Recently, I asked fifth graders in a language immersion program to create an advertisement for their school. As part of this, I asked them to reflect upon their culminating experience, which was to do a research project about their own passions. Overwhelmingly, the students created ads that highlighted the opportunity they had to become bilingual: “Hey kids, Do you ever wish you could speak another language? Well, now you can!” They also enjoyed researching their own areas of interest: “Plus, you get to learn about whatever you want!” As we consider school reform, we should remember what motivates research and learning, indeed–our passions! And to communicate those passions and our learning, especially to better our transnational world, multilingualism is key.
First Immersion Trip: Puerto Rico!
From May 3-9, I accompanied the St. Louis Language Immersion – Spanish School fifth-grade students on their first-ever “Language Immersion Trip.” Vamanos Tours arranged a (non-touristy) trip around the enchanted island, which included visits to the ‘mercado’ during which students interacted and interviewed farmers about their work, hikes to waterfalls in El Yunque, a service-learning project at an orphanage in Ponce, and relaxation at ‘la playa sucia’ and ‘las salinas’ (salt flats) in Cabo Rojo. I saw – in action – students’ abilities to interact in their now-developed second language of Spanish – and to take risks in trying new things and meeting new people. An amazing opportunity for all!
Presenting at the American Educational Research Association
In early April, thousands of researchers and educators will attend the annual meetings of the American Educational Research Association. This year, colleagues and I will reflect on “participatory research” with children (Saturday, April 5, 10:35 am!). While so much research is focused on children, too many educational studies are divorced from working with youth to understand their everyday perspectives and experiences. Come think with us, as we discuss the successes we’ve had and ethical challenges we’ve faced with integrating youth perspectives and energy into research. I’m also excited to be working with Jin Sook Lee (co-chair) and Melinda Martin-Beltran (discussant) to analyze language immersion schooling and its efforts to develop bilingualism, from Missouri to California, on Saturday, April 5, at 2:45 pm. See you in Philly!
“¿Cómo se dice?” How do you say?
At one-way language immersion schools, most students speak only English at home, but they soon speak their new target language—and other new discourses—at school. By discourse, I mean that kids create not only new ways of speaking, but also new ways of being and interacting! Angela Layton and I created a study in one Spanish immersion school to examine: How did first-grade students appropriate multiple languages and discourses during classroom activities? In turn, how did they support each other and their teachers in creating new discourses?
In our study, we found (like others have) that students supported each others’ learning of Spanish. Whole-class, teacher-led routines provided scripted opportunities for students to practice their new language and to translate for each other. We also found that students practiced other school “ways of being” in these spaces, like “how to behave well.” What was most interesting to us, however, was how students played with language and created discourses during small-group work. For instance, they showed a deep understanding about the structure of language, as they taught “pig Latin” to their assistant teacher. They also considered the connection between language and identity, as they thought about how each of them would be viewed by the greater society if they spoke Spanish outside of school. Their dialogues suggested that they knew that Mexican-American students could be discriminated against for speaking Spanish, while the rest of them would be praised for being bilingual.
In our paper, we consider the implications of this study for language immersion classrooms and policies. Download the paper for free from Linguistics and Education until March 26, 2014!