Digital Commons Network^™

New Ways Of Teaching Library Service To Immigrant Communities, Ana Ndumu, Michele Villagran

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Outreach to immigrant communities is a long-standing aspect of United States (U.S.) library service. This area of library and information science (LIS) practice is vital given that immigration continues to dominate policy and public discourse. There is a need to advance U.S.- based LIS education so that new library professionals are aware of the sociopolitical implications of engagement with immigrant communities. We introduce a framework to guide instruction on best practices for outreach to immigrant communities within LIS courses. Then we describe how the framework will also inform a self-paced course to welcome immigrant populations into the LIS professions. By …

Cultivating Identities In A Place Called Home: Intersectional, Ever Changing Identities Of Vietnamese American Youth In Culturally Sustaining Spaces, Thuy Vi Nguyen

Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement

Educators and scholars have been advocating for culturally sustaining pedagogies in the classroom that extends, honors, and sustains the cultures and backgrounds of our growing Students of Color population. Moving beyond pedagogies in classrooms, I examine culturally sustaining spaces in culture clubs and community-based organizations and how they cultivate the identity development and sense of belonging of Vietnamese American high school students. I find that these students have complex identities that are intersectional and ever changing, existing outside the Black-White binary. Vietnamese culture clubs provide a space that allows students to belong and express their identity in a positive way, …

Supporting Academic Primary Care Teams Serving Refugees: A Qualitative Study, Gabrielle Waclawik Md Mph, Fabiana Kotovicz, Devin Walsh-Felz Md Mph, Savitri Tsering Mssw, Nancy Pandhi Md Mph Phd

Journal of Refugee & Global Health

Introduction: Primary care providers continue to experience significant challenges when caring for refugee patients, yet they are often refugees’ initial point of contact with the U.S. health care system. The purpose of this qualitative study is to expand our understanding of the experiences of academic primary care team members during clinical encounters with refugee patients.

Methods: This multi-perspective, qualitative study included physicians (faculty and residents), nurse practitioners, pharmacists, nurses, and medical assistants (n=10), who have been working with refugee patients for at least one year at two family medicine residency clinics and/or a community health center. Semi-structured in-person interviews were …

Truly, Madly, Deeply: Adverbs And Ells, Kristin Lems

Faculty Publications

In this issue’s column focusing on adverbs and English language learners, columnist Kristin Lems explores some of the basic but not-so-obvious features about adverbs that readers and writers need to learn in order to take advantage of these powerful levers of language. The odds are very good that your native English speakers will also benefit from this information—and you might learn a thing or two as well.

Bilingual Acculturation Assessment: An Overview Of Current Developments, Donna Chen

The Nebraska Educator: A Student-Led Journal

Assessments are often used for decision-making in education, mental health practices, and industry. Consequently, decisions based on these assessments affect multiple aspects of a person’s life. Given the increase of ethnic minorities in the U.S., factors concerning the appropriateness and interpretation of tests based on norms must be reconsidered. The multifaceted effects of culture are just one factor to consider so as to not overlook important cultural components that may negatively impact the decision-making process. Additionally, language, with close ties to culture, must also be considered. Thus, the complexity of culture and language in tandem to assessment-based decision-making necessitates fundamental …

Culturally Responsive Teaching In The Classroom, Deanna Cuffee

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This action research study investigates the relationship between culturally responsive teaching and the impact on student engagement. For six weeks, the researcher implemented culturally responsive teaching strategies in a virtual first-grade classroom. The participants included fourteen six- and seven-year-olds who attended public school in Northern Virginia. The instruction was completed in a virtual setting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the start and conclusion of the study, students were given a survey to measure the class climate. Student engagement was observed daily and documented on a weekly observation tally sheet. The study found that implementing culturally responsive teaching in the …

“It’S Like They Don’T Recognize What I Bring To The Classroom”: African Immigrant Youths’ Multilingual And Multicultural Navigation In United States Schools, Lydiah Kananu Kiramba, Alex Kumi-Yeboah, Anthony Mawuli Sallar

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Discourses of African immigrant children are rare in educational research. As such, African immigrant educational experiences are often obscured (in part, owing to the model minority myth about Africans based on higher education degrees received by African immigrants), as well as the actual experiences and realities for African immigrant K-12 students. This qualitative study examines cross-cultural educational experiences of 30 Black African immigrant youth in U.S. schools. The findings reveal multiple participants’ struggles with cultural and linguistic differences, stereotypes and marginalization in the school environment, low expectations from teachers, and adjusting to new schooling practices. The African youths’ voices exhibited …

“Frozen Up Like An Ice Cube!”: The Influence Of Situated Learning On Pre-Service Teachers' Cultural And Linguistic Awareness, Omran Akasha

The Qualitative Report

The overall goal of this study was to explore the influence of situated learning experiences on pre-service teachers' perceptions and understandings of their future Arab students. This study investigated in part the interaction between culturally diverse families and pre-service teachers. It also explored changes in pre-service teachers’ attitudes and knowledge, their perceived applications of the situated experience to their future teaching, and the families’ reactions to this experience. Twelve Arab families volunteered to host 25 pre-service teachers as participants of this study. Results showed that the situated learning experience helped the pre-service teachers develop their cultural knowledge as well as …

Press Release - Researching The Language At The U.S. - Mexican Border, The University Of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Corpus Bilingüe Del Valle

Corpus Bilingüe del Valle (CoBiVa) - News Releases

No abstract provided.

“Señora, Diak!”: Co-Constructed Identity Of A Foreigner In Timor-Leste, Marie Quinn

The Qualitative Report

This article takes place in not one taxi, but all the taxis I have caught in Timor-Leste, encapsulating first encounter conversations I have had across the country, where my “otherness” as a Señora, an Australian who towers over the local population is contrasted to my knowledge of the country. I take a reflexive approach to explore how my identity as a work colleague and researcher has been constructed by many factors. Such encounters as I typify here challenge me to consider who I am and what is expected of me as a sensitive and ethical adviser and researcher.

Translanguaging About, With, And Through Code And Computing: Emergent Bi/Multilingual Middle Schoolers Forging Computational Literacies, Sara Vogel

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

As computing pervades more aspects of life, and as Computer Science for All (CS for All) initiatives roll out across the U.S., the field must understand the experiences and language practices of emergent bi/multilingual K-12 students and use that knowledge to drive equitable pedagogical and programmatic approaches. But little is known about how emergent bi/multilingual students — a growing population that school systems have often viewed with deficit-based lenses and have thus struggled to educate equitably — use language in the context of CS education. This dissertation addresses this gap by (1) qualitatively documenting and using asset-based frames to analyze …

The Medium Of Liberation: Kurdish Language And Education Activism In Turkey, Demet Arpacik

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This ethnographic study examines the Kurdish language and education activism, which I argue, is an anti-colonial movement generating decolonial forms of practices as responses. Prohibited to be spoken even in private spaces until 1991 in Turkey, the Kurdish language has been an intense object of struggle between the Turkish state and the Kurdish population. What historical, political, and sociocultural forces have contributed to colonial language governmentality in Turkey against the Kurdish language and its speakers? How do Kurdish activists challenge the linguistic hegemony in their semi-formal spaces and in what ways are their practices, discourses and policies decolonial? My study …

Increasing Knowledge On Current Global English Theories And Cultural Differences–– A Professional Development Workshop For Assistant Language Teachers In Japan, Megan Lambrecht

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

As English is an increasingly important global commodity, native English speakers are hired in countries around the world to assist with English classes. Japan is an example of a country that does just this. In Japan, these teachers are often hired simply by the qualification of being a native speaker, generally not needing a degree or experience in education. Many of these newfound teachers are given little to no information on relevant global English theories or cultural influences which may impact classroom environments. The project was heavily influenced by the work of Hino (2012), Oshima (2015), Jenkins (2014), Barrantes-Montero (2018), …

Creating An English As A Second Language Program Model That Caters To Junior High Students With Limited Or Interrupted Formal Education, Alison Krzenski

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Krzenski, A. Creating an English as a Second Language Program that Caters to Junior High Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (2020)

This capstone explores the guiding question, how can schools create an English as a Second Language program model that will best support junior high students with limited or interrupted schooling? Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE) are a diverse population of students that are increasing within our school systems. According to the Minnesota Department of Education (2019) in order for a student to be qualified as SLIFE they must meet three of the following five …

Giving Them The Map: Making Language Visible For English Language Learners, Elizabeth Seymour

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Seymour, B. (2020). Giving Them The Map: Making Academic Language visible for English Language Learners At The Upper Elementary Level

This project aims to provide a professional development resource that incorporates the accessibility of a website with many supplemental materials and the flexibility of embedded videotaped PD sessions. The embedded PD sessions are organized by the pillars of complex language features, student critical thinking, and interaction with language. The explanation of these three pillars is applied to Pathways TM Teaching and Learning Cycle developed by Dr. Cynthia Lundgren. Pathways TM a process of organizing language instruction to support language growth …

How To Distinguish A Barrier Due To Second Language Acquisition Versus A Learning Disability?, Sarah Baude

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Baude, S. Distinguishing a Learning Disability Versus a Barrier to Second Language Acquisition (2020)

The research question addressed in this project was How to Distinguish A Learning Disability Versus A Barrier Due to Second Language Acquisition? Research shows that there is a disproportionate number of English Language Learners (ELLs) in special education. The over and under representation of this population in special education can be linked to the evaluation process. This capstone documents one teachers creation of a professional development to promote better understanding of second language acquisition and acculturation and assimilation along with a tool that can be used …

The Importance Of Multicultural Literature In A K-2 Elementary Classroom, Emily Butler

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Butler, E. (2020) The importance of multicultural literature in a K-2 classroom. The goal of this project is to answer the question of how can a professional development be created for K-2 teachers that explains the positive impact of creating a culturally competent classroom by using multicultural literature? The project is designed to explain the benefits of having a culturally competent classroom while also giving K-2 teachers tools to recognize culturally authentic, appropriate and asset-minded literature. K-2 teachers will leave the professional development understanding the importance of creating culturally competent classrooms, being able to distinguish between culturally authentic and culturally …

Bringing Bilingualism To The Center Of Guided Reading Instruction, Laura Ascenzi-Moreno, Rebecca Quiñones

Publications and Research

Educators consider guided reading one of the most powerful instructional tools in a reading teacher’s arsenal. Yet, when it comes to emergent bilinguals in both monolingual English and bilingual settings, guided reading is implemented monolingually, or in one language at a time. As the field of reading instruction has moved toward a more asset‐based take on students’ bilingualism, integrating a bilingual approach to guided reading is necessary. The authors offer educators a lens to understand how emergent bilinguals’ resources and bilingualism can be incorporated into guided reading, along with concrete examples that can assist teachers in enacting these practices in …

The Impact Of The Language Allocation Plan On Student Outcomes In Two-Way Dual Language Immersion Programs, Bonnie Sue Molina

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This quantitative study investigated the achievement in English language arts (ELA) and math of students in grades four through six in 50/50 two-way dual language immersion (DLI) programs, as measured by the Spring 2018 PARCC assessments. The study builds on previous research indicating that students in DLI programs perform as well or better than their general education counterparts, and expands on that research by investigating two DLI programs with differing language allocation plans as the program variable of interest: a weekly plan in Englewood, NJ, and a daily plan in Woodstock, IL. Linear multiple regression analysis was used to control …

Heritage Language Development: Expectations And Goals, Stephen Krashen, Haiyun Lu, Nooshan Ashtari

Chinese Language Teaching Methodology and Technology

What should we expect from heritage language (HL) acquirers? We propose that given access to “optimal input,” we can eventually expect very high performance, native or near-native. But it won’t happen right away. It takes time.

Language And Identity: Multilingual Immigrant Learners In South Africa, Saloshna Vandeyar, Theresa Catalano

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Increased multilingualism and mobility have witnessed an increased focus on multilingual immigrant learners. This study aims to help educators understand experiences of immigrant students in South Africa that relate to language and identity by comparing such experiences across three different school settings: an urban school with a high (Black) immigrant and indigenous population, a former Indian school, and a former White school. Drawing on semi-structured interviews from a larger case study, this study makes visible the immigrant learner experience in multilingual settings in which xenophobic conditions arise. The findings reveal similarities as well as differences in individual identity construction and …

Decolonial-Hispanophone Curriculum: A Preliminary Sketch And Invitation To A South-South Dialogue, James C. Jupp, Micaela González Delgado, Freyca Calderón Berumen, Caroline A. Hesse

Teaching and Learning Faculty Publications

In our essay, we advance a preliminary sketch of decolonial-Hispanophone curriculum and extend an invitation for a South-South dialogue between students, teachers, or activist educators from distinct intellectual traditions of the geo-regions called “the Americas.” After sharing provisional definitions, we plant the problem of doing curricular-pedagogical work within a historical trajectory emphasizing historical colonies and present-day coloniality. Planted in this way, we provide a preliminary sketch of decolonial-Hispanophone curriculum as one dimension of a transnational, contextual, and relational decolonial project. From this sketch, we theorize three historicized concepts: (a) the historicity of decolonial thought, (b) mestizx conceptualization, and (c) communality/pluriversality. …

Listening To The Voices Of International Undergraduates Regarding Their Perceptions Of Engagement And Their Strategies To Achieve Academic Success, Gulcan Tokluoglu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While international students greatly influence globalization with their diverse cultural backgrounds, they often encounter issues when adapting to a new academic, social, and cultural setting. The goal of this research question was twofold in nature in that it sought to not only explore the adjustment experiences of participants but also be able to see what resources and practices were found helpful and needed to be expanded upon in order to provide ways of redressing inequitable practices and contributing to pedagogical change to promote engagement and success of international undergraduate students. A thorough analysis of in-depth interviews considered both upstream and …

An Experimental Clil Course For Moroccan Students Preparing For The International Baccalaureate, Amine Bouhzam

MA TESOL Collection

The author of this thesis aims to investigate Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) approach for seniors (grade 12) in the Moroccan EFL classroom. The field of science has been broken into range of specialisms which influence students’ choices for the international Baccalaureate in which the language of instruction is either French, English or Spanish. Being so, the approach acts as the backbone for the study of certain content through specific language use (Dalton-Puffer: 2007).

The intent of the thesis is to explore the instructor's thorough processes in starting the project, his desires, encounters and difficulties, and the long-term impact …

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. …

Autoethnography: A Self Reflection Of The Benefits In Attending A T-Stem High School, Adriana Garza

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this autoethnography is to analyze the benefits I obtained as a bilingual, first-generation, Hispanic student by attending a STEM high school. PSJA Thomas Jefferson T-STEM Early College High School provides an Early College experience as well as a Bilingual STEM environment in a district located at La Frontera. This autoethnography uses two techniques to collect data: artifacts and reflective journals. As the researcher, I self-reflected and analyzed my own success story which will be viewed through a Narrative Inquiry lens to answer two questions 1) to what extent has the STEM model/ curriculum influenced my academic …

"Meet Me At The 50": A Critical Discourse Analysis Of How Higher Education Curriculum Is Meeting The Needs Of Black, Male Student-Athletes, Julia Diane Morris

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

The overarching goal of this research is to make proverbial payments towards Ladson-Billings’ (2006) “education debt” owed to historically resilient populations by promoting equitable and democratic practices in all facets of education. Black men, specifically those who participate in athletics, are advocated for in this research because these men identify as part of a community of voices who are not only historically oppressed but are being failed by current educational practices. Further, student-athletes provide a predetermined and specific sociocultural context, and thus social location, by which to compare how various types of critical literacy assignments are addressing said contexts. Using …

English Academic Vocabulary Of Dual Language Programme And Non-Dual Language Programme Secondary School Pupils In Selangor, Ek Ying Wong

Student Works (2020-2029)

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is regarded as a fertile ground for target language acquisition. However, there is a growing skepticism towards the novelty of CLIL due to various methodological flaws in the past studies. The purpose of this study is to investigate if CLIL approach truly contributes to English academic vocabulary learning when three confounding factors: selection effect, total English instruction hours and extramural English exposure are controlled. This study employs cross-sectional research design using both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods by comparing the academic vocabulary performance between secondary students in two different learning environments — regular …

Fostering Student Success Through Meaningful Communication And Positive Connections In Language Teaching, Bracken Lind

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This portfolio is a compilation of the research I completed during my studies in the Master of Second Language Teaching program at Utah State University. The research was informed by my personal experiences as a high school aide to English Language Learners and as a college-level Spanish instructor, as well as by my coursework throughout the program.

The portfolio is divided into two main sections: teaching perspectives and research perspectives. In the teaching perspectives, I highlight some of the crucial themes in language teaching. The section on research perspectives contains two research papers written in support of my teaching philosophy.

Learning To Transform, Transforming To Learn: Children’S Creative Thinking With Fractions, Higinio Dominguez, Sandra Crespo, Tamara Del Valle, Melissa Adams, Megan Coupe, Gustavo Gonzalez, Yordhan Ormazabal

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

In this paper we contribute an alternative conceptualization of creativity by highlighting movement as creating spatial and temporal dimensions that are important to make sense of creativity in children mathematical thinking. Using data from an international collaboration between two teaching-research teams from the United States and Chile, we trace how children mobilized their social bodies, materials, tools, images, metaphors, languages, and improvisations in order to make sense of the concept of fractions. Based on these findings we offer a number of discussion points that highlight the importance of creating these kinds of learning spaces, the role of tasks in promoting …