The Language Practices of a Bilingual Chicana Paraeducator in High School Ethnic Studies

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 4
  In Roundtable Session: Teacher Perspectives and Pedagogy (Table 4)

Abstract

Ms. Michelle, a Chicana, experienced her first opportunity to serve as a bilingual paraeducator in Ethnic Studies when she was assigned to Mr. Hall’s ninth grade class in 2024. In her fourth year as a bilingual paraeducator, Ms. Michelle provided instructional, linguistic, and relational support to emergent bilingual students in English-medium classrooms. Based on a one-year ethnographic study in secondary schools, this paper addresses the research question: What are the language practices of Ms. Michelle, a bilingual paraeducator in Ethnic Studies? Findings highlight Ms. Michelle worked to mediate naming systems of oppression and she draws on her lived experiences.

Author

• Elizabeth Castro, Central Washington University