ELs With Disabilities

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Why it works

Students who are both English learners and have a disability sit at a genuinely difficult intersection: one persistent challenge is distinguishing a language difference (normal for someone learning English) from a disability, which leads to both over-identification (mistaking language needs for a disability) and under-identification (missing a real disability by attributing everything to language). Serving these students well means careful, informed identification (distinguishing language from disability), providing both language support and disability-specific support together (not either/or), involving both specialists, and holding high expectations. It requires collaboration between EL and special education expertise, and avoiding the common errors in both directions.

The research: Research on English learners with disabilities.

The run-of-show

Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.

The core activity: serve both needs, not one mistaken for the other

Teachers leave distinguishing language from disability and serving both.

Distinguish carefully between a language difference and a disability (avoiding over- and under-identification).
Provide both language support and disability-specific support together.
Collaborate with both EL and special education expertise.
Hold high expectations.

Both needs, togetherELs with disabilities need language and disability support together, not one mistaken for the other. Distinguish language from disability carefully, collaborate across expertise, and expect much.

Facilitator notes

Distinguish language from disability carefully, and provide both supports together.
Collaborate across EL and special education.
Hold high expectations.

Mistaking language for disability (or vice versa) fails these studentsOver-identifying language needs as disability, or missing a real disability behind language, both harm. Distinguish carefully and serve both needs together.

Adapt it

Elementary and secondary: the same.
All settings: distinguish language from disability, both supports together, collaborate.

Participant handout

One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.

K12 Academics · Professional Learning

ELs With Disabilities: both needs, together

Not one mistaken for the other: distinguish language from disability, serve both, collaborate, expect much.

How I distinguish a language difference from a disability:
How I provide language and disability support together:
How I collaborate with EL and special education expertise:
How I hold high expectations:
A student at this intersection to support:

Make it stick

Both needs, together:

Serve both needs together.
Collaborate across expertise.
Bring an EL-with-disability support to the team.

Common questions

How do I tell a language difference from a disability?

Carefully, with informed assessment, it is genuinely hard. Mistaking language needs for a disability (over-identification) and missing a real disability behind language (under-identification) are both common. Collaborate with EL and special education expertise.

Does an EL with a disability need language or disability support?

Both, together, not either/or. These students need language support and disability-specific support simultaneously, with high expectations. Serving one need while ignoring the other fails them.

Why is this intersection so hard?

Because language development and disability can look similar, leading to misidentification in both directions, and because serving both needs requires combining EL and special education expertise. Collaboration is essential.