Alabama-Mississippi
Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages
AMTESOL has a new mailing address! AMTESOL PO Box 360122 Hoover, AL 35236
PCI Workshop D
Thursday, January 28, 2027
1:30 - 4:30pm
Birmingham, Alabama
"From Silos to Synergy": Equipping Schools for ESL-Content Teacher Collaboration - for School and District Leaders
Intended Audience: School and district leaders
Back by popular demand! The increasing need to integrate both language development and academic content for English Learners (ELs) demands intentional structures that support effective collaboration between ESL and content teachers. While co-teaching and co-planning models hold great promise for student achievement and professional growth, these partnerships often falter without administrative support, shared vision, and time built into the school day.
This workshop is designed specifically for school and district administrators who are ready to lead a shift from isolated practice to a culture of collaboration. Participants will explore a practical instructional model that supports co-planning and co-teaching for language and content learning outcomes, and they will leave equipped to foster sustainable, school-wide systems that prioritize ELs' success through collaborative practice.
Presenter
Amanda Giles, Ph.D.
Amanda is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. She serves as the Outreach Director and Co-Principal Investigator on a grant project funded by the U.S. Department of Education, which seeks to work toward equitable educational outcomes for ESL students in secondary schools. She has over 13 years of experience in K-12 schools in Alabama, serving in roles such as an ESL teacher, ELA teacher, math interventionist, reading coach, and most recently, an assistant principal. Her work appears in scholarly journals including TESOL Journal, Language Teaching, and Research in Middle Level Education Online (RMLE).