Promising Social Justice? Examining Teachers' Response to Reforms for Educating Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Learners

• In Event: 31.091 - Roundtable Session 10
  In Roundtable Session: 31.091-25 - Issues in Urban Education: Diversity and Social Justice

Abstract

This study reveals content teachers’ complex responses to reforms for educating ESL learners. An ESL specialist and a university teacher researcher teamed up to conduct ethnographic research while collaborating with mainstream content teachers at the middle and high school. The project sought to describe how content teachers were responding to the latest reform in Massachusetts, Rethinking Equity and Teaching for English Language Learners (RETELL) initiative. Data from observations and informal dialogs were collected and analyzed thematically. Throughout a year-long program, pre-service and in service teachers revealed their engagement with the new mandate. Based on these findings, lessons are shared to inform future collaborations between ESL specialists and content teachers, as well as point to areas for further professional development.

Author

• Theresa Y. Austin, University of Massachusetts - Amherst