Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons^™

Case Study Of The Classroom Culture That Impacts Teacher Efficacy Of Secondary Level Teachers Of English Language Learners, Connie Marie Davis Banks

Education Dissertations and Projects

Throughout the United States a dramatic shift in demographics is taking place, similar to the changes of the early 20th century, as thousands of immigrants cross the threshold of Ellis Island (Karathanos, 2009). Undergoing a greater makeover is the culture of classrooms and American teachers who have seen, firsthand, an increase of more than 60% of English language learner (ELL) students over the past decade (Ballantyne, Sanderman, & Levy, 2008). The purpose of this study was to develop a more in-depth understanding as to whether mainstream teachers from a school district located in upstate South Carolina perceived themselves to be …

Cultural Studies In The Mandarin-English Dual Immersion Classroom: A Case Study, Vivian Zhang

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis uses a Mandarin-English dual immersion program at a Southern California public elementary school as a case study to examine how culture is taught and learned in the dual immersion setting. Based on classroom observations and interviews with students, staff, and parents, this thesis argues that concepts of “China” and “Chinese culture” are conveyed, constructed, and negotiated by students as well as teachers, both implicitly and explicitly.

Third Grade Science Teachers' Perspectives On Implementing Sentence Frames And Word Banks During Science Lectures To Increase The Writing Levels Of English Language Learners, Mary-Margaret M. Shimada

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Each year, there is an increase of English Language Learners (ELLS) entering today's classrooms. A third grade teacher can be faced with having multiple ELLs in the classroom and still be required to teach them alongside native English speakers. Furthermore, third grade science teachers are also responsible for preparing all students in the classroom to comprehend and utilize scientific academic language based upon the Florida State Standards. Additionally, students are required on the FSA Florida Assessment to write about science content. Therefore, scaffolded instruction for ELLs, which will prepare them to write about science content is critical. This research study …

The Challenge Of Chinese Character Acquisition: Leveraging Multimodality In Overcoming A Centuries-Old Problem, Justin Olmanson, Xianquan Chrystal Liu

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

For learners unfamiliar with character-based or logosyllabic writing systems, the process of developing literacy in written Chinese poses significantly more obstacles than learning to read and write in a second language like Portuguese or Cherokee. In this article we describe the linguistic nature of Chinese characters; we outline traditional and new media approaches to Chinese character acquisition; we unpack how multimodal technologies combined with computational linguistics might be used to provide new types of support for Chinese character learning; and we offer a design that incorporates several of these concepts into a digital writing support tool that could work as …

Multicultural Literature: Changes In Perceptions And Attitudes In Fourth Graders, Luis A. Pelayo Zepeda

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

In 1954, the Supreme Court voted to end segregation in American public schools. However, this landmark decision did not end racism, discrimination, and inequality. Students of color continue to be invisible across the curriculum. This study is a qualitative teacher action research. The purpose of the study was to assess school personnel perceptions and attitudes toward multicultural education in a rural northern California district, and how the implementation of multicultural literature changes perceptions and attitudes in fourth grade students. The setting for the study took place in Steelhead Elementary, located in a rural section of Northern California. Participants included K-8 …

The Congruity/Incongruity Of Efl Teachers’ Beliefs About Listening Instruction And Their Listening Instructional Practices, Mohammad Nabi Karimi, Mostafa Nazari

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

While research on EFL teachers’ beliefs and the realization of these beliefs in their classroom practices has recently gained momentum in the field of applied linguistics, the study of teachers’ beliefs as they relate to listening has received insufficient attention in the literature. This study was conducted to investigate Iranian EFL teachers’ beliefs about listening and their beliefs-driven instructional practices. To this end, a listening beliefs questionnaire was administered to a total of 85 teachers (BA= 49, MA= 36), followed by classroom observation of 12 teachers (6 teachers per group) who were given an audio to teach. The results revealed …

Taking It To Heart : A Case Study Of Supporting English Language Learners Through Culturally Responsive Teaching, Collaboration, And Esol-Focused Leadership, Gretchen Oliver Oliver

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

A continued increase in the number of English language learners (ELLs) in U.S. schools has made educators consider the ways they approach teaching and learning for these students. Culturally responsive teaching is one way many educators have attempted to meet ELLs’ unique needs, valuing the cultural and linguistic diversity that they bring to school with them. Moreover, through collaboration and ESOL-focused leadership, educators are able to take a system-approach to teaching and learning for these students, and in doing so, they are able to provide ELLs with meaningful and authentic learning experiences that will allow them to be inclusive members …

Perceptions Of Students With And Without Limited Formal Schooling, Sarah Schmidt De Carranza

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the perceptions that refugee and non-refugee English language learners hold of their academic performance and their perceived sense of membership in a school community. Students currently served in EL programs in grades 9-12 in a large urban school district were invited to participate in the study. Student perceptions were measured using the Morgan Jinks Student Efficacy Scale (MJSES) and Goodenow Pyschological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) scale.

Unexpectedly, the results indicated that differences of perceptions of student efficacy and school membership between the two groups of students were not statistically …