Digital Commons Network^™

Diné Bina'nitin Dóó O'Hoo'aah/Education For Us, By Us: A Collective Journey In Diné Education Liberation, Lyla June Johnston

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

This study is an educational memoir of my experience working for education liberation with hundreds of Diné (Navajo) people written in the style of auto-ethnography. We are indigenous to what is now known as the southwestern United States and organize in the wake of attempted genocide and destructive assimilation policies. Our collective set out to answer the following question: If we could teach and learn anything we wanted, in any way we wanted, what would we do? Based on our ancestral Nitsáhakees-Nahat’á-Iiná-Sii Hasin strategic framework, this Diné collective organized a summer school that reflected their hearts’ true pedagogical desires. What …

There And Almost Back Again, Holley Adcock

Occasional Paper Series

Adcock reflects on and asses her thirty years of experience living and teaching overseas in places all over the globe. This essay focuses on the changes to both individual and national identity that take place when immersing oneself in other cultures.

What We Bring With Us And What We Leave Behind: Six Months In Post-Apartheid South Africa, Virginia Casper, Donna Futterman, Evan Casper-Futterman

Occasional Paper Series

The authors, a family, reflect on their experiences living, volunteering, and going to school in South Africa for six months. They sought to live in a society in which white people were not the majority and to experience the transformation of the new South Africa, not as tourists, but as participants.

An Emergent Bilingual Child's Multimodal Choices In Sociodramatic Play, Alain Bengochea, Sabrina F. Sembiante, Mileidis Gort

Educational & Clinical Studies Faculty Research

In this case study, situated in a preschool classroom within an early childhood Spanish/English dual language programme, we examine how an emergent bilingual child engages with multimodal resources to participate in sociodramatic play discourses. Guided by sociocultural and critical discourse perspectives on multimodality, we analysed ways in which Anthony, a four-year-old emergent bilingual child, engaged in meaning-making during play through verbal, visual and actional modes and in conjunction with additional subcategories in his transmodal repertoire (e.g. translanguaging, sentence types, actual versus signified use of artefacts). Our results revealed differences in the ways Anthony engaged his verbal modes (e.g. monolingual languaging …

Re-Reading, Re-Writing, And Re-Imagining Texts: Critical Literacy In A Kindergarten Classroom, Meredith Labadie

Dissertations

This qualitative action research study focuses on the integration of critical literacy practices in a kindergarten classroom. Critical literacy recognizes that no texts are neutral, and that authors position their readers in particular ways. Thus critical literacy practices are those concerned with positioning readers to inquire into issues of language and power, and to disrupt, critique, and challenge texts. In this study, critical literacy was brought to life through a curriculum of rereading and revisiting texts over time. The study took place in the researcher’s kindergarten classroom, and follows students’ discussion, written responses, and dramatizations around texts read aloud in …

Indonesian Students' Perceptions Of Written Feedback In Second Language Writing, Rahmah Fithriani

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

Grounded in sociocultural theory, written feedback activities in second language (L2) writing provide the social interactions that help learners develop their psychical functions within the zone of proximal development (ZPD) as they co-construct knowledge with teachers and peers through guided learning (De Guerrero & Villamil, 2000). Written feedback can also help student writers improve their writing proficiency, including organization of their texts and awareness of the mechanics of the language necessary for successful communication of the intended message (Chandler, 2003; Ferris, 2006; Jahin, 2012; Kamimura, 2006).

Regarding the eminence of feedback in L2 writing, a large body of research has …

3s2. Filling The Gap For English Language Learning From Underrepresented Language Students (Ell-Ul), Milan M'Enesti

Education Summit

Multicultural K-12 education in the U.S. is facing more cultural competence challenges. Even though, in the last decade, there is an increase of bicultural programs in public schools, a population of students coming from immigrated families are invisible to such programs: English Language Learners from locally Underrepresented Languages (ELL-UL). These students cannot be part of bilingual programs because there are not funds allocated for hiring bilingual teachers to cover a small number of students. Research shows that ELL students have either a high dropout rate or unsuccessful academic performance: ELL-ULs are the underserved part of this population of students. This …

The Globalized Classroom: Integrating Technology To Improve Communicative And Cultural Proficiency, Nicholas Frank

International ResearchScape Journal

The purpose of this project was to explore how the integration of technology affects students’ communicative and cultural proficiency in a second language when connecting two world language classrooms from across the globe. Through a series of weekly emails between partner schools, students practiced their interpretive reading and presentational writing skills while gaining knowledge of their partners’ cultures and colloquial language in a meaningful and individualized manner. The participants were U.S. high school students learning Spanish and Spanish high school students learning English. This created an authentic and organic environment for language acquisition, showing improvement in both communicative and cultural …

Journal Of Multilingual Education Research, Volume 7

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This file contains the entire publication of volume 7 of the Journal of Multilingual Education Research.

The Difference Between English And Math High School Teachers' Attitudes And Perceptions Toward The Inclusion Of English Language Learner Students, Ashley Sibert Williamson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Within the last 10 years, the United States experienced an influx of non-English speaking students, which challenged teachers, administrators, and other educational stakeholders on how to successfully accommodate these English Language Learners (ELL). This causal-comparative study examined the attitudes and perceptions of secondary English and math teachers in relation to ELL inclusion. Specifically, the study presented the main question of whether there is a difference between English and math teachers’ attitudes and perceptions toward the inclusion of ELLs. Teacher attitudes have been found to play a role in determining student academic achievement; therefore, assessing teacher attitudes toward ELLs could be …

Who Do You Say You Are: Relationships And Faith In Catholic Schools, Jennifer S. Maney, Carrie King, Thomas J. Kiely

Journal of Catholic Education

This study aimed to evaluate and articulate what makes Catholic schools special and effective by measuring culture and climate in five Catholic high schools and two Catholic elementary schools in a large metropolitan area in the Midwest United States. The seven schools represented a variety of student demographics, location, and size of school. Findings of this study included: the Catholic identity of schools must become an intentional aspect of the planning, orientation, training, and evaluation of the faculty and administration; faculty-student relationships are rarely measured regarding their effectiveness in bolstering academic achievement or Catholic mission effectiveness; cultural awareness and cultural …

From Test Scores To Language Use: Emergent Bilinguals Using English To Accomplish Academic Tasks, Claudia Rodriguez-Mojica

Teacher Education

Prominent discourses about emergent bilinguals’ academic abilities tend to focus on performance as measured by test scores and perpetuate the message that emergent bilinguals trail far behind their peers. When we remove the constraints of formal testing situations, what can emergent bilinguals do in English as they engage in naturally occurring classroom interactions about content? Using six months of naturally occurring emergent bilingual talk, this article shows that (1) emergent bilinguals produced a wide range of academic speech acts in English while engaged in English language arts tasks, (2) these speech acts were aligned with state academic expectations, and (3) …

Real Boys Don't Do Language And Literacy--Or Do They?, Christen M. Pearson

MITESOL Journal: An Online Publication of MITESOL

Over the past several decades, there has been a decline in boys’ achievement, along with documentation of increasing struggles in language (both first and second) and literacy acquisition (Carr & Pauwels, 2006). To address this problem, gender differences have been looked at through the lens of socially and culturally constructed identity (Kindlon & Thompson, 2000; Pollack, 1998); however, emerging neurolinguistic research supports biological determinism, with evidence of strong biological (sex) differences in brain structure and function that impact language and learning (Bonomo, 2010; Gurian, 1996; Sax, 2005). This paper first provides an overview of current brain-based research on sex differences, …

The Quest For Respect: Esl Faculty And Programs In U.S. Higher Education, Ildiko Porter-Szucs

MITESOL Journal: An Online Publication of MITESOL

Relying on data from two nationwide surveys, this study examines the status of ESL programs in primarily U.S. higher educational settings as perceived by professionals in such programs. The focus is on the perceived lack of recognition and on measures taken against it. Survey respondents make suggestions for increasing the field’s visibility and respect on campus through interdepartmental outreach, policy and curricular initiatives, marketing, publishing/presenting, and academic as well as non-academic initiatives involving students.

The First Of The Firsts: Leadership And Legislation For Bilingual Preschools In Illinois, Samina Hadi-Tabassum, Idalia Gutiérrez

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

With the rising numbers of bilingual children, particularly young Latinos, in 2010 Illinois was the first state to pass legislation requiring preschool sites that serve 20 or more emergent bilinguals to offer home language instruction. The purpose of this study was to examine the responses of early childhood directors to the changes required by the 2010 policy through an online survey. The results indicate that the directors do not have a background in bilingual education and are mixed philosophically regarding the benefits of bilingualism—highlighting the silo effect between the discipline of bilingual education and early childhood education. Anxiety and frustration …

Empowering Teachers With The Tools Of Linguistics: A Review Of Razfar And Rumenapp's Applying Linguistics In The Classroom: A Sociocultural Approach, Lindsay Vecchio

MITESOL Journal: An Online Publication of MITESOL

Book Review

Applying Linguistics in the Classroom: A Sociocultural Approach, A. Razfar & J.C. Rumenapp. Routledge: New York (2014).

Cultivating Leaders Of Indiana: Global Collaborations And Local Impacts, Jennifer Sdunzik, Annagul Yaryyeva

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

“Cultivating Leaders of Indiana” was developed to establish connections between the Purdue student body and the Frankfort, Indiana, community. By engaging high school students in workshops that focused on local, national, and global identities, the goal of the project was to encourage students to appreciate their individuality and to motivate them to translate their skills into a global perspective. Moreover, workshops centering on themes such as culture, citizenship, media, and education were designed to empower project participants to embrace their sense of social value and responsibility, not only in their immediate communities, but also globally.

Engage With Your Cultural Side: Cultural Intelligence, Michele Villagran

Faculty Publications

It is not enough to simply be ‘aware’ anymore. As our workforces become more diverse, we face a greater challenge and problem; that of how to successfully manage increasingly diverse interactions. To address this concern, organizations are applying the framework of cultural intelligence (CQ). Cultural intelligence is a person’s capability for successful adaptation to new cultural settings. This session’s learning goals include: what is cultural intelligence; how is CQ used as a practical tool for embracing differences and increasing work performance; how do you improve your own CQ capabilities including the four factors; and how do you apply CQ within …

Publication Description & Guidelines For Submission

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Description of the Journal of Multilingual Education Research (JMER) and guidelines for submission.

Notes On Contributing Authors

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Contributing authors for this volume.

Supporting The Linguistic Needs Of Young Language Learners: A Guide For School Leaders, Susana C. Dejesús

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This book for school leaders is a user-friendly how to guide that makes an important contribution to administrators who work in schools with linguistically diverse student populations from pre-kindergarten to third grade. It is especially useful for leaders who are not familiar with the instructional strategies, educational programs, or academic requirements for early childhood or bilingual children. When effective programs need to be developed quickly, this reference book will help school leaders advance their understanding.

Bilingualism In Pre-School, Patricia Velasco

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Even though bilingualism is a norm around the world, some parents, educators, and early childhood specialists may express doubts about bilingualism in young learners. These kinds of misconceptions are particularly prevalent in communities where most children grow up as monolingual speakers and, as a result, adult members of the community come to view bilingualism as ‘dangerous’ or ‘abnormal’ (García, 2009; Genessee, 1998; Genessee & Nicoladis, 2006). These myths about bilingualism stem from the belief that bilingualism will confuse children (Brown & Larson-Hall, 2012).

Proceedings: Multilingual Learners In Upk: Defining Focus And Direction, Zoila Morell

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Proceedings of the Roundtable: Teaching Emergent Bilingual Learners with Disabilities and Challenging Behaviors in Preschool held June 5, 2015 at Fordham University.

Introduction To Roundtable Proceedings: Emergent Bilinguals In New York’S Upk, Zoila Morell

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This article introduces the proceedings to the Roundtable on Emergent Bilinguals in New York's UPK published in the next article in this volume of JMER.

Neighbors Link's Parent-Child Together Program: Supporting Immigrant Parents' Integration To Promote School Readiness Among Their Emergent Bilingual Children, Carola Otero Bracco, Judie Eisenberg

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

The authors of this article describe Neighbors Link, a multi-service community and worker center in suburban Westchester County, NY. This organization created Parent-Child Together in the belief that supporting immigrant parents' integration and social inclusion, in activities that also engage long-term community residents, would improve school readiness outcomes for preschool children. A key assumption in the program design is that immigrant parents are best supported when teaching respects their home language and incorporates their home culture and customs. Among the program's positive results has been greater acceptance of the assets and strengths that immigrants bring to the community. The …

Teaching Emergent Bilingual Learners With Disabilities And Challenging Behaviors In Preschool, Pamela Brillante, Karen N. Nemeth

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Challenging behaviors in young children can result from a variety of factors that may interact to make it difficult for teachers to find effective instructional solutions. The authors of this article provide an overview of research that focuses on understanding challenging behavior in young children. It describes a research-based model, the Pyramid model, intended to support the development of social competence in young children. Classroom practice suggestions with some vignettes are provided to illustrate how teachers may implement this model with children that experience challenging behaviors and ways in which their practice could be transformed. The article concludes with recommendations …

Talking About Language In Pre-School: The Use Of Video-Stimulated Recall With Emergent Bilingual Children, P. Zitlali Morales, Joseph C. Rumenapp

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

After first discussing the ideologies (standard and monolingual) implicit in language education in the United States, we argue for a necessary ideological shift in the way multiple languages and other forms of semiotic communication are understood, used, and supported in preschool for emergent bilinguals. We present examples from a preschool study in Illinois where emergent bilingual children in two classrooms used video-stimulated accounts to make sense of their actions. Students used multiple semiotic resources – including English, Spanish, and embodiment – to collaborate with others and represent their ideas. Our findings include evidence of language awareness and awareness of audience …

Position Statement On Bilingual Education In Early Childhood/Preschool Programs, New York State Association For Bilingual Education

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

The main goal of the New York State Association for Bilingual Education (NYSABE) is to ensure equitable access to all educational opportunities for English language learners (ELLs)/bilingual students in New York State. To this end, NYSABE affirms its commitment to Bilingual Early Childhood/Preschool programs for all ELLs/bilingual learners that underscore the academic, socio-emotional, and language needs of these students by building upon the rich linguistic and cultural experiences that they bring from their homes and communities.

Rethinking Preschool Education Through Bilingual Universal Pre-Kindergarten: Opportunities And Challenges, Zoila Morell

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Historically, little was known about the services and experiences that young children have before they enter school in the United States. In fact, there was no unifying system that captures the early experiences of children across the country during the preschool years that might bridge early care programs with early education; much of what is known relates to utilization rates for federally funded programs such as Head Start and Early Head Start or state funded subsidies for childcare (Early Childhood Data Collaborative, 2011).

Table Of Contents, V7

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Includes title page, In Memoriam of Giselle Esquivel (1950-2017), table of contents, and reviewers for Volume 7 of the Journal of Multicultural Education Research

.