Language and Literacy Education Commons^™

Walking The Talk: Promoting Middle School Philosophy By Embracing Student Voices, Rick Marlatt

Middle Grades Review

This practitioner perspective responds to recent scholarship calling for reinvigorating middle level education by suggesting that the purposeful inclusion of student voices in collaborative learning activities can help educators champion the academic and social growth of early adolescents. The recent practicum experience of a preservice candidate who prioritized the voices of her students illustrates the promotion of democratic education, innovation, and social justice in middle level education.

The Effects Of Code-Mixing On Second Language Development, Aimee K. Spice

Channels: Where Disciplines Meet

Second language development is an important topic of discussion in an increasingly multilingual world. This study aims to examine and detail research on the effects of code-mixing (CM) on second language development, answering how CM facilitates or constrains second language acquisition. Peer-reviewed articles on the topic published between 2013 and 2018 were examined and synthesized. Language learners/multilinguals answered questionnaires about their views on CM and second language acquisition, and a language teacher was interviewed regarding use of L1 in the language classroom and CM as a pedagogical tool. This study found that CM can be a beneficial tool for language …

Signing Exact English; A Simultaneously Spoken And Signed Communication Option In Deaf Education, Kabian Rendel, Jill Bargones, Britnee Blake, Barbara Luetke, Deborah S. Stryker

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Current reviews of the literature continue to evidence that even with current assistive listening technology, many children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing (D/HH) persist in demonstrating English language and literacy gaps compared to hearing peers (e.g., C. Mayer 2016; C. Mayer, & Trezek, 2018). For example, Geers, Tobey, Moog, and Brenner (2008) reported that “only about half” (p. 262) of children using cochlear implants (CIs) (and no sign to support their speech production) achieved age-appropriate abilities by third grade. Given the continually-reported variability of results (e.g., Harris, 2016; C. Mayer, & Trezek, 2018), an alternative is warranted. Signing Exact English …

Portuguese And German Repertoires Perceived By Portuguese Speaking Children In Germany: A Tale Of Two Continua, Sílvia Melo-Pfeifer, Alexandra Fidalgo Schmidt

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

After a theoretical overview of the concept of heritage language (HL) from a plurilingual perspective, we will describe the project “Images on the (teaching of) Portuguese Language abroad”. For this project, several drawings were collected, produced by lusodescendant children living in Germany and attending supplementary Portuguese lessons. We will analyze four tendencies of students’ representations towards Portuguese and German, as well as towards the skills they have developed in those languages. These representations illustrate four profiles of Portuguese Heritage Language (PHL) learners present in the classroom (in terms of motivations, skills, linguistic repertoires, etc.). As conclusions, we will point at: …

The Power Of Pictures: Drawing On Visual Sign-Systems To Teach Inference In Gerstein’S The Man Between Two Towers, Shannon Howrey

The Journal of Balanced Literacy Research and Instruction

The ability to infer while reading is a critical part of meaning-making. Readers who infer go beyond the literal words on the page by adding information to the text and making implicit connections between the text and their prior knowledge (Barr, Blacowicz, Bates, Katz, & Kaufman, 2013). This skill allows them to establish causal relationships between story events, connect the events to their personal experiences, and determine relationships, motivations, and emotions within and between characters. Drawing on dual coding theory and visual literacy principles, the author demonstrates how the lines in the illustrations of The Man Between Two Towers assist …

Practical Ways For Teaching Chinese Characters, Yuan Xu

Chinese Language Teaching Methodology and Technology

This article gives a panorama view of the most common and functional digital tools for teaching writing Chinese Characters to non native speakers.

Review Of Think Big With Think Alouds: A Three-Step Planning Process That Develops Strategic Readers, Susan J. Chambre

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

In Think Big with Think Alouds: A Three-step Planning Process That Develops Strategic Readers (2017), Molly K. Ness provides classroom teachers with a detailed three-step process for developing think aloud procedures during classroom literacy instruction. The book assists teachers in identifying stopping points in narrative and expository text. Ness also includes multiple scripted think alouds with comprehensive explanations for both narrative and expository text. Additionally, practical tips for promoting student adoption of higher order thinking skills are provided in the form of sentence starters and strategy symbols. The procedures outline in Think Big with Think Alouds will empower classroom teachers …

Self–Assessment In Efl Grammar Classroom: A Study Of Efl Learners At The Centre For Languages And Translation, Ibb University, Marwan Saeed Saif Moqbel

International Journal for Research in Education

The present study investigated the implementation of self-assessment in EFL grammar classroom to identify the attitudes of EFL learners at the Centre for Languages and Translation, Ibb University towards self-assessment, their perceptions of the advantages of self-assessment, and the problems or difficulties that EFL learners may face while carrying out self-assessment activities. To collect data, the researcher used three instruments: a questionnaire, a structured interview, and a focus group discussion. The questionnaire was administered to (85) EFL learners. Using the stratified sampling technique, the researcher selected randomly (14) learners for the interviews and (21) learners to participate in the focus …

Language And Identity: How Music Affects Language And Communication, Hannah Helwig

Emerging Writers

First-place winner in the 2018 Emerging Writers Contest Academic Category. The essay examines the connections between music, language acquisition, and personal identity.

Teacher Interculturality In An English As A Second Language Elementary Pull-Out Program: Teacher As Broker In The School’S Community Of Practice, Carmen Durham

The Qualitative Report

This case study investigated how one teacher, Lidia (a pseudonym), used her own cross-cultural experiences to socially and academically assist elementary school students who were crossing cultural boundaries of their own. This study used ethnographic interviews and classroom observations to explore Lidia’s experiences and struggles as she crossed cultural boundaries and built intercultural competence and how those experiences related to her teaching methods. Lidia used stories, multicultural images, and the students’ home languages so that her students could become confident in their multicultural and multilingual identities instead of solely assimilating. Teaching interculturally for Lidia meant empowering students to balance their …

The Purpose Of Education: What Should An American 21st Century Education Value?, Krista Shilvock

Empowering Research for Educators

A survey taken by 511 respondents dealt with such issues as past and current educational practice preparation, educational purposes in America, core class subjects, and soft skill teachings. Its results revealed a public opinion believing the primary goal of education as teaching students to adapt to any situation they find themselves in. Other results include a lack of preparation in current practices for life beyond education, although workforce preparation is adequate. Also, soft skills ought to see a curriculum of their own and taught explicitly to students in education instead of implicitly enforced, hoping parents alone taught these skills previously. …

Development Of One’S Teaching Philosophy: The Three “R’S” Of Relationships, Relevancy, And Rigor, Mary Bowne

Empowering Research for Educators

A common practice for educators is to develop a teaching philosophy which helps them become reflective practitioners on various teaching and learning strategies. This narrative will address how one faculty member identified common themes within her online and face-to-face classes that held students accountable, yet eager to come to class and learn the important content and develop the unique traits mentioned. Through the use of various data methods and current literature and research available, the author identified three common themes within her teaching and classroom environment. Those themes are identified as the 3 “R’s”: Relationships, Relevancy, and Rigor.

Early Career Teachers’ Knowledge And Practice In Spelling Instruction: Insights For Teacher Educators, Grace Oakley

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Children who cannot spell fluently are likely to encounter difficulty in writing texts across the curriculum. Furthermore, spelling is often a component in high stakes tests, the results of which have significant implications for students and schools. In the context of debates on teacher quality, it is pertinent to examine the views of early career teachers on their preparedness to teach spelling. This article reports on a small scale study on the views, knowledge and practices of early career teachers in relation to the teaching of spelling, and their views on their pre-service teacher preparation. Participants were early career teachers …

Context-Focused Grammar Teaching: A Comparison Between English Present Perfect And Past Tenses And Affects On Korean English Learning, Seungheui (Ellie) Lee

Despite massive amounts of time Korean English Learners (KLL) study English grammar, they continue to have problems becoming proficient in verb tenses, especially the present perfect. This study examines this problem through a linguistic comparative analysis of Korean and English present perfect and past tenses. Two possible reasons for KLL difficulty with verb tenses could be mode of instruction and L1 interference.

Not “One China,” Not “One Culture”: Multicultural Exploration Of Differences And Similarities Between Mainland China And Taiwan, Philip J. Ward, Michelle Loo

This study focuses on the outwardly similar cultures of Taiwan and mainland China and the subtle differences within them. The study was conducted as part of the requirements of doctoral program in Instructional Design and Development at a public university in the southeastern United States. Using a qualitative case study approach, the study demonstrates that there are cultural similarities between mainland China and Taiwan, however instructors should also be aware of the differences when developing relationships with students and developing course content. A mini-workshop was developed for the study to help teach instructors about the two cultures. However, the mini-workshop …

Connecting North And South: Engaging Latin American English Learners, Kenyan Intercultural Communications And American Undergraduate Students Through Reciprocal Service Learning, Laureen Fregeau, Ukaiko A. Bitrus-Ojiambo, Suhana Chikatla, William Cornejo

Reciprocal Service Learning through videoconferencing is an efficient tool for connecting native English speakers of various world Englishes and ELs in other nations for the benefit of all. The authors of this study recognize the reciprocal nature of teaching and learning and the social justice of equalizing power structures through the inclusion of participants and researchers from both North and South as members of a project and research team. Through participant observation and document review the authors examine the experiences of educators and learners in the phenomenon of reciprocal service learning through videoconferencing focused on cultural competence and English language …

Employing Word Study With Spanish-Speaking Els, Timothy Rodriquez

Phonics Instruction has had a controversial history. How to teach phonics to Spanish-speaking ELs is also controversial. Understanding the differences between Spanish and English and how phonics instruction occurs in each language would be insightful. Also, knowing how the nature of the two languages affects instruction would be beneficial. Furthermore, exploiting similarities between English and Spanish and examining differences will bolster instruction. This paper will discuss the reasons for word study and how it may be utilized to teach spelling and decoding to Spanish-speaking ELLs.

The Use Of Response To Intervention With English Learners, Anna Burnley

RTIs assist teachers in adjusting instruction to support ELs in acquiring English and content-area knowledge and learning behaviors. The use of RTIs with ELs can supplement support for ELs as an integrated concept of the sheltered instruction (SI) commonly provided for this student population.

From The Editor, Laureen Fregeau

No abstract provided.