the board agenda for April 17, 2025.