Building the bridge as you walk on it: Didactic behaviors of elementary teachers in a dual language program

This paper first considers what it means to become truly proficient in a language other than the native one. It then looks briefly at the evolution of dual language programs. Next, it focuses on the issue of whether the first language (L1) or the second language (L2) serves as the language of mediation. Other dual language program issues are then discussed, such as how proficient learners actually become in academic and social language in the L2, their proficiency in grammar and pronunciation, and possible administrative constraints in the design and execution of such programs. Finally, attention is given to a guidebook written directly for dual language learners and for their teachers in which learners are encouraged to take a proactive role to ensure that they make the most of their dual program language learning and use experiences.

Download Full-text

Multilingual Mexican-Origin Students' Perspectives on Their Indigenous Heritage Language

Association of Mexican American Educators Journal ◽

10.24974/amae.13.2.430 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 91 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

P. Zitlali Morales ◽

Lydia A. Saravia ◽

María Fernanda Pérez-Iribe

Keyword(s):

Middle School ◽

Dual Language ◽

Language Use ◽

Language Maintenance ◽

Mexican Origin ◽

Language Program ◽

Language Programs ◽

English Only ◽

Dual Language Program ◽

Southern California School

This article focuses on the reported experiences of three focal students who participated in a Spanish/English dual language program in their southern California school district throughout their elementary and middle school years. All three students identify as Mexican-origin and speak Spanish, English, and the Indigenous language of Zapoteco and have different relationships with their languages. The framework of Critical Latinx Indigeneities (Blackwell, Boj Lopez & Urrieta, 2017) is used to explore the practices engaged in by the students, including language use and transnationalism (Sánchez, 2007), as well as the investment to learn and use a language as part of their identity (Norton Peirce, 1995; Norton, 2000). Even though dual language programs provide much needed linguistic supports for language maintenance, perhaps more importantly, they provide support for ideological shifts towards language maintenance rather than transition to English-only instruction. However, the three students experienced a segmented and limited focus on Spanish language development in middle school compared to their elementary school experience. The authors discuss implications for outside school spaces that can support authentic language use, in addition to school-sanctioned language programs promoting multilingualism.

Download Full-text

Attitudinal Perspectives: A Factor to Implementation of a Dual Language Program

International Journal of Instruction ◽

10.12973/iji.2015.813a ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 35-46

Author(s):

Michael Whitacre ◽

Keyword(s):

Dual Language ◽

Language Program ◽

Dual Language Program

Download Full-text

Dual language programs: Questions of access in the state of Arizona

Education Policy Analysis Archives ◽

10.14507/epaa.28.4680 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 28 ◽

pp. 18

Author(s):

Laura M. Gomez ◽

Jesus Cisneros

Keyword(s):

Public Schools ◽

Dual Language ◽

Language Program ◽

Case Study Methodology ◽

Language Programs ◽

Interest Convergence ◽

Dual Language Programs ◽

English Only ◽

Dual Language Program ◽

Stakeholder Perspectives

Public schools across the country are increasingly working with children who enter schools speaking a language other than English. Using a case study methodology, the authors examined Dual Language Program (DLP) implementation in Arizona, which by law supports English-only education. Several benefits (bilingualism, bi-literacy, biculturalism, globalization) and challenges (curriculum, teachers, state policy, funding, and lack of access to DLPs for minority language students) are highlighted from stakeholder perspectives. Participants in this study described the paradox of excluding ELLs from dual language programs as inefficient, unnecessary, and wrong. Taking Interest Convergence as a theoretical framework to understand the Arizona context regarding English-only education, this study raises implications for research and practice.

Download Full-text

Mexican Heritage ELL and Native English Speaker Interaction

Advances in Educational Technologies and Instructional Design - Handbook of Research on Foreign Language Education in the Digital Age ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-0177-0.ch016 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 334-364

Author(s):

Lisa Winstead

Keyword(s):

Language Learning ◽

Language Learners ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Dual Language ◽

English Language ◽

Depth Information ◽

Language Program ◽

Dual Language Program ◽

Language Strategies ◽

Tandem Learning

This case study explores 1) the potential of a dual language program that provides an English Language Learner (ELL) and a Spanish Learner (SL) with opportunities to engage in authentic as well as mutual language exchange; and, 2) the multiple types of language strategies employed by adolescents to teach and learn language from one another in tandem learning situations. Findings from a transcription analysis of 12 English and Spanish videotaped sessions of one dyad reveal novel and in depth information about strategies utilized in compensatory, administrative, and social ways to extend the flow of communication in tandem learning. Findings indicate that tandem language learning not only provides a space for language learners to engage in plural strategies to promote teaching and learning, but also learner metacognition when peer learners employ interlingual and plurilingual measures to compensate for language gaps. Implications for the study of online tandem language learning are also highlighted.

Download Full-text

Mexican Heritage ELL and Native English Speaker Interaction

Computer-Assisted Language Learning ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-7663-1.ch055 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 1147-1177

Author(s):

Lisa Winstead

Keyword(s):

Language Learning ◽

Language Learners ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Dual Language ◽

English Language ◽

Depth Information ◽

Language Program ◽

Dual Language Program ◽

Language Strategies ◽

Tandem Learning

This case study explores 1) the potential of a dual language program that provides an English Language Learner (ELL) and a Spanish Learner (SL) with opportunities to engage in authentic as well as mutual language exchange; and, 2) the multiple types of language strategies employed by adolescents to teach and learn language from one another in tandem learning situations. Findings from a transcription analysis of 12 English and Spanish videotaped sessions of one dyad reveal novel and in depth information about strategies utilized in compensatory, administrative, and social ways to extend the flow of communication in tandem learning. Findings indicate that tandem language learning not only provides a space for language learners to engage in plural strategies to promote teaching and learning, but also learner metacognition when peer learners employ interlingual and plurilingual measures to compensate for language gaps. Implications for the study of online tandem language learning are also highlighted.

Download Full-text

Functions of the verb decir (‘to say’) in the incipient academic Spanish writing of bilingual children

Functions of Language ◽

10.1075/fol.15.2.04dub ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 257-280

Author(s):

Laura E. Dubcovsky

Keyword(s):

Academic Writing ◽

Dual Language ◽

Interactive Narrative ◽

Language Program ◽

Linguistic Feature ◽

Content Areas ◽

Academic Texts ◽

Dual Language Program ◽

Bilingual Classroom ◽

Academic Genres

There is great concern about the lack of access to academic writing, especially for minority language schoolchildren. Although much research is devoted to social context and personal interactions in the classroom, a closer look at language itself would contribute to a better understanding of the development of literacy in a bilingual setting. The aim of this study is to examine the uses of one particular linguistic feature in incipient academic genres. Drawing on a functional linguistic framework, the article analyzes four functions of the verb decir (‘to say’) in texts written in Spanish by children in a Dual Language Program during two consecutive school years. The analysis includes texts taken from three main content areas — Language Arts, Science and Social Studies. Results show that decir was used to fulfill interactive, narrative, informative and reflective functions, which occur with different frequencies in the three content areas. The article especially discusses those functions that may lead to more advanced literacy. The study concludes with implications for the bilingual classroom, suggesting that linguistic awareness of different uses of the verb decir could help schoolchildren to organize incipient academic texts

Download Full-text