OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — After greeting her new students in Spanish, Giovana Portugal got down to the basics.

"I need to go to the bathroom," said Portugal, who teaches English language learners at Fillmore Elementary School. "Necesito ir al baño."

The adults in the room at Northeast Academy, all of them Oklahoma City Public Schools employees, recite the words in unison.

Tayler Dallam is among them.

Dallam, 28, an English development teacher at Webster Middle School, spends her days working with bilingual students who need extra help with reading and writing.

She jumped at the opportunity to learn...