Using EdReports and their MLL Review Tool to Guide Curriculum Decisions
If you are involved in content-area curriculum review or selection, I invite you to take a closer look at the EdReports Multilingual Learner (MLL) Review Tool. This tool can help ensure that the needs of multilingual learners are intentionally considered and integrated into every stage of the curriculum review process.
For years, many of us have relied on EdReports to guide decisions around high-quality instructional materials. Their educator-led reviews have helped districts identify strong core curriculum in ELA, math, and science. The dedicated MLL review tools are relatively new, and MLL review reports are becoming available across different curriculum areas.
That matters—especially across all content areas.
Why This Matters Across Content Areas
As I work with districts, I always emphasize that supporting multilingual learners is not just the responsibility of one teacher or one department. For this reason, it’s essential that we consider how curriculum supports MLLs in English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies.
Each of these content areas carries specific language demands. Including high-quality materials should intentionally support students in accessing both the content and the language needed to engage with it. We cannot assume that a strong general rating automatically means a curriculum meets the needs of multilingual learners.
Integrated Supports Matter
When MLL supports are intentionally embedded into curriculum, rather than added on afterward, it does more than benefit students. It also reduces the amount of preparation and “guesswork” teachers have to do on their own. Teachers are not left trying to retrofit scaffolds, create language supports from scratch, or decide what language demands to prioritize. Instead, they can focus their energy on using the integrated vetted supports, instruction, interaction, and student learning.
Integrated MLL supports may also facilitate planning for MLL teachers who provide supports within a content area. When those supports are intentionally built into the curriculum, they help reduce the need for teachers to independently create scaffolds, modify materials, or guess at appropriate language supports. This is especially valuable in co-teaching settings, where the ELA or content area teacher and the MLL teacher are working together to plan instruction. Instead of spending significant time retrofitting lessons, both educators can focus more deeply on instructional design, shared planning, and targeted student support.
For content teachers, integrated supports provide clearer guidance on how to make language demands visible and manageable within lessons. For MLL teachers, they offer a stronger foundation for delivering just-in-time language support that is aligned directly to grade-level content. In co-teaching models, this alignment helps create more cohesive instruction, where both educators can work from the same materials with a shared understanding of how language and content goals intersect.
Start Strong with Available Reviews
The good news is that a number of content area programs have already been reviewed using the EdReports MLL tools, and those reviews are publicly available on the EdReports website. I encourage all educators and administrators to start their content curriculum review by refering to the EdReports general level supports and then the MLL Supports Ratings. These reviews can provide valuable insight into how well materials support multilingual learners and can serve as a strong foundation for your local decision-making process.
A Key Recommendation
One of the most important steps you can take is to include an EL educator on your curriculum review committee. A concerning issue I have observed is that many curriculum review committees do not include an MLL educator as part of the review process. In addition, an MLL educator, may not always be familiar with or able to identify best practices specific to content-area curriculum for multilingual learners. However, the MLL review tool is a valuable resource that can help MLL educators better understand what to look for and how to effectively support a review committee in evaluating instructional materials for multilingual learners.
During a curriculum review process, an MLL teacher expertise is essential in:
- Interpreting MLL-specific criteria
- Identifying strengths and gaps in materials
- Ensuring decisions reflect the realities of multilingual learners in classrooms
This collaboration among content and MLL teacher educators is essential to identify strong content area materials that facilitate MLL student learning.
How to Use the MLL Review Tools
As you review content area curriculum, I suggest you:
- Get familiar with the MLL review criteria and evidence guides
- Look beyond overall ratings and dig into MLL-specific evidence when available
- Use the tools proactively for programs that have not yet been reviewed
As an administrator or instructional leader
I would use the tool to ensure consistency and equity across curriculum adoption decisions. It helps me:
- Evaluate whether adopted materials truly meet the needs of multilingual learners
- Guide review committees with a shared set of expectations
- Ensure that equity is built into the selection process, not added afterward
I would also use it to support professional learning, so teams understand what high-quality MLL instruction looks like in practice.
As a content teacher
When reviewing curriculum, I would use the MLL Review Tool to check how well materials support multilingual learners in accessing grade-level content. Specifically, I would look for:
- Built-in language supports (not add-ons)
- Opportunities for students to engage in academic discourse
- Scaffolds that support comprehension without reducing rigor
As I evaluate lessons or units, I would ask: “How does this material make content understandable for students who are still developing English?” The tool helps ground those decisions in clear criteria rather than assumptions.
As an MLL teacher or specialist
I would use the tool as both a learning and advocacy resource. It helps me:
- Identify what strong MLL supports should look like in content-area instruction
- Support content teachers in noticing gaps and strengths in materials
- Contribute more confidently during curriculum review discussions
It also gives me a common language to use when collaborating with teams so that my feedback is clearly tied to the criteria.
Across all roles, the key value of the MLL Review Tool is that it provides a shared lens for evaluating instructional materials. Since not all curricula have been fully reviewed yet, using this tool helps ensure we are intentionally considering multilingual learners in every adoption decision.
A Final Thought
This is an opportunity to redefine what we mean by “high-quality” instructional materials. If we want equitable access to grade-level learning across ELA, math, science, and social studies, we must be intentional about selecting curriculum that supports multilingual learners from the start, not retrofitting supports later.
I see the EdReports MLL review tools as a powerful step forward. The results of each review will only make content area curriculum stronger. Now it’s on us to thoughtfully use the tool and ensure every adoption decision reflects the needs of all students.
What do you think? How have you been involved in content area curriculum review?