False Dichotomies and Power Structures: Contextual Factors Shaping Teachers' Use of Language Assessment Data

• In Event: Immigrant Education and English Learners: Policy and Praxis

Abstract

Effective programming and instruction for English learners (ELs) is a complex and critical endeavor. A plethora of factors including students’ background, the sociocultural context, staffing and resources, and the unique needs of students play a role in determining the best-fit program model (Hamayan & Freeman Field, 2012). Within the larger school system, language instruction programs often occupy a conflicted position - they are vital and required, yet also marginalized. This presents challenges to EL teachers’ efforts to meaningfully integrate language assessment results into system processes. This paper explores the lived experiences of EL teachers in a small, rural district and illuminates the contextual factors such as identities, ideologies, and power structures that shape their practice and use of language assessment data.

Author

• Lisa Wymore, The University of Iowa