Supporting Students’ Language Learning and Challenges for Wellbeing

date: September 19, 2025

Strong language skills support student’s academic success, and shape social interactions and emotional wellbeing. In today’s classrooms the wellbeing of both students and educators can be challenged by a critical yet often overlooked issue: supporting students with diverse language needs, that is, whether they are struggling with language, learning a new language, or both.

Educators invest significant emotional and physical energy trying to support students with varying needs, while keeping up with curriculum demands. The uncertainty around the cause, severity, and impact of language difficulties makes it hard to respond effectively. In most cases, it is not the student needs themselves, but rather the lack of resources and strategies to address them, that contributes to stress, burnout, and questioning of professional efficacy.

When teachers lack the tools and resources to support students with language difficulties, challenges quickly multiply. Students may struggle to follow instructions, participate in discussions, or complete assignments, which can lead to frustration, disengagement, and behaviour difficulties that worsen over time. Yet there are ways to address these complexities that support both student and educator wellbeing and foster more inclusive classrooms.

The Wide Impact of Language Challenges

Language difficulties transcend the struggles to speak fluently. This is particularly true for the two students per classroom with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), a “hidden” lifelong communication disorder that makes speaking and/or understanding difficult. While the prevalence of DLD is similar to dyslexia, it is still relatively unknown among many Canadian educators. Complicating matters further, the majority students with DLD remain unidentified. Early identification of DLD, or other disorders, allows students to access interventions and supports to succeed both in and out of the classroom. With proper identification, educators gain guidance on how to support students effectively, reducing stress and equipping teachers with strategies to meet their learners’ needs.

Students with DLD may also have dyslexia, ADHD, or other neurodevelopmental challenges. Research consistently shows that barriers to language can affect overall academic performance, social-emotional development, and mental health. They may struggle to express their needs or comprehend instructions, leading to feelings of frustration and isolation. Hollo and colleagues (2014) found that 81% of students with emotional and behavioural issues also have language deficits. Without awareness of underlying language difficulties, educators may misinterpret behaviour as disciplinary problems, leading to missed opportunities for targeted support.

Pathways to Learning and Wellbeing

Improving student language gaps and complexities not only enhances academic outcomes but also contributes to a positive feedback loop of wellbeing for students and educators. Students who experience success in literacy are more likely to feel confident and engaged in learning. In turn, educators who see their students thrive are more likely to feel competent, valued, and motivated in their roles.

1. Student Early Identification and Targeted Support for All Students

Early identification and intervention are among the most effective ways to address language gaps. When challenges are detected early by speech-language pathologists, special education practitioners, or school psychologists, classroom educators can introduce targeted supports before the gaps widen. These supports often take the form of language-based activities that build vocabulary, comprehension, and expressive skills. Evidence shows that such activities improve outcomes for students with language learning difficulties and benefit typically developing learners.

In classrooms where students are instructed in a language or culture different from their home language or culture, educators may struggle to distinguish between typical additional-language acquisition challenges and possible DLD. Assessing learning potential, the ability to learn when given support, provides the clearest foundation for identifying early struggles. This is the essence of dynamic assessment, particularly embodied in the Curriculum-Based Dynamic Assessment (CBDA), a tool developed in Canada.

Curriculum-Based Dynamic Assessment (CBDA)

The Curriculum-Based Dynamic Assessment (CBDA; Laurie & Pesco, 2023; 2024) is a dynamic assessment tool that evaluates a child’s learning potential, rather than static performance alone, through storytelling and interactive teaching. The CBDA is especially effective for culturally and linguistically diverse students because it minimizes bias and shows both the student’s potential and the type and amount of language support they may need, rather than their performance being compared to other children of similar age, like standardized and normative assessments. This approach benefits all students, not just those at risk for DLD, by revealing how they learn and what support helps them succeed.

Depending on the context, the CBDA can be administered by speech-language pathologists, resource teachers or other practitioners trained in special education and assessment. The resulting report provides three key types of information: a screener indicating a student’s risk level for DLD based on learning potential, current oral narrative abilities, and rich qualitative observations about the student as a learner, including practical ideas for intervention. This information can be shared with educators in a clear, practical and actionable way allowing them to address each student’s unique language needs, regardless of background or ability. Additionally, it provides strategies on what to do next with the student while waiting for more specialized services (e.g., speech-language pathologist, educational psychologist).

2. Collaborative Educator Teams

Building a collaborative team can ensure that the information provided to teachers is directly relevant to classroom learning. Involving specialists such as speech-language pathologists, resource teachers, English-as-an-additional language teacher, as much as possible, aligns assessments with curricular outcomes and guides tailored intervention goals.

For example, the oral narrative skills measured by the CBDA were developed with the curriculum and research in mind, focusing on the narrative abilities most essential for learning; they thus integrate easily into language lessons and provide concrete targets. Clear interpretation of assessment reports helps the educator team set targeted goals for individual students, ensuring that interventions directly address their specific needs. This collaboration enhances classroom practices and reduces the burden on individual teachers.

3. Embedding a Variety of Language Supports in Classroom Practice

Incorporating language supports into everyday teaching benefits all students. Each learner is unique, and when educators identify both language needs and strengths early, whether a student has DLD, is learning English as an additional language, or both, they are better positioned to apply a range of strategies to support language development in the classroom. Approaches such as using visual aids, peer collaboration, and assistive technologies like text-to-speech software or audiobooks can foster an inclusive environment where students have the tools they need to participate fully in learning. These strategies benefit students with DLD and those learning an additional language while creating equal opportunities for everyone, regardless of language background.

For instance, story acting and role-playing provide a dynamic way to strengthen oral language, reinforce narrative understanding, foster peer engagement, and make learning accessible and meaningful, especially for students with DLD and/or learning a new language. Educators can assign roles to students based on their specific language needs or strengths.

4. Expert-Led Professional Development for Educators

Equipping educators with the knowledge and skills to address language challenges is crucial. Continuous professional development programs that cover language difficulties like DLD, multilingualism, dynamic assessment tools, and evidence-based interventions can enhance educators’ confidence and efficacy. When educators feel equipped to address classroom challenges, their sense of competency, a key component of workplace wellbeing, improves. Moreover, ongoing professional learning communities, led by experts in their field, provide a space for educators to share strategies, celebrate successes, and support one another in navigating classroom complexities. School leaders need to invest in expert-led professional development to ensure training is research-based and practical for each classroom’s specific needs. With approximately two students per class affected by the hidden disability DLD, whether they speak only one or multiple languages, the time to act is now.

Conclusion

Educators are at the heart of supporting all students in their classrooms, including those with language difficulties and second language learning, but they need a team behind them. School leaders play a crucial role in providing the resources and support needed for them. This includes ensuring schools have access to language screenings and early identification programs and specialists, providing time for meaningful expert-led professional development, and fostering partnerships with speech-language pathologists who can provide ongoing support and guidance.

When we address language learning effectively, everyone benefits. Students gain confidence and engagement. Educators feel capable and satisfied in their roles, knowing they have the tools and support to help all students succeed. Most importantly, classrooms become more inclusive spaces where every student’s language needs are identified and supported.

The complexity of today’s classrooms can be challenging, but with the right assessment tools, team support, and ongoing professional learning, educators can make a real difference to their students’ learning, support those with DLD and/or additional language needs, maintain their own wellbeing, and contribute to stronger and more inclusive school communities.

Reflection Questions

As you reflect on your own teaching practice, how have you observed language difficulties manifesting themselves in the classroom? What strategies have you used to support these students? What other resources are available?

References

Adlof, S. M., & Hogan, T. P. (2018). Understanding dyslexia in the context of developmental language disorders. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 49(4), 762-773.

Day, S. L., Connor, C. M., & McClelland, M. M. (2015). Children’s behavioral regulation and literacy: The impact of the first grade classroom environment. Journal of School Psychology, 53(5), 409–428. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2015.07.004

Hammer, C. S., Hoff, E., Uchikoshi, Y., Gillanders, C., Castro, D., & Sandilos, L. E. (2014). The Language and Literacy Development of Young Dual Language Learners: A Critical Review. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 29(4), 715–733. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2014.05.008

Haywood, H. C., & Lidz, C. S. (2007). Dynamic assessment in practice: Clinical and educational applications. Cambridge University Press.

Hollo, A., Wehby, J. H., & Oliver, R. M. (2014). Unidentified language deficits in children with emotional and behavioral disorders: A meta-analysis. Exceptional children, 80(2), 169-186.

Laurie, A., & Pesco, D. (2023). Curriculum-based dynamic assessments of narratives for bilingual Filipino children. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 54(2), 489–503. https://doi.org/10.1044/2022_LSHSS-22-00117

Laurie, A. & Pesco, D. (2024). Dynamic assessment of narratives: Case studies of bilingual Filipino kindergarteners with language difficulties. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 40(1), 24-38 https://doi.org/10.1177/02656590241228420

Law, J., McKean, C., Murphy, C. A., & Thordardottir, E. (Eds.). (2019). Managing children with developmental language disorder: Theory and practice across Europe and beyond. Routledge.

Peña, E. D. (2000). Measurement of modifiability in children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 21(2), 87-97.

Meet the Expert(s)

Anne Laurie

Researcher, TRICOAST Education, Concordia University

Anne Laurie, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow at Concordia University whose research focuses on narrative and language development in children, with a particular emphasis on Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) and multilingualism. She developed the Curriculum-Based Dynamic Assessment (CBDA), a validated tool that helps identify children’s language learning needs as early as possible.