Deconstructing dominant listening practices in oral language assessment settings

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Wednesday 3:45 pm - Gold 2
  In Roundtable Session: Language Ideologies, Power, Resistance in Educational Spaces

Abstract

Oral language assessments are often assumed to center around evaluations of oral production. However, it is well known that evaluations of oral language production are themselves closely tied to the language ideologies present in listening practices. This paper analyzes the role of listening practices in two English language oral assessment tasks with multilingual Kindergarten students. The analysis focuses on the interpretation of silence and of non-standardized naming conventions to show how dominant listening practices may function to create inequitable perceptions of these students as "English Learners". The paper ends with a call for work to support the development of more holistic and expansive listening repertoires in and beyond oral language assessment settings.

Authors

• Juan Bueno Holle, California State University - Sacramento

• Nadxieli Toledo Bustamante, California State University - Sacramento