Structure Creates Growth: A Simple System to Boost Multilingual Learner Ownership

Kyle Larson
Dec 2, 2025
2 min read

Updated: Dec 18, 2025

When multilingual learners are given structure, they are more likely to learn English.

The Problem for Multilingual Learners

Every week, teachers track missing assignments, grade essays, and try to keep up with classroom management — but multilingual learners often move from Monday to Friday without ever checking in on themselves.

They show up, and they try. But they don’t always know if they're improving. And we don't always have time to tell them.

This is especially true in secondary classrooms, where content moves fast and language is expected to keep up.

“Self‑assessment … motivates students to learn and reflect on their own English learning; promotes critical thinking and reflective practices; develops a sense of autonomy in their own learning English.” —Jamrus, M. H. M. (2019). Using Self‑Assessment as a Tool for English Language Learning.

The Insight

Students don’t just need more grammar lessons or vocabulary lists. They need systems that make growth visible — to them.

Goal-setting.Self-monitoring.Weekly check-ins on their own participation, vocabulary, and effort.

These aren't just SEL strategies — they're academic strategies.

“Research shows that when students monitor both what they learn and how they learn it — using tools like journals, checklists, or self‑rating scales — academic achievement improves significantly.” — Rovers, S. F. E., Krammer, N., Ufer, S., & van Gog, T. (2023). Let learners monitor the learning content and their learning behavior! A meta-analysis on the effects of prompting monitoring during learning.

The Resource: Weekly Goal Tracker

We created a free, student-friendly Quarterly Goal-Setting Tracker — a one-pager that helps students:

Set a quarterly goal tied to speaking, vocabulary, or academic habits
Track participation, work completion, and new vocabulary each week
Reflect at the end of the quarter and plan for the next one

It’s intentionally simple. No tech required, just a pencil, a binder, and a minute at the end of class. Click below to download one simple tool that students can use for each of their classes.

Why It Matters

Reclassification doesn’t just come from more input. It comes from awareness — the moment students begin to recognize how they’re learning.

As Heidi Andrade of the University of Albany explains:

“Students’ engagement in self‑assessment helps them become more aware of their learning processes and fosters self‑regulated learning.” —A Critical Review on Research of Self-Assessment, 2019

This tracker is a small shift. But for many students, it’s the first time they’ll see themselves not just as learners — but as language growers.

What is coming next

One thing we have noticed over the past decade, is that long term multilingual learners are becoming more and more common. So, in an effort to make classroom learning so effective that students reclassify before they vecome "LTELs", we’re creating a simple tool to help students organize their language by week, reflect on progress, and set goals that actually stick.

We would love to hear your advice about how this could work among your long term multilingual learners.

Are your long term multilingual learners having a difficult time progressing?