This annotated bibliography is reformatted and customized by the Center for Positive Practices. Some of the authors featured on this page include Live Danbolt Drange, Claudia Peralta Nash, Victor Moin, Stephen May, Manka M. Varghese, Gail L. Thompson, Victoria Hunt, Michele S. Moses, Mila Schwartz, and James Bylund.
(2011). Learning from Success Stories: Leadership Structures that Support Dual Language Programs over Time in New York City, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. This research considers the role of the principal and teachers in promoting and supporting dual language bilingual education in three established elementary school programs in New York City. Through a comparative case study in different dual language programs that have each been in existence from more than 10 years, data were collected to consider how the principal works with her staff to negotiate, envision, and support the goals of the dual language program. By examining three different programs in depth, this research identifies elements of leadership in a dual language program that transcend context while exposing the various ways that these leaders react and adapt to the individual community of their particular school. A strong mission, collaboration and shared leadership, trust, and flexibility among administration and teachers are identified as crucial factors in creating a community that is transformative and sustainable over time. In each school, a commitment to the opportunities that bilingualism and multicultural understandings bring to students is universally understood. [More] Descriptors: Immersion Programs, Bilingual Education Programs, Case Studies, School Personnel
(2011). Thought and Second Language: A Vygotskian Framework for Understanding BICS and CALP, Communique. Researchers often point to the work of Cummins (1981), who proposed that two distinct types of language proficiency exist, basic interpersonal communications skills (BICS) and cognitive/academic language proficiency (CALP). BICS includes aspects of language such as basic vocabulary and pronunciation, skills that are readily apparent during conversations between two or more people. In contrast, CALP refers to language skills that allow an individual to process and make meaning of language that exists independent of any situational clues, and is the language skill required for meaningful engagement in most academic tasks. Cummins (1981) proposed that the best way for a student to develop CALP in their second language was to first develop CALP in their primary language. While Cummins made invaluable contributions to one's understanding of second language development and the need for bilingual education, his theory of BICS and CALP is largely descriptive and does not explain the underlying cognitive processes involved in second language development. Vygotsky (1986/1934), writing more than 45 years before Cummins, provides theoretical insight into this process. The acclaimed Russian developmental psychologist describes the use of language as a psychological tool for the purpose of analyzing and solving complex problems. Problem-solving ability, a stage in language development that Vygotsky refers to as "the use of concepts," is essentially the equivalent of Cummins' CALP. In this article, the author talks about a Vygotskian framework for understanding BICS and CALP. [More] Descriptors: Academic Discourse, Second Languages, Bilingual Education, Cognitive Processes
(2000). Looking for Bilingual Answers, American Language Review. This article answers some frequently asked questions about bilingual education. Suggests that a large percentage of the public is unaware of the benefits of bilingual education. Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Bilingual Education, English (Second Language), Language Proficiency
(2005). Death by a Thousand Cuts: Indigenous Language Bilingual Education Programmes in the Northern Territory of Australia, 1972-1998, International Journal of Bilingual Education & Bilingualism. The Northern Territory's bilingual education programmes, in which local Australian Aboriginal languages and English were used side by side in a minority of Aboriginal primary schools in remote northern Australia, came into being in 1973 under the broader federal government policy imprimatur of "self-determination" for Indigenous Australians. These programmes enjoyed considerable support from Indigenous Australian communities, until 1998 when the Northern Territory Government passed legislation to axe these programmes. This ran counter to the articulated wishes of the overwhelming majority of Aboriginal community members and Aboriginal school staff in affected communities. The authorities' stated reason for the closure of these programmes was that of the putative "poor standards in English literacy" in bilingual schools, in comparison with English-only Aboriginal schools, although no evidence has ever been proffered to support such a claim. Since the official closure of the programmes, some of the schools that were formerly bilingual have been attempting to "go it alone" to keep their bilingual education programmes operational. This is however a difficult task given that the bilingual education programmes are no longer state-sanctioned. Supporters of the former Indigenous Australian bilingual education programmes perceive the current emphasis on a monolingual curriculum in English in Indigenous primary schools in the Northern Territory schools as a denial of the human rights of significant numbers of Aboriginal children. In this paper the reasons why Indigenous communities wish to retain these programmes are outlined and it is explained that the lack of official support for these programmes is a long-term phenomenon, rather than a recent development. [More] Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Public Policy, Educational Change, Monolingualism
(2000). Why Bilingual Education Policy Is Needed: A Philosophical Response to the Critics, Bilingual Research Journal. Criticisms against bilingual education policy are myopic and focus on nostalgic notions of Americanization and assimilation. Bilingual education supports heritage-language students' cultural identities and expands their contexts of choice, thus developing their self-determination and preparing them to participate in democracy. Federal policies requiring bilingual education to be offered to heritage-language students should be maintained. (Contains 46 references.) Descriptors: Acculturation, Bilingual Education, Educational Policy, English (Second Language)
(2011). The Politics of Latino Education, Teachers College Press. Education is one of the most important public policy issues facing Latinos in the United States today, but the political dynamics behind Latino school achievement and failure are often misunderstood–and at times, overlooked altogether. In twelve revealing essays, "The Politics of Latino Education" brings together 23 accomplished and influential voices to examine the political factors that shape the Latino educational experience. With a breadth of expertise no other volume can match, this resource: (1) Provides an authoritative introduction to the U.S. education policy process, as well as a specific survey of how that process relates to Latinos; (2) Covers a wide range of topics important to improving education for Latinos, including standardized testing, immigration, bilingual education, and the Latino education "pipeline"; (3) Incorporates a wealth of current statistical data, as well as qualitative research and firsthand experiences, to show how policy decisions actually play out in real classrooms; and (4) Brings together experts from a wide range of perspectives within the fields of political science, public administration, and education. [Contributors include: Regina Branton, Gavin Dillingham, Carl Doerfler, Johanna Dunaway, Jay P. Greene, Edmund "Ted" Hamann, Alisa Hicklin, Eric Gonzalez Juenke, Melissa Marschall, Valerie Martinez-Ebers, Brendan D. Maxsey, Beth Miller, Jerry Polinard, Rene R. Rocha, Paru Shah, Kathleen (Kathy) Staudt, Angela Valenzuela, James P. Wenzel, Marcus A. Winters, and Robert D. Wrinkle.] [More] Descriptors: Expertise, Qualitative Research, Bilingual Education, Standardized Tests
(2005). Critical Advocacy and Bilingual Education in the United States, Linguistics and Education: An International Research Journal. Comparing data from two ethnographic studies of bilingual teachers and their students in the United States, the authors present a cross-case analysis that illuminates how issues of language are inextricably linked with issues of race, class, and socioeconomic status. The authors show how portraits of teachers' practice help to examine some of the challenges urban, bilingual educators face including questions about teacher identity, bilingual proficiency, networks of support and activist training. Such portraits of bilingual practice shed light on the complexities that include and go beyond language and show the nexus where pluralist and assimilationist goals inform and contradict one another in public schooling. The authors suggest the current political climate places bilingual education at a new and challenging crossroads in the United States with opportunities to re-examine what bilingual education means within specific local and national contexts. [More] Descriptors: Ethnography, Bilingualism, Bilingual Teachers, Bilingual Education
(2011). African Language Publishing for Children in South Africa: Challenges for Translators, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. The commitment to multilingualism embedded in the 1996 South African Constitution has wide ranging implications for many aspects of education. This paper focuses on the dearth of teaching and learning materials in African languages required to deliver effective bilingual education, and on the potential role of translation in offering solutions for this problem. Drawing on an analysis of currently available African language books for children and interviews with educators, writers, publishers, translators and organisations concerned with book promotion, it explores issues which have emerged as critical for both the quality and availability of translation. Attention is drawn to the ways in which translation can be perceived to either help or hinder the process of introducing children to reading materials in African languages. The challenges of working in the highly specialised field of children's literature with languages that have undergone varying degrees of standardisation are described. Finally, the tendency to translate mainly into the larger, more commercially viable languages is considered, together with suggestions for ways in which publishers might be persuaded to translate across "all" official languages. [More] Descriptors: African Languages, Childrens Literature, Reading Materials, Translation
(2011). Words Were All We Had: Becoming Biliterate against the Odds. Language & Literacy Series, Teachers College Press. This engaging collection examines the personal narratives of a select group of well-respected educators who attained biliteracy at a young age, and in the era before bilingual education. Their autobiographical accounts celebrate and make visible a linguistic potential that has been largely ignored in schools and underscores the inextricable and emotional ties that Latinos have to Spanish. Teachers can glean important lessons about the individual potential of their Latino students from the lived experiences of Latinos whose success dispels the myth that Spanish is an obstacle to learning. These stories of tenacity and resilience offer hope for a new generation of bilingual learners who are too often forced to choose between English and their native language. Book features include: (1) Unique views of how Latino students navigated a restrictive schooling system that continues to ignore Latinos' linguistic and cultural resources; (2) Powerful accounts of the support that Latino parents provided their children to do well in school and strive for excellence; and (3) Illustration of the important role that caring teachers can play in a child's life when they encourage students' to learn in two languages. [Foreword by Luis C. Moll.] [More] Descriptors: Caring, Bilingual Education, Personal Narratives, Bilingualism
(2011). Policy and Indigenous Languages in Australia, Australian Review of Applied Linguistics. The use of Indigenous languages has been declining over the period of non-Aboriginal settlement in Australia as a result of repressive policies, both explicit and implicit. The National Policy on Languages (Lo Bianco, 1987) was the high point of language policy in Australia, given its national scope and status and its attempt to encompass all aspects of language use. Indigenous languages received significant recognition as an important social and cultural resource in this policy, but subsequent national policy developments moved via a focus on economic utility to an almost exclusive emphasis on English, exacerbated by a focus on national literacy standards. This is exemplified in the Northern Territory's treatment of Indigenous bilingual education programs. Over recent years there have been hopeful signs in various states of policy developments supportive of Indigenous languages and in 2009 the Commonwealth Government introduced a new National Indigenous Languages Policy and a plan for a national curriculum in languages. Support for Indigenous languages remains fragmentary, however, and very much subservient to the dominant rhetoric about the need for English skills, while at the same time ignoring research that shows the importance of Indigenous and minority languages for social well-being and for developing English language skills. [More] Descriptors: National Curriculum, Language Planning, Language Attitudes, Bilingual Education
(2011). Intercultural Education in the Multicultural and Multilingual Bolivian Context, Intercultural Education. Intercultural bilingual education (IBE) has been discussed in Bolivia since the 1970s. The first Educational Act with a bilingual and intercultural curriculum adapted to cultural and linguistic diversity–Ley de Reforma Educativa–was passed in 1994 with implementation starting in 1996. However, discussions continued: when the Evo Morales government was installed in January 2006, it abolished the act initiating work on a new law–"Ley Elizardo Perez y Avelino Sinani" (decolonised community education)–arguing that intercultural education is more than bilingualism; the new law would emphasise the main values of Amerindian communities. The article will focus on the contextual background of educational reforms in relation to IBE. How is IBE defined and related to an Amerindian context? Why did the government dominated by ministers of an indigenous background abolish an educational act that emphasised intercultural education? Why would a revision not have sufficed? As the historical process is the basis for the current situation, I will begin by presenting the country's history emphasising the state of education and progress. [More] Descriptors: Multicultural Education, Community Education, American Indians, Bilingual Education
(2011). Balancing between Heritage and Host Languages in Bilingual Kindergarten: Viewpoints of Russian-Speaking Immigrant Parents in Germany and in Israel, European Early Childhood Education Research Journal. This study analyses Russian-speaking immigrant parents' beliefs and attitudes toward the education of their children in German and Israeli bilingual kindergartens. Why did the parents chose bilingual education? Which convergences and divergences exist in parents' beliefs, expectations and attitudes toward bilingual kindergartens in Germany and Israel? A quasi-experimental design was employed to evaluate the effect of the sociocultural context on how immigrant parents relate to their children's pre-school bilingual development. The main difference found between German and Israeli parents was their general representation of the optimal model of bilingual development. While German parents seem to be more oriented to a balanced development of both target languages, the Israeli parents prefer the ""first language first"" approach. These findings are discussed in light of state and local language policies in Germany and Israel as well as in light of the language teaching models adopted by kindergarten policy makers. [More] Descriptors: Quasiexperimental Design, Speech Communication, Teaching Models, Parent Attitudes
(2000). What Students Say about Bilingual Education, Journal of At-Risk Issues. Investigates what language minority and language majority high school students believe about various issues related to bilingual education programs. Data from student surveys and narratives indicate that bilingual education programs appear to be effective, with many language minority students learning to speak English, though some students found that bilingual education classes added to their difficulty in learning English. Descriptors: Bilingual Education Programs, Bilingual Students, High School Students, Hispanic American Students
(2011). Bilingual Teacher Beliefs and Practice: Do They Line Up?, GIST Education and Learning Research Journal. A qualitative study used observation and collection of artifacts to examine the pedagogical strategies of six teachers; four taught in a two-way bilingual education school, while the other two were first-year teachers in a school setting with large numbers of English language learners. Informal interviews were conducted throughout the time of the study; semi-structured interviews were conducted at the end of a semester of observation and recording of field notes. Some interviews attempted to uncover the beliefs teachers had about student learning, and in particular, that of culturally and linguistically diverse students. Teachers were asked about the influences and sources of their beliefs. Other interviews explored teacher identities as educators of culturally and linguistically diverse students and how these identities fit in school settings that were or were not welcoming of such students. Transcripts of taped interviews were compared with field notes and collected artifacts in order to determine the degree to which teachers used strategies related to what they said they believed to be important for culturally and linguistically diverse students. It was determined that there were numerous cases where teacher practice confirmed statements made in interviews. [More] Descriptors: Bilingual Teachers, Qualitative Research, Bilingual Education, Teacher Attitudes
(2011). The Disciplinary Constraints of SLA and TESOL: Additive Bilingualism and Second Language Acquisition, Teaching and Learning, Linguistics and Education: An International Research Journal. For over 15 years now, various commentators have highlighted the 'monolingual bias' inherent in SLA and TESOL research, which invariably constructs bi/multilingualism in deficit terms. In contrast, these critics have advocated an additive bilingual approach to SLA and TESOL, albeit, not as yet to any great effect. In this paper, I explore why so little progress has been made in this area with respect to SLA and TESOL. By drawing on Bourdieu's notion of field, and Bernstein's concepts of classification and framing, I argue that the construction of SLA and TESOL as academic "disciplines" actively delimits the possibilities of developing an additive bilingual approach, although it does not foreclose it. By way of example, I conclude by discussing LEAP, a major web-based professional development resource for teachers, which integrates research in bilingualism and bilingual education with second language teaching and learning. LEAP thus provides a still rare international exemplar that takes seriously the challenge of developing an additive bilingual pedagogy for SLA and TESOL. [More] Descriptors: Second Languages, Bilingual Education, Monolingualism, Second Language Instruction