Agency and Action: (Re)positioning Success and Experiences of Immigrant English Language Learners

• In Event: 35.081 - Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: 35.081-17 - Critical Education Across Multiple Spaces

Abstract

This qualitative study explores the everyday school life of immigrant students enrolled in an Advanced English as a Second Language (ESL) class in a rural high school. By using figured worlds (Holland et al., 1998) and positioning theory (Davies, 2000; Harré & van Langenhove, 1999) as frameworks, I present how these students rely on their positions as English language learners in an ESL program to co-construct a variety of practices that create opportunities for agency and challenge dominant ability-based definitions of success in the school space. I describe how they co-construct a world in and through which they navigate the institution, meet academic needs, and establish networks of care.

Author

• Jennifer Sink McCloud, Transylvania University