Dual Deficit Discourse in Educators’ Perceptions of Multilingual Learners’ Participation in Career and Technical Education

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Diverse Needs in Preparing Teachers for Multilingual Learners (Table 11)

Abstract

In this presentation, I draw on interview data from a critical multi-sited ethnography to examine how educators talk about career and technical education (CTE) for multilingual learners (MLs). The data show how educators draw on dual deficit discourses when talking about the educational opportunity that CTE provides for MLs. The first deficit is that some educators think of CTE as limited and limiting simply “hands-on” learning and, the second is that educators assume that MLs categorically need “hands-on” experiences in order to learn and are less likely to succeed in higher tier “academic” courses. These overgeneralizations have a complex relationship with MLs’ over- and underrepresentation in CTE. Implications for repair will be discussed.

Author

• Mark R Emerick, Vassar College