You will watch the videos from the CUNY Teaching Bilinguals Web Series, found at: https://www.cuny-nysieb.org/teaching-bilinguals-webseries/(Links to an external site.) Create a Word document in which

This may be because it has been around longer, and more people have heard about it. When I went to s chool there it was pretty small, and everyone knew and lived around each other. The practices of my school at the time was one of English instruction and a Spanish class period. The only time I remember speaking Spanish in school was during Spanish class o r with my friends in recess who preferred to speak Spanish. However, we would never get in trouble for doing so.

From what I can remember, all our teachers spoke Spanish and would speak to parents in Spanish if need be. However, it was never an issue if we were to speak in Spanish in class. The only thing that was required is that we respond to both written and orally in English. In my field experience hours, I have had the chance to go to both bilingual and non - bilingual schools. All experiences were diffe rent in their own way as well as the schools’ practices. However, one thing that was common in all the schools I’ve volunteered at is that they never were ones to punish the students for speaking their home language. I have only seen two other languages sp oken in schools and those were Portuguese and Creole. These in comparison to Spanish and English both their seminaries and differences in terms of linguistics. However, none of the cooperating teachers I had spoken either of those two languages. Thus, there was an issue there because the teachers did not know what they were saying. At most the students would 3 be asked to speak in English instead to get their point across to the teacher., and reprimanding was never in volved. If they were not speaking with the teacher and just their friends, the teachers will not have an issue with that. In the bilingual school I volunteered in this semester, they taught the curriculum both in English and Spanish or English and Portugue se. The students choose the track they would like to participate in. The way the tracks work is that in one half of the day the students learn core curriculum in Spanish or Portuguese and in the other half they learn the core curriculum in English. The pur pose of this set up is to build a strong foundation of literacy and proficiently in both languages. This school and its staff believe in a system that embraces multilingual interactions and using both languages whenever possible. The way the curriculum is set up is setting the way for ELL learners to thrive and succeed in both languages. It does not favor one or the other and most importantly it does not erase that first language. Q2: Groups that advocated for English language learners in Florida in the 198 0s , as well as accomplishments of the Consent Decree Many minority groups advocated for English language learners in Florida during the 1980s. While there many, the notable groups include the League of the United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Spanish Am erican League Against Discrimination (SALAD), the American Hispanic Educator’s Association of Dade(AHEAD), and the Haitian Educator’s Association.

These groups, and several more, contributed to the landmark case resulting in the 1990 Florida Consent Decree . The 1990 Florida Consent Decree is what has made modern day translanguaging practices possible in the classroom. This decree is the framework that ensures that both federal and state laws regarding ELLs will be upheld. It further ensures the civil rights of ELLs will be protected while providing the adequate resources to provide the quality education that is 4 necessary for these students. The Consent Decree addresses the civil rights of ELs, foremost among those their right to equal access to all education programs. In addressing these rights, the Consent Decree provides a structur e that ensures the delivery of the comprehensible instruction to which ELs students are entitled. The Consent Decree abides to and ensures the carrying out of the following federal and state laws along with more: Title VI and VII Civil Rights Act of 19641 . This prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

Florida is a diverse state and ELs are often of a different race, color, and national origin than those who k now English. Enforcing this act makes sure that these ELs are provided with the necessary resources to succeed. Equal Education Opportunities Act of 19741. This act focuses more on the linguistic aspects, mandating that educational agencies must take “‘ap propriate action’ to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation by its students in its instructional programs”.

Congress has extended this to include bilingual education for ELs which provides an efficient environment for them. Florida Edu cation Equity Act, 19841. This builds on the previous rulings, but includes a necessary addendum that these changes to be more inclusive and homogenous do not disregard the cognitive or linguistic differences of students, stating that “this is not intended to eliminate the provision of programs designed to meet the needs of students with limited proficiency”. This prevented loopholes to be taken advantage of. Q3: Defin ition of “translanguaging” , opinion of this practice , and translanguaging practices and sc affolding structures This flexible, critical, intentional, and creative use of language is called translanguaging . 5 Translanguaging is the process in which multilingual speakers use their languages as an integrated communication system. In addition, t ranslanguaging refers to the language practice of bilingual speakers, often involving their flexible and fluid use of their linguistic r esources to make meaning of their lives and complex worlds. Translanguaging is an extension of the concept of languaging, the general practices of language speakers, but with the additional feature of using multiple languages, simultaneously. This is a dyn amic process in which multilingual speakers navigate both complex social and cognitive demands through the strategic use of multiple languages. An example of this exists in the English -Spanish households across the country. Children may be speaking one lan guage and the parents another, even to each other. Another example is that t he family might be watching a television program in English while the radio is playing Spanish music or a Spanish radio show. A significant number of studies have proven the effica cy of translanguaging as both a meaning -making process and a pedagogical tool. I believe that translanguaging is unique in that, unlike code -switching which posits a very disjointed view of language, translanguaging proposes a uniform database of language from which we strategically select features to communicate effectively. Translanguaging is beneficial both linguistically and culturally for students since it ensures that ELs are not criticized for maintaining their often only connection to their family’s culture. I believe that can also be an encouraging tool. By building on the flexibility of a student’s language practices, they may be motivated to tryout other language practices, thereby increasing the likelihood of becoming multilingual. I especially a ppreciate how translanguaging does away with the hierarchies that arise when languages are kept separate. Instead, by merging them, each is equally valued and can lend to a more diverse curriculum an d multilingual/multicultural education, which is benefici al for all. Overall, I believe 6 translanguaging is an innovative perspective on language practices that helps all students, especially emergent bilinguals, to gain a metalinguistic understanding and appreciate cultural and linguistic diversity. Being an Adv ocate for Bilingual Students Q1: Students’ backgrounds as resources, as well as two additional ideas It is important to view students’ language backgrounds as resources in their learning. Ms. Conte and Ms. Canton Kim believe that having different languages is only going to help their students go further in their learning. They work to use their students’ backgrounds to model their learning. They do this by giving the students two of the same books, but in two different languages and asking them to see if they can copy quotes from the book both in English and in Spanish. The students expressed that they can. The teachers also have the students create cultural portraits at the beginning of the year to build community in the classroom. In these portrai ts, the students discuss their cultures and their languages in comparison to students in their class. This activity helps the students see what they have in common as well as what makes them different.

This brings more empathy into the classroom as well. T he teachers also use the term emergent bilinguals when they talk about their students' learning because it best addresses the goal instead of the lack. To these teachers, it is more than learning English but teaching them how to best use their language abi lities as a whole. Other ways to use students’ backgrounds as recourses for their learning is by activat ing a student’s background into the classroom is through math lessons where they are learning measurements. In baking, there needs to be a lot of attent ion to measurements and that fact can be brought into the classroom. Students can be encouraged to make a traditional food item from their culture and discuss the different measurements they needed to use to make the dish. This 7 activity promotes both the l earning of the measurement skill and highlights a student’s culture. Another way would be, if there was a unit on explorers, Ms. Conte could have students learn about explorers who came to what is now the New York area. She can then broaden the focus to co mpare the experiences of explorers going to the New York area with explorers going to Latin America and Canada during that same general time period, as her classroom demographic comes from those regions. She can then create a display to show the multicultu ral focus. They can then map out which European countries sent explorers to which parts of the “New World.” Students later can write historical fiction pieces from the perspective of one of the explorers or from one of the indigenous groups. They can use t heir own cultural and linguistic information from their family to personalize these writing assignments . Q2: Reading and culture of inclusion, and your experience in the classroom Reading multicultural literature creates a culture of inclusion as it promot es empathy and unity. Multicultural literature serves to portray the ubiquity of human experience. All children feel the same emotions no matter where they live in the world, what language they speak, or how they look. It suggests that although people have many differences, there are common traits that unite us. Multicultural characters also allow us to empathize with the depictions while simultaneously introducing us to the traditions, beliefs, and languages of that character’s culture. The diversity of me dia also allows children to be more tolerable and understanding of different perspectives while also being able to relate to these perspectives. Multicultural literature promotes the interaction of children across differing ethnic backgrounds. Stories por traying cultural diversity can foster the belief that race is not a barrier, but rather a contribution to the beauty of our multicultural world . In one of my previous education classes, I’d designed a multicultural unit examining 8 various forms of identity in Mexican culture while using Chicano poetry, music, and combining these with poems and excerpts by African Americans or works from other Hispanic groups. This unit was then put into practice when I began tutoring and my student and I completed t he unit together. The first lesson plan was about names and their power as a means to control or determine identity where we read accompanying fiction and non -fiction about how names are impacted by immigration. Creating this unit was an enlightening and h orizon -broadening experience as it made me cognizant of the issues of othered groups and how cultural identity permeates in everything, like our names, and how we can be stripped of it by giving our names away. I recall my student having this revelation of the importance of names and she became more reflective of cultural identity and how it relates to language and how we identify. This unit plan was based on the novel Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz. It ex plores Mexican cultural identity, drawing explicit questions on the connection of cultural identity and language in a third -generation immigrant family. Q3: Profit from exposure to bilingual books English speakers can benefit from the use of bilingual book s because it helps them form an understanding of the structure of that other language. The first step to literacy and fluency is being exposed to the language’s content. Students need to be given a text where they can visualize the correct use of that lang uage and begin the process of learning it. Through this, the students can start pinpointing the seminaries and differences as well. Later, when the students are more comfortable with the language, they can begin the process of learning how to read and writ e with it fluently. However, it all starts with the initial exposure. Q4: Ms. Conte’s findings and your opinion about full class control She discovered that she had as much to learn as her students did. She had to gain patience 9 and be like her students as both try to understand a language they do not know. It is understandable where this teacher was coming from because I have experienced the same feelings in a class that had students who spoke mainly Portuguese. At th at time, I was a freshman in college and was never really exposed to Portuguese at all. There are some commonalities with Spanish, so I was able to understand through some context. The idea that teachers are the dominating and sole source of learning within the classroom is an antiquated and inc orrect model of efficient learning. This places undue burden on the teacher and limits student ability and prior knowledge as valuable pedagogical resources to be optimized. Despite my agreement with this pedagogical stance, I would feel uncertain and limi ted in my classroom if I did not control everything. The teacher must design lessons with meticulous reflection and foresight but should also be flexible enough to accommodate the unknown. For that reason, I believe that I would struggle with the inability to communicate quickly with my students or easily facilitate learning or a student -teacher bond. However, students are a valuable resource so a bilingual can help me interact with ELs. Additionally, I would likely research basic phrases in my students’ la nguages so I could communicate with them and compensate for other methods of forming a student -teacher bond. If anything, I can follow the example of Ms. Chapman Santiago and have typed, private conversations. I believe that as a teacher you never stop lea rning and every day is an opportunity to learn something new. I also believe that there are no teachers that have all the answers or solutions to problems. However, that can be reassuring as an inspiring teacher. This is because knowing that not knowing everything is alright is a f reeing idea. Through my time learning to become a teacher, I have written down everything. From strategies and advice, to things to avoid doing.

This has helped me because there needs to be structure in a classroom as well as fun. Having the 10 strategies and methods already lined up leaves room for flexibility and change. That is something that is needed in a classroom. Bilingual Superpowers Q1: B enefits of graphic novels? Graphic novels are an excellent resource because they can enable the student to compreh end English skills appropriate to their level in combination with visual aids. These visual aids enable the students to better comprehend and associate the written words with the images,, not only providing context to the situations which these words are u tilized (ex/ pragmatics), but also enabling the teacher to understand the foreign language the student is expressing in so the teacher can use the language to springboard into greater and more complex English comprehension. For example, in the video provid ed, Ms. Ballantyne -Barry reads student -made graphic novels which have mandarin written in them, which she does not know. However, she begins to understand because of the pictures drawn. Graphic novels, thus, benefit both the student, in comprehension and f luidity of their linguistic resources, and the teacher with understanding their students. Describe the process Ms. Ballantyne -Berry uses with her graphic novel assignment. Q2: P rocess of the assignment In the video, Ms. Ballantyne -Berry demonstrates how sh e utilizes graphic novels in her class. She started the process by having the students do notebook writing. The teacher gave each of them a checklist that they copied into their notebooks. This checklist had all the things that they needed to write about i n their notebooks so that they will not forget. In the video, the viewer can see that the students wrote some parts in English and some parts in Chinese. This is because the teacher allows them to express themselves in ways that they are comfortable with b ut also 11 encouraging them to challenge themselves. The students used English for structures the teacher already taught them. Teachers need to allow students to do this because it is a start. It is a start in reading comprehension and comprehension in genera l. If it is easier for students to use their home language to demonstrate their knowledge on complex ideas, then teachers should give them that option so that they can still show what they know. This then serves as a drawing board of where you start buildi ng their English skills. The teacher also gave them a drafting notebook where the students can draw pictures to illustrate their ideas and convert those into writing samples. Q3: L anguage repertoire as a resource Ms. Ballantyne -Berry understands that students think and process aloud in the language that comes more naturally to them. She also understands that a student’s personality ties into how they use language. For instance, a student in her class likes to be silly and while he mainly speaks to his friends in English, he learns how to express his silly ideas in English and says them aloud in English and that too is a start to language building. Through Ms. Ballantyne -Berry’s graphic novel project, she drew on culturally relevant and historical texts for the students, she encouraged students to use English for things she has taught them and allows them to use their home language to demonstrate more complex levels of thinking. She also gave students the opportunity to develop their new language naturall y and process things in ways that came the most natural to them. Knowing your Students Q1: A quote applied to a teacher’s work The quote Ms. Chapman -Santiago reads from Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird is “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, you 12 climb in his skin and walk around in it”. This quote applies to all teachers because it reminds them to have empathy with their students. It reminds them that no t all backgrounds are the same and not every student comes from a happy home. This also applies to learning a whole new language. Teachers need to understand the difficulties that arise with that and how to best help their students feel comfortable to lear n it. However, if a student feels overlooked, underappreciated, or misunderstood, they might be less likely to want to learn. Q2: Body language and facial expressions, as well as an example It is important for teachers to watch out for cues their students make through facial expressions and body language. A student can be having a bad day, issues in school or at home, or they might be feeling sick. More often than not, facial expressions and body language depict these feelings and can let the teacher know t hat something is wrong with the student. In order for a student to remain focused in school and in their learning, they need to be motivated to do so.

As teachers, we need to develop a warm and caring classroom environment where students are welcomed to ex press how they are feeling. When I was a student, I remember feeling extremely sad about the loss of a family member the weekend prior. It was a very emotional time and I can say that my attention was not on schoolwork that day. However, like many students , I wear my emotions on my face. A teacher noticed this and was the only one who asked me what was wrong. I did not go into detail, but simply saying what had happened out loud and expressing my sadness, I immediately felt better and was able to continue t he day more calmly. However, this was in the middle of the day and I remember not being as focused on my work during the morning hours. In short, it is extremely important to check on your students because a key component to learning is an open and clear m ind. When a student’s mind is consumed by something else, it can be really difficult 13 to focus on anything else. Q3: A teacher gain of home language There is more to what a teacher does than simply teaching the students information and having them demonstra te their knowledge in some way. There is a relationship that needs to be built and a level of trust the student needs to have. By encouraging students to use their home language, they are better able to express how they feel to a teacher. Students are allo wed to have bad days and feel their feelings. Often, if a teacher does not ask the student how they are and make assumptions, that could lead to an unsuccessful and unproductive day. It is best to address a student’s feelings and ask how they are doing tha n ignoring it altogether. If a teacher does not understand the student’s main language, there are a variety of tools teachers can use today to fix that problem. The teacher in the video used google translate to communicate with her students.

By letting stu dents communicate in their own language, teachers can find out what they really know, how much they know, and where to start in their English language instruction as well. Q4: Practical ways to incorporate home language as a scaffold, the role of L1 in sec ond language acquisition , and the L2 acquisition theory tied to language techniques (linguistics) Teachers need to start where the student is at linguistically. Teachers cannot expect students to get from point A to point D. There are steps that need to be taken, and through scaffolded instruction where the student is building on a firm foundation, they are more likely to be successful. As the teacher in the video pointed out, it is important to figure out the student’s proficiency levels within their home language as well. There can be issues there too that need to be addressed. Teachers can start with teaching vocabulary outright with the translated word and definition. It is important to not ignore the student’s home language, but let it grow as their Eng lish is growing. Therefore, teachers need to align instruction to the students’ English and 14 home language proficiency. This means that students may need to have a structured response, pictorial choices, or concrete manipulatives in order to participate in the instruction. Structured responses can be seen as sentence starters, graphic organizers, a chart, or even questions posed with a multiple - choice format. As the student’s English improves, these supports can be loosened or even removed. Providing these supports give students the opportunity to be successful in the academic content while they are learning the language. The Benefits of Bilingual Education Q1: “Push for more” in promoting their students’ learning Some teachers do a wonderful job of facilitating the learning of ELL students in the typical American classroom. However, there are proven benefits for students to be enrolled in a bilingual/multilingual program and curriculum. A bilingual classroom invites the whole child and helps them in every area of learning. It promotes growth not in one but in both languages the students speak. The goal is for students to be bilingual and biliterate. This means that students are not only able to read and write in English, but in Spanish (or another lan guage) as well. When teachers “push for more” they are moving towards the most beneficial outcome for the students. The best outcome is for the student to come out of school being bilingual and being able to express themselves in a variety of ways in both languages. Q2: The impact of the book on students The book has most likely impacted their self -perception of their identity, especially in relation to their cultural and linguistic identity. Names are one of the most potent devices of identification availa ble. The way we refer to ourselves and allow others to refer to us defines us and establishes a set of power over the named/unnamed individual. The students in Ms. Aponte’s classroom are immigrants or have parents who are recent immigrants. Their establish ed identity 15 and roots have undergone a trauma. They no longer live in a country that treats their language or traditions as natural. Often their connection to the cultural and linguistic identities are tethered in their families and their name. When studen ts with “difficult” names, like Jorge, they become “George” instead, thereby stripping one of their final cultural identifiers. Students now further separate their identities between what their family calls them and what they’re called at school, sending t he subliminal message that their culture is not welcome at school. Instead, by teaching students that their “name is Jorge on both sides of the river”, students learn to value their cultural identity and reaffirm it in making sure their name is correctly p ronounced and not lost to assimilation. These immigrants or children of immigrants regain certainty in their cultural identity. The book also contains poems that help the students highlight the use of translanguaging. As mentioned earlier. Ttranslanguaging is a great strategy that helps develop the use of language in a more natural way. Through this activity, students are analyzing language and working to build a better understanding of them. Q3: The goal of bilingual education programs and the impact of bi lingual education programs on English speakers Bilingual education programs encompass a great philosophy and ideology, which is to attend to the whole child and that includes their background. The goal is for the students to come out of school both bilingu al and biliterate. This means they can both read, write, and speak fluently both in their new language and old language. Another goal of bilingual programs is for the students not to lose their home language. Often, especially when the students are young, there is such an emphasis on learning English, not only for school but for socializing as well. This can lead to a loss of the home language altogether because it is not being used as much. This is something bilingual programs want to avoid. Bilingual prog rams are also great for immigrant 16 families and parents to get involved in the school and the student’s education. When parents feel they can communicate and express their expectations for their child, they feel more comfortable with sending them there ever y day. They also get to address things that may not be seen in school as well as help the teachers work on skills both at home and at school. Overall, it is a great idea to enroll students both from non -English speaking backgrounds and English -speaking bac kgrounds in a bilingual school. It facilitates learning and understanding in both language forms and can be a great asset to students in the future.