Bridging Science And Education

In 2019, the State of California asked the UCSF Dyslexia Center to begin research and development of a universal screener to identify the risk of learning challenges, including dyslexia, in young readers. 

In collaboration with a multidisciplinary team of scientists, educators, and experts in educational assessment from around the country, we launched a pilot study in California's Central Coast,  to test an innovative digital tool in our unique, dynamic, and increasingly multilingual communities. 

With insights from field research, Multitudes began developing parallel English and Spanish assessments, to lay the groundwork for a fully bilingual early literacy screener. 

Today, over 156 schools from Crescent City to Compton have taken part in a large-scale longitudinal validation study with over 15,000 students representing the rich cultural and linguistic diversity of our state. 

Thanks to our generous school partners, Multitudes is on track to launch statewide in fall 2025. 

Centering Multilingual Learners

Every child deserves fair and unbiased instruction and assessment. In California, about 18% of elementary public-school students are identified as English Learners, and of these more than 80%  speak Spanish as their primary language.  

Multitudes is dedicated to a culturally responsive approach that considers language proficiency and language variation during measure development, validation, and analysis. We aim to recognize children who may be at risk of learning difficulties, without overidentifying those who are still developing language proficiency. 

Multitudes researchers continuously examines bias, accuracy, and the cultural and linguistic alignment of our assessments with the communities we serve.