Weslaco ISD hosts annual bilingual teacher conference ahead of new school year

WESLACO, Texas (ValleyCentral) — More than 300 educators gathered on Thursday for an annual Differentiated Instruction Fiesta Conference hosted by the Weslaco Independent School District.

The conference aims to showcase classroom strategies for teachers to utilize in their classrooms for the upcoming school year.

"It's a time for all of our bilingual teachers, or teachers of emergent bilinguals, to come in and share and learn best practices that are culturally and linguistically responsive to the needs of our students," said Carolina Lopez, Bilingual Coordinator at the Weslaco ISD.

Lopez says that Weslaco ISD advocates for bilingual practice in classrooms to make all students feel welcome.

"There's a long history of 'Do not speak Spanish. Do not speak your home language. We're only going to speak English in the classroom,'" Lopez said. "But here in Weslaco ISD, what we're trying to do is make sure that our students, first and foremost, feel welcomed, because if they feel welcomed and comfortable, then we know that they're going to be able to learn."