Education Commons^™

Preparing Bilingual Teachers On The U.S./Mexico Border: Including The Voices Of Emergent Bilinguals, Alcione N. Ostorga, Peter Farruggio

Bilingual and Literacy Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Language policies in the U.S., including matters relating to bilingual education, are tangled up with political tensions and ideology. All too often, the dialogue among educators and policymakers about what constitutes best practices for people learning English – for whom we will use the term emergent bilinguals (EBs) (Garcia, Kleifgen and Falchi 2008) – fails to include the voices of those they serve. The Rio Grande Valley (RGV) of South Texas provides a uniquely valuable laboratory in which to study bilingual education because of its location, demographic makeup, and migration patterns. In this study, a pedagogical intervention was made …

Promoting Student Success: Bilingual Education Best Practices And Research Flaws, Lillian Fassero

Senior Honors Theses

This paper first determines the benefits which bilingual education offers and then compares transitional, dual-language, and heritage language maintenance programs. After exploring the outcomes, contexts, and practical implications of the various bilingual programs, this paper explores the oversight in most bilingual studies, which assess students’ syntax and semantics while neglecting their understanding of pragmatics and discourse structures (Maxwell-Reid, 2011). Incorporating information from recent studies which question traditional understandings of bilingualism and argue that biliteracy requires more than grammatical and vocabulary instruction, this paper proposes modifications in current research strategies and suggests best practices for transitional, dual-language, and heritage maintenance programs.

Prospects For Improving Bilingual Education: An Analysis Of Conditions Surrounding Bilingual Education Programs In U.S. Public Schools, Jennifer A. Gorman

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Bilingual education is a subject of debate in education. Some claim that bilingual education programs are detrimental to students, but decades of research supports the benefits of bilingualism and bilingual education for both English Language Learners and monolingual English speakers. The U.S. does not have bilingual education programs in proportion to the needs that these programs could meet for students in public schools. If bilingualism is beneficial, then why do we not have more bilingual education programs? Research extensively covers the internal components of bilingual education programs but only touches on the effect of the external conditions necessary for program …

Attitudinal Perspectives: A Factor To Implementation Of A Dual Language Program, Michael Whitacre

Bilingual and Literacy Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The central focus of this study was to determine the overall perceptions of school administrators, and the district bilingual coordinator on transferring theory to classroom practice, implementation, as viewed by those involved in the implementation process of the Gómez and Gómez Model of Dual Language Education. Responses were solicited from administrative personnel involved in the implementation of the Gómez and Gómez Model of Dual Language. Results revealed overall administrative attitudes were positive to the theoretical ideology and mixed as related to the actual implementation of the dual language program. The greatest areas of concern were; what to do when students …

The Use Of A Virtual Guest Speaker As A Catalyst For Deep Learning, Alcione N. Ostorga, Peter Farruggio

Bilingual and Literacy Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Teaching undergraduate students as they prepare to become bilingual teachers is often a challenge due to their maturational development and the logistical limitations of college courses. Nevertheless, teacher educators must foster preservice teachers’ understanding of factors that impact learning and academic success. This article analyses the use of a virtual guest speaker in an asynchronous discussion as a way to promote critical analysis of policy issues which superseded the memorization of concepts taught in the course. Analysis reveals that the virtual guest speaker served as a catalyst for critical thought about the course content.

Linguistic Demography And Attitudinal Dimensions Of Intergenerational Transmission Of Guaraní And Spanish In Paraguay, Shaw N. Gynan

Modern & Classical Languages

Language data from the 2002 Paraguayan census ate analyzed in order to determine differential patterns of intergenerational transmission of Guaraní and Spanish. The census data are interpreted in light of the results of a survey of 168 bilingual parents on their language identity, language attitudes and language practices. In households identified by the census as Guaraní-dominant, a majority of children is reported to speak only Spanish. The vast majority of parents reports using a single language in the home. The sample that was surveyed for the language attitudes study consisted of couples who identified themselves as either Guaraní-dominant, Spanish-dominant or …

The Vote On Bilingual Education And Latino Identity In Massachusetts, Jorge Capetillo-Ponce

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the Massachusetts electorate voted overwhelmingly to pass Referendum Ballot Question 2 (Q. 2), sponsored by California millionaire Ron Unz. The passage of this initiative by close to 70% of the voters effectively ended bilingual education in the state as it had been known for thirty years. Exit polling done at selected cities in Massachusetts by the Mauricio Gaston Institute and UMass Poll revealed, however, that out of a total 1,491 Latinos polled, a vast majority of them, around 93%, had voted in favor of rejecting Q. 2 and keeping bilingual education in place.

Indeed, Q. 2 became …

Referendums Education In The United States: Reform Or Assimilation?, Francisco Ramos

Education Faculty Works

The antibilingüe movement that is spreading across the United States has become one of the most controversial in the debate on the education of linguistic minorities issues. Ron Unz, the California millionaire who has managed to eliminate bilingual programs in California and Arizona and trying to do the same today in Colorado and Massachusetts, is a clear example of assimilationist movement, which argues that immigrants should give up their languages and vernacular cultures to integrate into American society. This article summarizes the history of bilingualism in the United States, focusing on decisions that have affected the education of minority students, …