From Lived Experience to Classroom Practice: Teachers’ Language Ideologies With Trilingual Students

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Wednesday 9:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Bi-/Multilingual Teacher Education: Critical Consciousness, Ideology, and Race (Table 1)

Abstract

This qualitative case study, informed by the theoretical framework of language ideologies, explored the origins and complexity of two in-service teachers’ language ideologies and how these ideologies were reflected in their classroom practices when teaching trilingual students. Findings revealed that both teachers had complex ideological systems, with both teachers moving from primarily monolingual orientations encountered early in life towards pluralist perspectives as their worldviews shifted; however, in complicated ways, both sets of ideologies coexisted, simultaneously shaping the opportunities for learning they provided to their trilingual students. We conclude with implications for the development of effective teacher education programs that take into account the complexity of teacher beliefs and their impact on classroom practices.

Authors

• Mihaela Gazioglu, Clemson University

• Mikel W. Cole, University of Houston