English as a Second Language Teachers' Positioning of Burmese Refugee Students: An AsiaCrit Narrative Study

• In Event: Representations and Understandings of Asian American and Pacific Islander Youth Success in Education

Abstract

In this study, we examine the narratives of English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers who position themselves as equity-minded and culturally responsive educators of their Burmese-refugee students. Theorizing through the lens of AsiaCrit and the constructs of Asianization and racial triangulation (Kim, 1999), findings demonstrate that ESL teachers ascribe particular identities to their Asian refugee students. Such ascriptions include critiques of their mystic and seemingly, non-Christian beliefs, positioning the more established refugee as more reflective of achieving model minority myth (MMS). Implications point to the ESL and bilingual teaching profession to include content on the intersections of generational status, national origin, race and not just language teaching and learning.

Author

• Trish Morita Mullaney, Purdue University