Preparing Critically Conscious Bilingual Educators with a Global Perspective: Historical Foundations and Future Directions

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Friday 7:45 am
  In Poster Session: Innovating Curricular Designs for Bilingual Teacher Education in the US: Programs, Policies and Partnerships

Abstract

Objectives: This poster presentation examines the enduring struggle of bilingual teacher education programs in the United States, particularly amid persistent anti-immigrant sentiment and restrictive language policies. Framed through historical, geopolitical, theoretical, ideological, and pedagogical lenses, it explores how these forces shape the preparation of critically conscious bilingual educators within a university setting located on the U.S./Mexico border.
Theoretical Framework: The study is grounded in Paulo Freire’s theory of critical consciousness (conscientização), which emphasizes education as a dialogic and transformative process aimed at challenging structural inequities. It also draws on Henry Giroux’s concept of border pedagogy, advocating for classrooms as cultural borderlands where hybrid identities and linguistic diversity are acknowledged, engaged, and politicized. These frameworks help to interrogate how teacher education programs prepare candidates to be both educators and agents of social change.
Context: The research is situated in a bilingual teacher preparation program at a university along the U.S./Mexico border—a region characterized by transnational migration, cultural hybridity, and dynamic demographic shifts. The study gives particular attention to the growing population of Transnational Mobile Students (TMS), or “students we share,” who receive education in both Mexico and the United States. This population exemplifies the unique demands placed on bilingual educators operating in complex, multilingual environments.
Methods: A qualitative case study methodology was employed to analyze how teacher candidates navigate the intersecting pressures of language policy, migration, and educational reform. Data were gathered from program syllabi, reflective journals, curriculum artifacts, and semi-structured interviews with teacher candidates and faculty. These sources provided insight into how candidates critically engage with issues of language, identity, and equity in their coursework and field placements.
Significance: This research contributes to the broader discourse on educational equity and linguistic justice by highlighting the role of bilingual teacher education in resisting assimilationist agendas and promoting transformative pedagogy. It calls attention to the urgent need for programs that not only develop bilingual teaching competencies but also cultivate critical geopolitical awareness and community-based praxis. In an era marked by the gentrification of dual-language programs and intensified scrutiny of immigrant communities, preparing teachers who can challenge institutional inequities is of national significance.
Results: Findings reveal that critically conscious pedagogy embedded in teacher preparation—such as critical reflection, community engagement, and exposure to transnational perspectives—can significantly impact teacher candidates’ ability to affirm student identities and advocate for inclusive practices. Participants demonstrated increased awareness of systemic barriers and articulated a sense of responsibility to promote biliteracy and cultural affirmation. However, institutional constraints, including high-stakes testing and limited program funding, continue to pose significant challenges.
Significance: Ultimately, this study underscores the imperative of reimagining bilingual teacher education through a transnational, multilingual ethic of responsibility—one that aligns pedagogy with social justice and equips educators to thrive in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms.

Author

• Cristina Alfaro, San Diego State University