Education Commons^™

A Learning Nightmare For An Immigrant Family, Arlyn J. Sorto

Capstones

Just two years after settling in Texas, a Honduran mother and her two kids must grapple with the hardships of remote learning due to limited access to the internet and a language barrier during a global pandemic.

Embracing The New Normal: Infusing Academic Language And Technology To Empower Ells, Scott B. Freiberger

Journal of English Learner Education

This au courant, research-based article offers specific program ideas for teachers during this unprecedented time when supporting our ELLs is especially needed.

The ‘Real’ Outcomes Of Language Learning: The History Of English Language Education In China, Olivia (Jia Ming) Feng

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

This paper examines the history of English Language Education (ELE) and its societal role in China from 1900 to 1990. Throughout different periods in China's modern history, ELE was associated with key issues, including the revitalization of the declining Qing dynasty, modernization during the Republican era, and Cold War competitions during the Mao era. To investigate the connections between ELE and the political trends and movements in modern China, my research examines textbooks written and used in 1913, 1976, and 1979 China. These texts were implemented under different regimes, showing that the historical and political trends shaped the development of …

Education, Hurricanes, And Bananas: Studying Abroad In Honduras, Daphne Fauber

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

The College of Education Honduras Study Abroad program has been sending students to Honduras for a 17-day investigation of Honduran history, educational systems, and social justice in education since 2003. Honduras is a Central American country with a long history of exploitation, political conflict, and environmental disasters. The country began with a swift and brutal colonization by the Spanish, which left the indigenous people persecuted and massacred. In 1998, Honduras experienced a devastating hurricane that decimated many buildings and infrastructure. Large-scale farming operations run by foreign investors has resulted in political turmoil and a struggling working class. However, Honduras has …

Mindfulness And Social Emotional Learning: The Lived Experience Of Students Learning English As A Second Language, Lara Catherine Donnelly

Dissertations

In a phenomenological case study, the author sought to gain an awareness of the lived experiences of 4th and 5th grade ESL students, their parents, and their teachers who participated in the MindUp mindfulness curriculum. The author was interested in the relationship between the mindfulness curriculum and SEL based on the perspective of all three participant groups. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 3 students, at least one parent of each of those three students, and the two classroom teachers who conducted the MindUp lessons. Five main themes developed from coding of the raw data: (1) positive impact on students; (2) …

A Language Barrier To Human Capital Development: The Case Of Guatemalan Students, Fidel Pérez Macal

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Not being proficient in a school’s predominant language of instruction can represent a language barrier for students’ human capital development. In Guatemala, 24 languages are spoken apart from Spanish, which is the language of instruction in the majority of schools, and about 40 percent of the total population has a non-Spanish language as a mother tongue. National standardized tests show that non-Spanish mother tongue (non-SMT) students are outperformed by SMT students in elementary and secondary schools.

My thesis analyzes whether non-SMT students face a language barrier and traces its source. Two main findings emerge. First, non-SMT students are not yet …

Dual Immersion Programs And Their Implications: Focused Analyses On The Educational History, Francisco Reynoso Barron

International Studies (MA) Theses

As a social construct, education fulfills the necessary elements, ideologies, and rituals required to construct social norms for society. What a society deems as a norm determines the sentiments and direction that a nation will take. These normative tendencies lead to national identity and national security through policies and legislation within the nations' utilization of sovereignty. National interest being influenced by global events and ethnocentric ideologies has seen cycles leading to different immigration, educational, and economic policies. This paper analyzes dual immersion programs, which have been treated as a controversial topic due to its implications on national security and identity. …

The Struggle For Strong Democracy: We Need To Go Deeper. A Response To "Democratic Spaces: How Teachers Establish And Sustain Democracy And Education In Their Classrooms", Rick Ayers

Democracy and Education

The article by Collins, Hess, and Lowery (2019) explores struggles teachers faced in order to pursue Deweyan educational practices. This response proposes that even more is needed for a critical educational practice, called “strong democracy.” Such an approach requires addressing and countering the White supremacist legacy of U.S. capitalism and U.S. education. The article advances examples and various projects in strong democratic education.

Narratives Of Black Identifying Newcomer Youth, Saniyyah Lateef

Master's Theses

This study seeks to explore and understand the unique and individual experiences of Black identifying newcomer youth in the United States. Current research related to the experience of newcomers is limited in regards to Black identifying newcomers. Through narrative inquiry methodology, this study seeks to share the experiences of Black identifying newcomer youth. It does this while recognizing the omnipresence of racism in the United States, and acknowledging the influence of life prior experience on identity development. The intent of this study is to help educators and community members better understand the integration and assimilation processes of Black identifying newcomers. …

Inequality In Ethnic Representation In Secondary-School Literature Textbooks And National Examination In Vietnam, Anh Nguyen

Honors Projects

This essay studies the dynamic between ethnic minorities and majority in the Vietnamese education system. By examining the appearance and representation of ethnic minorities in national literature curriculum, textbooks, and examinations, the analysis reflects the government's perspectives regarding the “appropriate” portrait of ethnic minorities' heritage and relationship with the majority. The study finds that Vietnamese education framework and content comply with the national construct of a Vietnamese identity across ethnicities. The state determines educational materials and selectively permits only aesthetic, politically benign, and Kinh-like narratives of ethnic minorities’ cultures, many written and/or chosen by Kinh authority rather than the ethnic …

A Case Study Comparing Fingerspelling Production Between Two Interpreters With Eipa Scores Of 3.0 And 4.0., Morgan Miller

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Approximately 14% of Deaf and hard-of-hearing (D/HH) students in K-12 educational settings use a sign language interpreter for access to the general education curriculum and the classroom environment . The Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA) is commonly used to evaluate the skills of an interpreter as a prerequisite of being hired. This case study analyzes and evaluates the fingerspelling (FS) production of two American Sign Language interpreters while interpreting a lesson. The two interpreters had different EIPA scores: one had recently attained a 3.0 and the other held a 4.0 rating. The data shows marked differences in fingerspelling production in …

Socially Just Artmaking: A Practitioner's Inquiry Of Passionate Teaching For Compassionate Action, Jaime Linn Brown

Education Doctorate Dissertations

The arts serve as a vehicle to activate imagination of students in developing a broaderunderstanding of injustice, its consequences, and the range of alternative possibilities (Bell &Desai, 2011). As more young artists engage in this dialogue, we must investigate how young people themselves make sense of and experience the transformative power of the arts (Dewhurst, 2014). Activist art can communicate ideas about individual and community experiences to a wider audience; it can make public that which has been ignored, silenced, or kept from public conscience (Dewhurst, 2014). Visual expression allows one to increase their understandings beyond the limitations of words …

Iskay Simipi Yachay: El Papel De La Educación Intercultural Bilingüe En La Preservación Y Valoración De La Lengua Quechua En Perú, Tori Wiese

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Perú es un país multicultural y multilingüe, con una historia rica, especialmente con respecto a sus poblaciones indígenas. Específicamente, Perú tiene una población grande de quechua hablantes que viven principalmente en la región andina en el país. Más de tres millones de personas hablan quechua en Perú—el 13 por ciento de la población del país. Con un número tan significativo, el peligro que rodea al quechua puede no ser aparente, pero sin embargo existe. Durante su historia, Perú como un país sofocó la lengua quechua a favor de la lengua castellano. Esta represión de la lengua quechua también incluye la …

Two-Way Cultural Transmission In Study-Abroad: U.S. Host Families And Japanese College Students In Short-Term Homestay Programs, Ramona Fruja, Joseph L. Murray, Junko Torii

Faculty Journal Articles

This study addresses a gap in the study-abroad literature, examining both student and host family experiences of two-way cultural transmission. Interviews, participant observation and reflective journals revealed both parties sought authentic cultural experiences, but implicit forms of cultural transmission in homestay rendered preconceived notions of authenticity elusive. This discrepancy held potential for growth in cultural understanding. The authors explore implications for program design and interpretation of outcomes.

Spatial Distribution Of Chinese Language Education And Historical Development Of Chinese Language Pedagogy In Higher Education In The United States, Jing Zhao

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This capstone project includes two major components: an interactive digital map that displays the geographical distribution of Chinese language programs in colleges and universities in the United States, their program starting years, the types of such universities and colleges, and their names and states; and a multimedia essay on the evolution of Chinese language pedagogy in colleges and universities in the United States. Data has been collected on the program start year, school names, states where schools are located, school types, and whether the school had been funded by two federal sponsored language programs: the National Defense Education Act in …

Resources For Teachers Of French In Maine, Emmanuel Kayembe Phd

Original Research

An educational resource describing methods and resources for teaching the French language using traditional Franco-American songs. This guide was commissioned by the Maine Department of Education.

Policy And Practice Brief 5: English Learners And High School Graduation: Beyond The Four Year Pathway, Virginia Massaro, Merc English Learner Research & Evaluation Team, Virginia Commonwealth University

MERC Publications

An ever-present concern among high schools is student graduation. The pressure is on to graduate students within the typical four-year time frame it takes to complete requirements. While most students graduate in four years, they are not required to do so. This policy and practice brief provides research and resources related to this topic.

Policy And Practice Brief 4: The Obligation Of Schools To Provide Information To Multilingual Families In A Language They Can Understand, Carolyn N. Waters

MERC Publications

Research shows that strong relationships between families and schools are key to student success. By providing information and communication in languages and formats that multilingual parents and guardians can access and understand, schools can strengthen relationships with these families. This policy and practice brief provides research and resources on this topic.

Policy And Practice Brief 3: Dual Language Programs Are Growing Across Virginia, Virginia Massaro

MERC Publications

The number of dual language (DL) programs has increased in response to a growing number of English learners (ELs) in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Virginia Dual Language Educators Network (VADLEN) is committed to supporting the growth of DL programs in the state. This policy and practice brief provides research and resources on this topic.

Policy And Practice Brief 2: English Learners Are A Priority During Covid-19, Melissa J. Cuba

MERC Publications

English learners (ELs) are disproportionately impacted by the health and economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic. These students often traverse virtual learning with fewer resources, limited access, additional responsibilities, and increased needs. In addition to this, they represent a significant percentage of the student population in school divisions across the Commonwealth. This policy and practice brief provides additional research and resources on this topic.

Dual Language Programming: A Model To Enhance School Climate And Academic Achievement In Diverse Schools, Melissa J. Cuba, Kate Daly Rolander

MERC Publications

This policy brief summarizes research and data on English learners (ELs) in Virginia and current dual language (DL) education policies and practices. It includes discussions of (1) the growth of ELs in Virginia and across the Richmond area; (2) both federal and state education policies on language use and DL programming; (3) critical factors related to outcomes and the instruction of ELs and native English speakers in an integrated setting; (4) case studies of school divisions in Virginia that have spearheaded DL programs in their region; and (5) responses to frequently asked questions around the implementation and new 2018 Virginia …

Policy And Practice Brief 1: Virginia Is Not An English-Only Instruction State, Melissa J. Cuba

MERC Publications

Virginia is not an English-only state for PreK-12 instruction. Although English is the official language of Virginia (as stated in the Code of Virginia), no state or federal policies require English as the only language for PreK-12 public education. Having English designated as the official language of Virginia does not prohibit the use of other languages in instruction. This policy brief provides further details and resources related to this topic.