Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons^™

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Language Learners And Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, Niyoka S. Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

English language learner (ELL) students come from diverse linguistic backgrounds, and educators need specific training in second language acquisition and content instruction to provide culturally responsive instruction leading to academic success. This phenomenological interpretative analysis was designed to explore the lived experiences of general education middle school teachers of ELL students and their practices of culturally relevant pedagogy in diverse classroom environments. The theoretical foundation of this study was grounded in both social constructivism and diversity pedagogy theory, as both theories support the construct of sociocultural interactions experienced by educators in this setting. The research question inquired about the perceptions …