Digital Commons Network^™

Preparing Culturally Responsive Educators In The 21st Century: White Pre-Service Teachers Identification Of Unearned Privileges, Winston E. Vaughan Ph.D.

Georgia Educational Researcher

This qualitative /quantitative investigation highlights the analysis of preservice teachers’ responses to an end of semester writing prompt in a diversity course requiring them to identify an unearned privilege that they may have benefitted from. Data were analyzed using qualitative as well as quantitative methodologies. Qualitative analysis revealed a range of privileges that pre-service can rely on when they reflect on the structured nature of privilege within our society such as socio-economic status, race, education, American citizenship, gender, parental support and language. Quantitative results, which focused on descriptive statistics, revealed that Whiteness and social class were privileges that they benefitted …

Preparing The “Linguistically Qualified” Bilingual Teacher: Self/Auto Ethnographies Of Bilingual Teacher Educators, Christian E. Zúñiga, Joan R. Lachance, Cristian R. Aquino-Sterling, Michael D. Guerrero

Bilingual and Literacy Studies Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

I Influence Too: The Role Of Professors In Developing Bilingual Teachers' Spanish Proficiency, Zulmaris Diaz, Gina Lydia Garza-Reyna

Bilingual and Literacy Studies Faculty Publications

To support the growing number of English learners (ELs) across the nation, professors in the field of bilingual education are being called to prepare highly effective bilingual teachers who not only have linguistic proficiency in English and Spanish but can also successfully perform in academic settings. As a result, we, two bilingual education professors working at two different institutions along the Texas–Mexico border, conducted a duoethnography study to explore the question, How are our practices impacting the students we teach?—an area in the field of bilingual education that has been relatively unexplored. We examine our practices using the existing literature …

Found In Space: A Cross-Linguistic Analysis Of Second Language Learners In English Map Task Performance, Susan K. Metheny

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

Understanding the relationship between first and second language use in the area of spatial language has broader implications for our understanding of language learning and consequences for the construction of bilingual assessment instruments for second language learners. This study shows that observing and interpreting the task of map drawing and the related behavior of explaining maps can be a way to explore the linguistic emergence of the conceptualization of spatial language (at a moment of simultaneous and synchronized incarnation). Altogether, 50 dyads (pairs) participated in the New Mexico Map Task Project; the project included native speakers of English, Russian, Japanese, …

Engaging In Culturally Relevant Teaching: Lessons From The Field, Charity Hannah Garcia, Charissa Boyd

Faculty Publications

Culturally Relevant Teaching (CRT) is a popular topic for discussion and research, and it continues to gain more traction through practical application in classrooms worldwide. Certainly, as many teachers look around their classrooms, they recognize that demographics are changing, and student populations are becoming increasingly more diverse. It is more likely than ever that teachers will not look like or have the same cultural or linguistic background as many of their students. This means that some students will be entering classrooms with valuable learning strategies developed within their home communities, but these strategies may be very different from what their …

A Systemic Functional Linguistics Analysis Of The Discourse Of English Friday Sermons, Ahmad Alenezi

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

On every Friday, in every mosque in the world, Muslims gather for Friday sermons in answer to the call: “O you, who have believed, when [the adhan] is called for the prayer on the day of Jumu’ah [Friday], then proceed to the remembrance of Allah and leave trade. That is better for you, if you only knew” (Quran, 62:9). Typically, the Friday prayer is shortened by half to accommodate the presentation of the Friday sermon; this emphasizes the importance of the sermons. The present study is a discourse analysis that examined 12 sermons delivered on the first Friday of every …

The Identification Of Formulaic Sequences In Urdu Language And Their Pedagogical Implication For Sla (Esl/Usl), Hafiz-Muhammad Fazal E Haq

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

In this study, an effort has been made to explore formulaicity in the Urdu language and its pedagogical implication in second language acquisition, both for English as a second language and Urdu as second language learners. It is believed that formulaic sequences or prefabs make more than fifty percent of a language. These formulaic sequences are of various kinds encompassing idioms, proverbs, collocations and sometimes, simple fillers. For the current study, data will be collected from two widely circulated Urdu newspapers. The data will consist of lexical chunks or formulas, which will be identified on the basis of eleven criteria …

Improving Literacy Outcomes For Adolescent English Language Learners, Grace Diaz-Peterson

Graduate Teacher Education

As the population of English Language Learners in United States public schools has risen significantly in recent years, the unique academic challenges these students faced, particularly in middle and high school, became more apparent. A widening reading and vocabulary gap between English Language Learners and their native English-speaking peers posed particular barriers in secondary content area classes, where many teachers reported feeling ill-prepared to meet the specialized linguistic needs of their English Language Learner students. This paper analyzed a mix of recent, available qualitative and quantitative research on best practices to improve literacy outcomes for adolescent English Language Learners. As …

Addressing The Needs Of High School English Learners Through Inclusion In General Education Classrooms: A Descriptive Case Study Of A Midwestern Metropolitan Public School District, Amanda Levos

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

English Learners (EL) and those students’ redesignated language proficient, or more accurately described as emergent bilingual or multilingual learners; make up a significant subset of the student population of high schools throughout the country. ELs may be vulnerable to academic failure in core academic subject areas due to limited language proficiency and potential gaps in formal education. Every school district creates a continuum of services to educate students at various levels of English language acquisition, which more than likely will include inclusion in the general education classroom. The challenge for districts is ensuring that general education teachers have the knowledge, …

“Her Sentence Is Correct, Isn’T It?”: Regulative Discourse In English Medium Classrooms, Lydiah Kananu Kiramba, Patrick Henry Smith

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

Research on discourse in African classrooms has shown the predominance of teacher centered instructional practices. Teacher centered discourse patterns have been blamed for student passivity and disengagement in knowledge production. In this article, we investigate teachers' use of the invariant tag isn't it in Kenyan primary classrooms during ELA and math lessons. Using Bernstein's pedagogical device theory, we submit that the tag plays a regulative function in classroom discourse. Based on our findings, we argue for greater attention to teachers' language choices and discuss implications for classroom discourse practice and research. The invariant tag isn't it is a common linguistic …

Exploring Preservice Teachers’ Perspectives On Dual Language Education, Kylie Ross

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates preservice teachers’ perspectives towards dual language education (DLE) through a mixed methods approach. This study investigates preservice teachers enrolled in an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) certification course concerning the following research questions: 1. What impact does taking an ESOL course have on preservice teachers’ attitudes and perspectives towards DLE? 2. Is there a significant difference in change in attitude between students taking the course online versus face to face (F2F)? 3. How are preservice teachers informed about what schools have dual language programs in their area? 4.What relationship may exist between attitudes, perspectives, and …

Developing Language And (Pre)Literacyskills In Deaf Preschoolers Through Shared Reading Activities With Bimodal-Bilingual Ebooks, Gene Mirus, Donna Jo Napoli

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Encouraging relaxed and playful interaction over stories naturally fosters language interaction and both preliteracy [hereafter (pre)literacy skills] and literacy without anxiety. Reading for pleasure is valuable for young hearing children – we know that, it is among the most beloved family rituals. In this article we argue that reading for pleasure needs to be recognized as valuable for young deaf children and needs to become a beloved family ritual for them, as well. One way to achieve this is to read ebooks to deaf children in order to advance their communication and other (pre)literacy skills. An exploration of these types …

Book Review: Transnational Immigrant Children & Youth In New York City, Marcela Ossa-Parra

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Book review of Growing Up Transnational: Colombian and Dominican Children of Immigrants in New York City by Débora Upegui-Hernández.

Teachers’ Critical Reflections On Using The Nysed Bilingual Common Core Progressions And Implications And Their Use For The Quality Of Multilingual Learners’ Instruction, Patricia Velasco

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

In this article I discuss findings of a qualitative study that explores the insights of a group of teachers about implementation of the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Bilingual Common Core Progressions (BCCP). Moreover, I explain teachers' suggestions on best pedagogical practices that could be used in the instruction of multilingual learners when implementing the Next Generation English Language Arts (ELA) Standards. The findings may guide any future revision and implementation of BCCP.

Necessary Paradigm Shifts In Bilingual Education: Rethinking Assessment In Bilingual Classrooms, Aida A. Nevárez-La Torre

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This is the third and last Editorial in a series on Necessary Paradigm Shifts in Bilingual Education. The initial two editorials focused on Rethinking Language (JMER’s Volume 4, 2013) and the second on Rethinking Multilingual Literacy (JMER’s Volume 5, 2014). The necessary paradigm shift discussed here focuses on the role of assessment in bilingual classrooms and the novel conceptualization of bilingual assessment.

Publication Description & Guidelines For Submission

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

No abstract provided.

Notes On Contributing Authors

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Notes on Contributing Authors to Volume 8 of the Journal of Multilingual Education Research.

Latinx Family Engagement In Schools And Surrounding Communities: Assessing The Impact Of Parent (And Other Family Member) Development On Improving Student Educational Outcomes At Gene Ward Elementary School, Rosemary Q. Flores, Phyllis Morgan, Linda Rivera, Christine Clark

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

This article examined the success of broadly defined family engagement activities of Latinx parents of students at Gene Ward Elementary School. Gene Ward Elementary School is a part of the Clark County School District in Las Vegas, Nevada. This article is based on a larger study of parent and family member participants in these activities at 25 district schools between 2003 and 2012.

“…4542 Miles From Home…”: Repositioning English Language Learners As Power Brokers And Teachers As Learners In The Study Abroad Context, Kenneth J. Fasching-Varner, Michaela P. Stone, Roberto Mora Mella, Francisco Olave Henriquez, Macarena Yacoman Palma

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

This article provides an empirical context for the role that bi/multi-lingual children and families may play in supporting pre-service and in-service educators engaging difference through a literacy and language situated study abroad internship in Chile. Drawing on data over a 15-year longitudinal study of the program, the authors examine how students and parents navigate serving the role of teacher, whereas the teacher participants navigate a new role as a learner in a context where they, many for the first time, experience being language and cultural minorities.

Intercultural Sensitivity Orientations Prior To Short-Term Study Abroad: A Qualitative Study On Prospective English Language Teachers, Emrullah Yasin Çiftçi, Nurdan Gürbüz

The Qualitative Report

Short-term study abroad programs can contribute to the multidimensional development of prospective language teachers. However, participants’ intercultural sensitivity orientations prior to the mobility period can significantly influence the quality and quantity of the outcomes gained from such programs. Therefore,in this qualitative case study, we explored the intercultural sensitivity orientations of a cohort of prospective language teachers from Turkey who prepared to study at three different universities in Italy. We also explored the participants’ perspectives regarding the potential contributions of short-term study abroad to their ongoing language teacher education processes. Following an interpretive analysis of qualitative data, our findings revealed that …

Teachers' Perceptions Of English Learners: A Multidimensional Scaling Approach, Cyndy Alvarez

Theses and Dissertations

With an influx in immigration across the United States our educational policies have needed to change to meet the instructional needs of our students, especially our English Learners (Koyama, 2004; Mantero & McVicker, 2006). Historically, these educational language policies were an outcome of court cases that highlighted discrimination and racist practices against our English Learners. These cases, such as the Chicano civil rights movements or East L.A. “walkouts” in 1968, Lau v. Nichols (1974), Serna v. Portales Municipal Schools (1974), Rios v. Read (1978), and U.S. v. Texas (1981), Plyver v. Doe (1982), Castaneda v. Pickard (1981), have resulted in …

Influence Of Language Ideologies And Positioning On Emergent Bilinguals Linguistic Identity, Sarah Christine Urbanc

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, the researcher employed critical sociocultural and positioning theories to examine how classroom teachers, ESL teachers, and family members discursively positioned emergent bilinguals in the general education, ESL, home, and community settings, as well as investigated the influence of positioning on the emergent bilinguals’ linguistic identity. This study also explored the various ideologies that students, teachers, and parents articulated and embodied while negotiating issues of identity, power, agency, and the social construct of smartness within the figured world of school, in addition to the home and community environments. Data were generated during a six-month qualitative study of emergent …

Maximizing Cross-Cultural Opportunities: Pre-Service Teachers And Pakistani Teachers Writing Together, Margaret Berg, Courtney Luce

Journal of Educational Research and Innovation

This qualitative and quantitative study examines a cross-cultural writing workshop between undergraduate pre-service teachers and Pakistani in-service teachers. The 27 undergraduate students were in their junior year in the teacher education program, and had focused majors in a variety of content areas including history, science, music, and language arts. The 17 visiting scholars from Pakistan were all secondary level classroom teachers, also from a variety of disciplines. The undergraduates completed a questionnaire before and after the workshop, and the Pakistanis participated in a focus group following the workshop. Findings demonstrate a shift in the undergraduates’ thinking of genre to forms …

“They Can Speak English, But They Don’T Want To Use It.” Teaching Contents Through English In A Bilingual School And Policy Recommendations, Amirul Mukminin, Siti Rahma Sari, Eddy Haryanto, Akhmad Habibi, Marzul Hidayat, Lenny Marzulina, Nurulanningsih Nurulanningsih, Ikhsan Ikhsan

The Qualitative Report

The growing need for English as a key to global communication, relations, and information, is noticeable in schools around the world. In response to these imperatives of global competitiveness, one of the private bilingual schools in Indonesia has adopted English as a medium of instruction (EMI). The aim of this study was to explore the implementation of English as a language of instruction in a bilingual school in teaching contents in one private bilingual school in Jambi City, Indonesia. The data were collected through demographic profiles, documents, and semi-structured in-depth interviews. The documents were used to find out the comprehensive …

Empowered Learning Systems In Student Success, Craig C. Laupheimer

Education | Master's Theses

Abstract/Description

Although various support systems are attempted by public schools to cause changes in student motivation and academic performance, students continue to consistently under perform and doubt their academic potential. A literature review revealed a growing body of research outlining a direct relationship between internal beliefs and performance outcomes. Yet little has been done to understand student thought patterns from their perspective, or to what extent they are able to recognize and address the internal systems of language, belief, and emotion that interact with learning. By analyzing a wide range of student perspectives, this study examines what tools and strategies …

Amjambo Africa! (June 2019), Kathreen Harrison

Amjambo Africa!

In This Issue...

Furniture Friends....................Page 2

ProsperityME..........................Page 2

Second Language Identities Of International Teaching Assistants In The U.S. Classroom, Adam Agostinelli

Faculty Publications

Sociolinguistic research has yet to comprehensively address changes in the second language mediated identity, or second language identity (L2I), of English as a second language (ESL) students that take place as a result of traveling abroad and experiencing English in authentic circumstances. First, this study provides an outline of L2I and proposes a framework for evaluating L2I in authentic contexts (i.e. in a country where the target language is the primary means of communication). Second, personal narratives, formal reports, and observed classroom comments of international graduate teaching assistants (ITAs), who were placed in a required English Speaking course as a …

Second Language Identities Of International Teaching Assistants In The U.S. Classroom, Adam Agostinelli

Faculty Publications

Sociolinguistic research has yet to comprehensively address changes in the second language mediated identity, or second language identity (L2I), of English as a second language (ESL) students that take place as a result of traveling abroad and experiencing English in authentic circumstances. First, this study provides an outline of L2I and proposes a framework for evaluating L2I in authentic contexts (i.e. in a country where the target language is the primary means of communication). Second, personal narratives, formal reports, and observed classroom comments of international graduate teaching assistants (ITAs), who were placed in a required English Speaking course as a …

Advocating For One-Way Dual Language Programs In High School, Academia Bilingue, Anthony Grazzini

Dissertations

To reduce the achievement gap and stem the increasing dropout rate of English Learners (ELs), a one-way dual language program, Academia Bilingue, was introduced at Sterling High School. ELs then and now account for approximately 20% of the students in the district. A significant academic achievement gap had existed between ELs and their English-proficient counterparts. An alarmingly disproportionate number of ELs were dropping out. The purpose and moral imperative of this policy advocacy document was to actualize the stated mission and vision of the district, that all students have an education which meets or exceeds accepted standards of learning, through …

Foreign Language Teaching Methodologies: A Review And Analysis In Mandarin Chinese And Spanish University Classes, Maiya Shoemaker

World Languages and Cultures

This research paper serves as a capstone project for a graduate of a university’s World Languages and Cultures Department. After four years of studying Spanish and Mandarin Chinese, the language skills learned in these classes are used to return to beginning-level language classes and analyze a selection of their employed teaching methodologies. More specifically, the study provides brief summaries of teaching methodologies, observations from four class sessions, and findings suggesting whether Spanish and Chinese may be taught in similar ways. The observations from the constant sources of linguistic input in the classroom are also accompanied by interviews in the form …