Examining How Teachers’ Curricula Planning Affects English Language Learners in a Social Studies Classroom

• In Event: Debates, Dialogues, and Discussions on What It Means to Teach Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students

Abstract

This qualitative collective case study examines how teachers plan for a social studies curriculum in order to address the academic needs of English language learners in a South Texas middle school. The theoretical framework for the study was based on Henderson and Gornik’s four steps to effective planning while the methodology followed Yin’s principles for conducting a collective case study. Participants were six middle school teachers from a South Texas middle school. Data comprised questionnaires, interviews, school documents, teachers’ lesson plans and artifacts, and researchers’ field notes. Findings suggest that teacher education programs must focus on preparing teachers with excellent planning skills as early as the pre-service level with continued ongoing professional development.

Author

• Angela Gonzalez, The University of Texas - Brownsville