Language learning involves linguistic and societal factors that interact to facilitate or hinder second language learning. Different contextual factors provide an opportunity to examine and understand the similarities and differences that occur among bilingual children who learn the same first (L1) and second language (L2) in different countries and contexts. This paper explored the role of context, learners’ profiles and linguistic differences of Urdu–English bilinguals in Canada and Pakistan. Within- and cross-linguistic comparisons were conducted for 76 Urdu–English speakers from Pakistan and 50 participants from Canada. Children, ages 8–10 years, were tested on language and literacy measures in both languages. Group comparisons of performance on language measures across languages and countries confirmed that relative strengths were based on the societal languages of each country (Urdu in Pakistan and English in Canada). Despite some similarities in relations among skills within language, differences in the language learning context provided interesting findings regarding the role of L1 skills for acquiring L2 reading skills. These findings challenge the theories developed using data from L2 learners, where learners acquire the societal language in immersion contexts, such as in North America or Europe.

Teachers' instructional practices, preparation, and literacy-based professional development (PD) support are crucial in developing the skills and practices necessary to facilitate children's successful literacy development. Traditionally, English Language Arts (ELA) teachers receive literacy-based PD through training techniques, but research has shown that instructional coaching is more effective as PD for teachers. In developing countries, teacher training often relies on outdated methods and covers topics such as classroom behaviour. Additionally, the literature has suffered from a lack of comparative studies that examine teachers’ training models across both training modes, traditional training and coaching and highlight their strengths and weaknesses in this context. Therefore, this study was designed to train teachers in effective literacy instruction in a developing country using a comparative approach, making it the first of its kind. Participants were randomly assigned to either a traditional training group or a coaching group. In total, 80 ELA teachers were observed using the English Language and Literacy Classroom Observations (ELLCO) tool before and after PD training, which served as an assessment of teachers’ in-class practices and competencies. The type of teacher intervention, coaching vs. training, moderated the relationship between PD workshops and teachers’ practices, with this relationship being significant only in the instructional coaching group, R2 = 0.73, F(2, 76) = 37.49, p < 0.001. This recommends developing an effective, consistent coaching model by linking teachers’ skills to classroom practices, predicting teachers’ performance, and boosting young children's early literacy for future success.