The impact of bilingual 2030 on instructional practices and learning for students with learning disabilities

Much of the discourse surrounding Taiwan’s Bilingual 2030 policy, which aims to establish bilingual education throughout the public schooling system, has mainly focused on the policy’s impact on the general student population. However, little attention has been given to the policy’s effects on students with learning disabilities (LD). This study addresses this gap through qualitative data collected from students, teachers, and special education specialists from five randomly selected bilingual schools. Fifteen participants engaged in semi-structured interviews to elicit their experiences with bilingual education. Findings indicated that students with LD faced challenges in the bilingual environment, leading them either to implement coping strategies or to disengage from learning. Teachers recognized these challenges but maintained beliefs about students’ potential for success and employed various strategies to support them. However, examining these accounts through Translanguaging Universal Design for Learning (TrUDL) highlighted additional strategies that could be implemented to cultivate a more inclusive bilingual education classroom. Based on these findings, we recommend incorporating instruction on TrUDL into bilingual teacher preparation curricula and professional development programs.