Education Commons^™

A Descriptive Study Of The Linguistic Abilities Of A Selected Group Of Low Achieving Hispanic Bilingual Students, Nancy Commins, Ofelia Miramontes

Nancy L. Commins

A study investigated the notion that bilingual students' low academic achievement may be due to semilingualism (having limited language skills) in each of the two languages, and the cognitive deficits that presumably result. The subjects were two boys and two girls from the fifth and sixth grades with low proficiency in either English or Spanish. Data were drawn from observations and audiotaping of natural and structured conversations and interviews were conducted with each family to provide information on the students' language performance both within and outside school. No evidence emerged that any subject mixed Spanish and English, but all code-switched …

Reported Literacy, Media Consumption And Social Media Use As Measures Of Relevance Of Spanish As A Heritage Language, Isabel Velázquez

Spanish Language and Literature

Aims and objectives: This paper explores one dimension of language maintenance among college-aged heritage speakers of Spanish (HSS) in three communities of the U.S. Midwest. The aim was to understand whether Spanish was relevant at a point in life in which they were developing their own networks away from their families. Research questions: Were reading and writing in Spanish relevant for the participants? Did they use Spanish when on social media? Did they text in Spanish? Was Spanish relevant for them when consuming content on electronic media?

Methodology: This analysis is part of a larger study on HSS in communities …

Bilingual Intercultural Education In Ecuador : Education As A Means Of Language Revitalization., L Danielle Robinette

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Preliteracy Skills Promoted In Children’S Spanish-Language Books, Katherine Marie Suter

Masters Theses

As of July 1, 2013, the latest census figures indicate that there are approximately 54 million Latinosliving in the U.S. (US Census Bureau, 2013). However, many Latino children still do not receive the services or resources they need to perform well academically. The primary aim of this research study is to determine if the books available to Spanish-speaking Latino¹ populations in two Michigan Counties contain features that might be used to facilitate beginning pre-literacy skills.

Children’s Spanish-language books from bookstores and public libraries were analyzed to determine the presence of features that might facilitate print awareness, phonological awareness, and …

Bailamos Juntos: Salsa En Los E.E.U.U. Y El Mundo, Betty Tran

First-Gen Voices: Creative and Critical Narratives on the First-Generation College Experience

This composition traces the history of Cuban-American cultural identity formation through the lens of music and dance. As the author explains, Cuban immigrants cultivated a rich music and dance culture in New York City by creating a series of Latin and Afro-Cuban music genres and dances that brought diverse groups of people together. As a Vietnamese-American woman, Tran sees several connections between her family’s Vietnamese heritage and the cultural histories of Cubans who came to the United States as refugees seeking asylum from political oppression. As a first-generation college student, Tran believes it is important to share this composition as …