Celebrating  Linguistic  Diversity  Conference  Day  1  -­‐  April  30,  2014  

Abstracts  of  Papers,  Workshops  and  Posters    

Names  of  Presenters    (Alphabetically  by  first  presenters’  last  name)  

Name  of  Presentation   Abstract      

Academic  Advisory  Committee  of  Hinoki  International  School,  &  Eastern  Michigan  University    

Empowering  students,  parents,  teachers,  and  school  in  two-­‐way  English-­‐Japanese  immersion  school  in  Michigan    

Each  individual  student’s  success  is  the  main  agenda  for  schools.  School  programs  that  are  committed  to  caring,  developing,  and  engaging  all  students  at  all  levels  are  crucial  for  inclusion.  A  key  part  of  that  commitment  is  to  secure,  maintain  and  develop  diverse  students  and  communities  that  can  help  us  meet  the  continually  evolving  needs  of  our  society.  Research  was  undertaken  at  Hinoki  International  School,  a  two-­‐way  English-­‐Japanese  immersion  school,  to  investigate  educational  processes,  pedagogy,  and  implementation.  Findings  offer  insights  for  educating  globally  competent  citizens.  This  presentation  shows  video-­‐recorded  daily  school  life  to  demonstrate  how  students,  parents,  teachers  and  the  school  itself  are  empowered  within  the  environment  of  the  school  and  English-­‐Japanese  language  community  in  Michigan,  USA.  

Al-­‐Alawri,  Mohammed  Ali   Bilingual  programs  in  the  College  of  Arts  in  Oman:  Three  case  studies  

This  study  summarizes  an  evaluation  of  three  bilingual  programs  in  the  Departments  of  Information  Studies,  Mass  Communication,  and  Tourism  at  Sultan  Qaboos  University  in  Oman.  Data  included  student  and  teacher  surveys  on  language  policy  and  the  application  of  bilingualism  in  these  departments.  Interviews  with  the  students  and  teachers  were  carried  out  to  examine  their  perceptions  on  the  advantages  and  challenges  of  these  bilingual  programs.  Findings  suggest  that  bilingual  programs  in  these  departments  need  clearly  defined  language  policy  justifying  the  shift  to  a  bilingual  program,  and  need  to  show  evidence  that  teaching  a  particular  course  in  English  has  improved  achievement.  Additionally,  the  language  of  assessment  must  be  aligned  to  the  language  of  instruction  and  to  the  course  objectives  and  to  the  course  materials,  and  it  is  necessary  to  determine  whether  students  are  actually  ready  to  take  specific  content  courses  in  English  and  whether  their  students  have  both  BICS  and  CALP  or  BICS  only.  Conclusions  suggest  bilingual  programs  should  have  a  clear  support  plan  for  the  shift  from  an  Arabic  medium  instruction  to  an  English  medium  instruction.  

Alstad,  Gunhild  Tomter   Teacher  beliefs  about  linguistic  diversity  in  early  childhood  education  in  Norway      

There  is  increasing  linguistic  diversity  in  early  childhood  education  in  Norway  (Statistics  Norway,  2013).  Due  to  the  combination  of  caretaking  and  instructional  character  and  tradition  in  this  early  phase  of  schooling,  language  teaching  is  supposed  to  take  place  in  both  formal  and  informal  settings  and  activities.  This  presentation  describes  findings  from  a  case  study  of  two  teachers’  beliefs  and  practices  about  language  diversity  in  early  childhood  education.    

The  data  consist  of  interviews  and  video-­‐recorded  observations  of  teacher-­‐child  interactions.  One  of  the  teachers,  collaborating  with  a  bilingual  teacher  assistant,  clearly  separates  L1  and  L2  teaching,  as  

both  takes  place  in  planned,  formal  settings.  Her  practices  seem  close  to  a  monolingual  instructional  approach  (Cummins,  2007).  The  other  teacher,  despite  not  sharing  the  children’s  L1,  uses  all  linguistic  resources  available  in  her  class.  She  integrates  language  teaching  throughout  the  day,  mainly  improvised  and  conducted  in  informal  settings  like  play  and  mealtimes.  Her  explicit  focus  is  to  support  the  children's  multilingual  identities  by  involving  all  the  children,  similar  to  identity  texts  (Cummins  &  Early,  2011).  The  findings  are  used  to  discuss  conditions  for  linguistic  diversity  in  education  involving  young  language  learners  and  how  such  research  serve  as  a  knowledge  base  for  teacher  education.  

Aravossitas,  Themistoklis     Empowering  heritage  language  education  through  sister  class  networks  

Canada  is  often  acknowledged  globally  as  a  multicultural  nation,  where  multilingualism  is  celebrated  and  promoted.  At  the  educational  level,  the  country’s  non-­‐official  tongues,  also  known  as  Heritage  or  International  languages  (HL),  are  primarily  sustained  by  community  organizations  that  operate  without  any  substantial  financial  and  institutional  support.  Educators  and  administrators  of  HL  community-­‐based  programs  face  various  challenges  of  organizational  and  pedagogical  nature.  My  action  research  study  explores  the  pedagogical  implications  of  online  learning  networks  on  Heritage  Language  Education.    Having  initiated  the  involvement  of  a  Toronto-­‐based  Greek  HL  program  in  a  sister  class  project,  I  present  the  experiences  of  students  and  teachers,  from  different  parts  of  the  world,  who  collaborated  during  a  school  year  and  were  rewarded  for  their  efforts  with  a  visit  to  their  parents’  homeland.  The  classes  involved  used  Jim  Cummins’  Pedagogical  Framework  for  Second  Language  Learning  in  the  context  of  Computer-­‐Supported  Sister  Class  Networks,  as  they  engaged  in  synchronous  and  asynchronous  language  activities.  Through  systematic  observation  and  analysis  of  the  participants’  reflections,  the  paper  demonstrates  ways  of  empowering  heritage  language  education  and  creating  opportunities  for  authentic  and  effective  language  use,  thus  addressing  some  of  the  main  challenges  for  HL  learners.  

Arrieta  Carrascal,  Adolfo      

A  case  study  of  EFL  Teachers’  positional  identities  at  Universidad  de  Sucre  

This  paper  presents  some  preliminary  findings  of  a  case  study  on  EFL  teachers’  positional  identities  in  classroom  discourse.  The  participants  were  two  teacher  educators  and  their  students  in  a  foreign  language  program  in  a  public  university  in  Sincelejo,  Sucre,  Colombia.  The  main  purpose  of  this  study  was  to  interpret  the  way  teachers’  positional  identities  emerged  in  the  co-­‐creation  of  learning  opportunities,  inter-­‐subjective  positioning,  and  imagined  identities.  Autobiographies,  classroom  observation,  and  focus  groups  were  used  to  gather  the  data.  The  data  was  analyzed  and  discussed  using  a  complex  analytical  framework  which  combined  micro  and  macro  discourse  analysis  of  classroom  discourse  (Bucholtz  &  Kira,  2005;  Christie,  2002;  Gee,  2000).  Preliminary  results  show  the  emergence  of  teachers  positioning  is  highly  influenced  by  institutional  identities  underwritten  by  the  National  Bilingual  Policies  and  by  Global  pedagogical  practices  turned  into  karaoke  pedagogies.    Affective  positioning  is  also  important  in  students’  investment  and  in  building  their  imagined  identities  (Cummins,  1996;  Norton,  2000;  Ushioda,  2009).  Pre-­‐service  and  in-­‐service  teachers  should  assume  a  more  critical  pedagogical  positioning  in  classroom  interaction  so  that  their  identities  can  be  critically  authored  by  themselves.  

Babaee,  Naghmeh     Bilingual  development  and  social  identity  construction  of  Iranian  heritage  

The  way  people  understand  themselves  and  are  viewed  by  others  impacts  their  activities  (Holland,  Lachicotte,  Skinner  &  Cain,  1998).  Educational  researchers  have  found  that  teachers  and  students  assign,  claim,  and  reject  identities  in  relation  to  other  teachers  and  students  in  mainstream  and  bilingual  

language  learners  in  Canada      

educational  contexts  (Goldstein,  2003;  Harklau,  2000;  Lee,  Hill-­‐Bonnet  &  Raley,  2011;  Reeves,  2009).  While  previous  studies  have  contributed  to  an  understanding  of  identity  negotiation  in  educational  contexts,  little  research  has  been  performed  on  potential  impacts  of  students’  identity  negotiations  on  their  language  use  patterns  at  public  schools.  To  address  this  gap,  this  study,  part  of  a  larger  critical  case  study,  focused  on  identity  negotiation  and  heritage  and  English  language  use  patterns  of  six  Iranian  immigrant  students  in  public  schools  in  Canada.  Data  were  collected  through  in-­‐depth,  semi-­‐structured  interviews,  descriptive  and  reflective  field  notes,  and  the  participants’  journal  writing.  Results  revealed  that  the  students  avoided  using  Farsi  at  public  schools  because  of  the  English  only  policy  of  the  school  and  peer  pressure.  Moreover,  according  to  the  students,  it  was  more  convenient  for  them  to  speak  English,  rather  than  Farsi.  They,  however,  strategically  used  Farsi  at  public  schools  to  claim  powerful  identity  positions  vis-­‐à-­‐vis  non-­‐Farsi  speaking  students  by  deliberately  excluding  them  from  conversation.  Recommendations  for  public  school  teachers  and  policy  makers  to  foster  bilingual  development  and  identity  construction  for  immigrant  students  are  presented  at  the  end.  

Bahry,  Stephen   EQAO  and  Ontario  Secondary  School  Literacy  Test  2013  as  a  window  on  Toronto  high  schools’  language  ecology    

 

This  paper  examines  Toronto  high  schools’  language  ecology.  Data  is  drawn  from  the  EQAO  2013  (n.d.)  Grade  10  Ontario  Secondary  School  Literacy  Test.  Information  is  provided  about  Toronto  high  schools  in  terms  of  students’  first  language  other  than  English,  home  language  use,  OSSLT  success/failure  rates  and  students’  English  literacy  practices.  Schools  are  divided  into  types  by  student  language/literacy  characteristics  and  juxtaposed  with  each  other  and  Hulchanski’s  (2008)  socioeconomic  zones,  and  data  on  other  education  variables  (TDSB,  2006;  McAndrew  et  al.,  2010).  This  provides  a  tentative  picture  of  Toronto’s  high  school  ecology  of  language  and  literacy.  Cummins  conversational/academic  proficiency  distinction  and  interdependence  hypothesis  suggest  L1  academic  proficiency  supports  L2  academic  proficiency,  and  would  predict  (ceteris  paribus)  that  schools  where  non-­‐English  L1  students  also  have  L1  academic  proficiency,  L2  (English)  academic  proficiency  and  OSSLT  pass  rates  would  be  relatively  strong.  We  can  identify  schools  with  a)  high  non-­‐English  L1  student  composition;  2)  high  non-­‐English  or  mixed  home  language  use;  3)  high  frequency  and  range  of  English  literacy  practices;  and  4)  high  OSSLT  scores.    In  such  schools,  we  may  hypothesize  an  association  with  home  and/or  school  support  for  L1  conversational  and  academic  proficiency,  and  additive  bilingualism.  Such  schools  would  be  fruitful  sites  for  further  investigation  of  home  and  school  language  practices.  

Burke,  Ann   Apples  &  apps:  Using  multiliteracies  to  connect  children,  teachers  and  community  through  digital  tools  and  tablets  

In  the  past  few  years  there  has  been  a  massive  uptake  in  mobile  phones,  net  books,  digital  slates  (iPods,  playbooks)  and  other  handheld  computing  tools  (iPod  touch,  kindle  readers).  These  digital  tools  have  extended  to  some  of  the  very  youngest  of  children.  However,  while  these  tools  and  engagements  grow  in  their  ubiquity,  it  is  perceived  that  these  new  mobile  tools  do  not  offer  children  anything  much  more  than  social  networking  and  gaming  (Burke  &  Marsh,  2013;  Marsh,  2010;  Rideout,  2011).  This  presentation  focuses  on  a  one-­‐  year  study  in  which  an  identified  literacy  challenged  school  and  neighborhood  after-­‐school  program  worked  together  to  build  and  enhance  a  grade  3  classroom  digital  skills  (Barton  &  Hamilton,  1998;  Cope  &  Kalantzis,  2000;    Lankshear  &  Knobel,  2006;  Burnett  &  Merchant,  2011).    The  paper  will  look  specifically  at  how  the  teacher  implemented  a  multiliteracies  pedagogy  to  engage  new  

digital  learning  for  both  the  children  and  parents  in  the  school  community.  Byrne,  Andrew,  Linda  Cundy,  Kristin  Snoddon,  David  Mason,  Heather  Gibson,  Brent  Novodvorski,    Norma  -­‐Jean  Taylor  &  Linda  Wall    

Honouring  Canada’s  American  Sign  Language  research    

This  workshop  highlights  the  impact  of  the  American  Sign  Language  (ASL)  community  of  educators  and  researchers.  Presenters  from  across  Canada  will  address  the  ways  in  which  their  research,  teaching,  and  curriculum  development  has  influenced  by  Dr.  Cummins’  work  related  to  ASL  literacy  and  literature  and  ASL-­‐English  bilingual  education.  The  workshop  will  highlight  the  following  discussions:  

• The  use  of  critical  pedagogy  in  teaching  ASL  poetry;    • The  relationship  between  ASL  literacy  and  ASL  literature;  • ASL  as  a  Legislated  Subject  of  Study  within  the  pedagogical  framework  of  the  Ontario  Education  

System;  • ASL  curriculum  development  in  Alberta;  • Research  in  teaching  for  transfer  in  ASL-­‐English  education;  • Research  and  theory  in  inclusive  pedagogy  as  it  relates  to  Deaf  children  and  their  families  and  

communities.  Chan,  Ivy   The  promotion  of  

international  education  and  international  languages  programs  in  the  21st  century  –  challenges  and  solutions    

In  a  global  educational  environment  that  increasingly  directs  students  and  staff  to  look  beyond  the  classroom,  the  district,  and  one’s  own  country,  the  promotion  of  International  Education  programs  and  International  languages  is  gaining  momentum  and  significance.  One  of  the  challenges  in  this  exciting  development  is  finding  ways  to  engage  students  who  are  from  very  diverse  cultural,  linguistic  and  educational  backgrounds.  Some  of  the  students  have  benefitted  from  cutting-­‐edge  Differentiated  Instructional  strategies  and  technology-­‐assisted  learning;  some  have  thrived  under  more  traditional  teaching  methods;  some  are  more  comfortable  with  activity/discovery  based  learning;  and  some  require  a  more  formal  learning  environment.    All  are  desperate  to  succeed  and  do  well.  Faced  with  these  challenges,  teachers  and  administrators  strive  to  find  creative  solutions  that  will  engage  all  students  with  various  intelligences  and  learning  styles  to  maximize  their  educational  experience.  Through  video  clips  and  staff  and  student  stories,  this  presentation  shares  one  administrator’s  journey  and  seeks  to  engage  the  audience  in  finding  relevance  to  their  particular  teaching  environment  and    ways  that  will  enhance  it.  

Chen,  Meihua,  &  Shanhua  Zhu    

An  empirical  study  of  web-­‐based  autonomous  learning    

Aligning  with  new  developments  in  higher  education  in  China,  the  2007  College  English  Curriculum  Requirement  was  issued  in  2007  stressed  fostering  learners’  integrated  English  abilities  and  enhancing  learners’  autonomous  learning  (AL).  Informed  by  three  major  schools  of  educational  psychology-­‐-­‐-­‐Humanism,  Cognitive  Theory  and  Constructivism,  Holec  first  put  forward  the  concept  of  ‘learner  autonomy’.  The  three  theories  emphasize  that  education  should  center  on  learners  who  are  endowed  with  the  capacity  to  control  their  own  learning.  Computer  technology  in  China  broadens  the  methodology  of  English  teaching  and  learning  and  creates  an  excellent  environment  for  AL.    

This  paper  investigated  how  the  cognitive  styles  of  field  dependence  (FD)  and  field  independence  (FI)  affect  the  achievement  levels  of  autonomous  learners.  70  freshmen  from  Southeast  University  were  chosen  as  the  subjects  of  the  study.  Through  analyzing  data  collected  from  students’  questionnaires,  interviews,  students’  online  diaries  and  classroom  observation,  we  depict  the  correlation  between  students’  FDI  and  Web-­‐based  Autonomous  Learning  (WAL)  performance,  the  influence  of  FDI  upon  WAL,  

and  try  to  find  appropriate  learning  strategies  for  different  FDI  students  in  their  WAL  process  thus  promoting  their  learning  efficiency.  

Chen,  Meihua,  &  Shanhua  Zhu    

An  empirical  study  on  the  integration  of  form  and  meaning  in  the  college  communicative  classroom    

Second  language  teaching  in  China  has  shifted  from  emphasizing  the  structural  properties  of  the  target  language  (Focus  on  Forms)  to  the  focus  on  the  communicative  competence  (Focus  on  Meaning).  However,  the  former  ignores  communicative  fluency  and  the  later  overlooks  language  accuracy.  Linguistic  integration  of  form  and  meaning  (Focus  on  Form-­‐FonF)  balances  language  fluency  and  accuracy.  Taking  the  low  output  ability  of  college  students  in  China  into  consideration,  FonF  is  assumed  to  be  helpful  for  the  college  English  teaching  and  learning.    

This  empirical  study  investigated  the  general  effectiveness  and  efficiency  of  FonF  and  how  FonF  is  accomplished  in  the  English  as  Foreign  Language  (EFL)  classroom  teaching  in  China.  Students  in  the  experimental  group  received  FonF  instruction  while  the  control  group  received  meaning-­‐focused  instruction.  Two-­‐month  experimental  treatments  involving  60  non-­‐English-­‐major  freshmen  from  Southeast  University  were  observed  and  recorded  by  digital  recording  device.  With  the  pre-­‐test  and  post-­‐test  designs,  the  authors  conducted  qualitative  and  quantitative  analyses  and  found  that  FonF  instruction  contributed  to  students’  reading  and  writing  abilities,  so  FonF  is  indeed  conducive  to  improving  students’  linguistic  accuracy  and  communicative  fluency.  

Chumak-­‐Horbatsch,  Roma   Creating  identity  texts  with  young  immigrant  children:  Success  and  challenges  

This  presentation  shares  preliminary  findings  from  a  collaborative  action  research  project  called  Linguistically  Appropriate  Practice  or  LAP  (Chumak-­‐Horbatsch  2012).  The  study  was  conducted  in  a  unique  Toronto  full  day  Kindergarten  School  located  in  a  high-­‐density  area  inhabited  by  immigrant  families  speaking  26  different  languages.  Broadly  defined  as  products  of  students’  creative  work  or  performances  (Cummins  &  Early  2011)  identity  texts  are  situated  in  the  LAP  study  within  the  Literacy  Engagement  framework  that  highlights  personal  and  academic  long-­‐term  benefits  of  engaging  children  in  meaningful  print  and  book  experiences.  Using  select  LAP  activities,  classroom  teaching  teams  set  the  stage  for  orchestrating  identity  texts  with  children  by  creating  multilingual  pedagogical  spaces  and  validating  children’s  home  languages.  While  some  invitations  to  create  identity  texts  such  as  bilingual  name  cards,  dual  language  greeting  cards,  and  labeling  in  the  home  language  were  met  with  enthusiasm,  many  children  were  unwilling  to  participate,  leaving  teachers  both  surprised  and  unsure  of  how  to  proceed.  This  reluctance,  explained  as  age-­‐specific  and  directly  related  to  young  children’s  cognitive-­‐linguistic  capabilities,  tells  us  that  our  understanding  of  identity  texts  is  incomplete  and  that  teachers  need  ongoing  support  as  they  implement  this  pedagogical  tool.  

Corcoran,  James  &  Tiffany  Ng  

The  use  of  monolingual  and  bilingual  pedagogies  in  the  foreign  language  classroom:  Examining  teacher  perspectives    

First  language  (L1)  use  in  the  Second/Foreign  language  (L2)  classroom  has  long  been  a  polemic  issue  in  both  academic  and  practitioner  discourses.  While  some  of  the  most  frequently  employed  teaching  methods  over  the  past  decades  have  suggested  that  target-­‐language-­‐only  instruction  is  beneficial  to  language  learning,  much  research  has  discredited  monolingual  (e.g.  English-­‐only)  instruction  by  outlining  the  myriad  benefits  of  bilingual  pedagogies  (Cook,  2001;  Corcoran,  2011;  Ng,  2012;  Wei,  2011).  Despite  these  findings,  many  monolingual  instruction  methods  continue  to  prevail  in  second/foreign  language  (SL/FL)  classrooms.  

Our  research  examines  the  underlying  factors  behind  teachers’  decisions  to  use  monolingual  or  bilingual  instruction  within  two  FL  teaching/learning  contexts:  English  as  a  Foreign  Language  in  Brazil  and  Chinese  as  a  Foreign  Language  in  Canada.  Interview  data  reveals  clear  parallels  between  contexts  in  the  factors  contributing  to  teacher  decisions  to  use  L1-­‐only  or  a  mix  of  L1  and  L2  in  their  FL  classrooms.      

Cummins,  Jim,  Rahat  Naqvi,  Burcu  Yaman  Ntelioglou,  Jennifer  Fannin,  Mike  Montanera,  Jennifer  Carey,  &  Alison  Brooks  

School  improvement  in  a  multilingual  urban  context:  The  perspective  of  students,  teachers  administrators  and  parents  

This  paper  will  present  findings  from  a  Collaborative  Inquiry  Project  in  an  inner  city  elementary  school.  We  will  be  sharing  students’,  teachers’,  administrators’  and  parents’  perspectives  on  better  serving  multilingual  students  in  an  inner  city  elementary  school.      At  the  time  of  the  project  this  school  had  a  large  population  of  recently  arrived  Roma  students,  who  were  experiencing  serious  language,  literacy  and  social  challenges.  Working  collaboratively  with  elementary  students  as  well  as  their  parents  and  their  teachers  (mainstream  and  library  teachers),  the  goal  of  this  project  was  to  employ  research-­‐based  pedagogical  strategies  and  parental  involvement  activities  that  aimed  to  support  language  and  literacy  learning  and  to  foster  parental  and  community  engagement.    More  specifically,  two  collaborative  projects  were  developed.  The  Multilingual  and  Multimodal  Approach  to  Literacy  Teaching  and  Learning  Project  focused  on  the  ways  in  which  drama  and  new  technologies  might  facilitate  the  production  of  multilingual  identity  texts.  The  second  project  was  entitled  Parental  Engagement  in  Multicultural  Awareness.  As  part  of  this  project,  parents  wrote  stories  based  on  their  own  life  experiences  and  shared  these  stories  with  each  other  and  with  their  own  children  and  other  students  from  the  school.  The  implications  of  the  pedagogical  approaches  we  adopted,  along  with  language  planning  and  overall  school  improvement,  will  be  discussed.  

Dakin,  Justine  Claire   Welcoming  newly  arrived  pupils:  A  critical  ethnography  of  one  school’s  journey  

Increased  globalisation  has  led  to  greater  numbers  of  migrants,  including  Newly  Arrived  (NA)  pupils  and  their  families,  moving  to  the  United  Kingdom.  This  critical  ethnographic  study  examined  how  a  particular  primary  school  adapted  to  meet  the  needs  of  a  growing  number  of  NA  pupils.  Twelve  children,  five  families  and  eleven  members  of  staff  participated  directly  in  the  year-­‐long  research.  Three  NA  pupils  became  a  particular  focus  of  the  study  in  order  to  explore  the  inclusion  of  7-­‐11  year  olds  with  little  or  no  English  into  a  demanding  Key  Stage  2  curriculum.    Using  a  wide  variety  of  ethnographic  data  including  observations,  interviews  and  documentation,  the  research  drew  on  Cummins’  (2001)  theory  of  Collaborative  Empowerment  to  examine  how  different  relations  of  power  between  pupils,  teachers  and  the  wider  community  assigned  identities  to  participants  through  school  discourses.  Vignettes  were  used  as  part  of  the  research  methodology  to  tell  stories  emerging  from  the  data.  As  discourse  is  socially  constructed  and  always  ideological  (Gee  2012),  Critical  Discourse  Analysis  (CDA)  identified  interactions  that  defined  what  it  means  to  be  newly  arrived.  It  also  revealed  contradictions  in  school  policies  and  practices  towards  NA  pupils  that  were  influenced  by  political,  social,  cultural,  linguistic  and  economic  factors.    

The  research  found  that  while  individual  teachers  made  a  difference  to  NA  pupils  by  acknowledging  languages  and  cultures  in  classroom  practices,  whole-­‐school  discourses  were  driven  by  political,  mono-­‐cultural  language  ideologies.    A  distinct  language  barrier  existed  between  some  families  and  the  school  that  silenced  many  parents  and  positioned  them  as  disinterested  or  inadequate.  However,  this  research  found  that  parents  were  far  from  passive  and  made  choices  to  actively  help  their  children.  

Pupils  themselves  were  agentive,  negotiating  and  contesting  identities  assigned  to  them  during  daily  classroom  interactions.    In  conclusion  the  research  recommended  increased  teacher  training  to  raise  awareness  of  EAL  pedagogy  and  to  challenge  existing,  unequal  relations  of  power  between  pupils,  families  and  school.  It  also  recommended  that  NA  pupils  received  some  initial,  well-­‐planned  language  teaching  in  small  groups  to  make  them  feel  safe  and  secure.  Finally,  it  called  for  bilingualism  in  any  language  to  be  valued  as  a  critical  skill  for  communication  in  the  twenty  first  century.  

Dekker,  Diane   Understanding  failure  of  dominant-­‐language  submersion  in  the  Philippines  through  Cummins'  Interdependence  Hypothesis:  Insights  for  Canadian  and  North  American  schools    

Academic  researchers  typically  investigate  locally  situated  problems  in  order  to  provide  classroom  teachers  with  suggestions  for  improving  instruction  to  better  meet  the  needs  of  learners.  Research  conducted  in  Western  contexts  is  often  applied  broadly  around  the  globe,  though  not  typically  contextualized  to  fit  other  situations,  which  often  results  in  unforeseen  difficulties.  One  example  of  broad  implementation  of  highly  valued  Western  practices  is  immersion  education,  seen  as  a  best  practice  for  developing  second  language  proficiency.  The  implementation  of  immersion  methodologies  in  the  Philippines  has  not  produced  the  same  results  as  those  reported  in  Canada  resulting  in  reclassifying  immersion  as  submersion.    This  paper  will  examine  possible  reasons  for  the  outcomes  of  immersion  education  in  the  Philippines  and  how  theory  may  be  more  practical  for  identifying  local  second  language  teaching  practices.  Several  of  Cummins’  theories  contribute  well  to  planning  education  approaches  in  developing  contexts  like  the  Philippines.  In  particular  the  Interdependence  Hypothesis  and  the  BICS/CALP  differentiation  provide  a  strong  framework  from  which  to  develop  appropriate  classroom  practices  while  addressing  positive  identity  development  among  learners,  teachers  and  whole  communities.  Toronto  teachers  will  benefit  from  understanding  the  educational  system  in  the  Philippines  in  order  to  better  understand  their  Filipino  immigrant  students’  English  language  proficiency.  

de  Azevedo,  Rogério  Tenório   New  literacies  in  Pro  Evolution  Soccer  

 

This  paper  argues  how  video  games  encourage  the  gamer  to  engage  in  new  literacies  practices.  Based  upon  the  findings  of  Gee  (2003),  Lankshear  &  Knobel  (2011),  and  Squire  (2011),  we  studied  the  soccer  video  game  called  Pro  Evolution  Soccer  that  virtualizes  the  most  played  sport  in  Brazil.  We  want  to  identify  the  literacies  necessary  to  play  and  understand  such  game  and  to  achieve  this  goal  we  allowed  four  students  to  play  video  games  at  a  public  school,  where  we  observed  how  the  gamers  overcome  the  obstacles  of  the  game.  In  preliminary  conclusion  we  found  that  soccer  video  games  demand  immersion  and  engagement  of  the  gamer  and  that  soccer  games  carry  out  a  range  of  principles  such  as  cooperation,  challenge,  competition,  and  customization  that  can  help  teacher  improve  their  teaching  practices.  Many  of  the  learning  principles  that  emerge  from  video  gaming  have  relation  could  and  should  be  applied  to  schools.  

Eamer,  Allyson   Promoting  bilingualism  in  the  elementary  school  classroom  

This  paper  represents  one  teacher’s  effort  to  promote  the  value  of  linguistic  diversity  in  an  elementary  school  classroom  through  an  integrated  program  that  covered  provincial  curriculum  requirements  for  three  different  subject  areas  (Ministry  of  Education  2005,  2006,  2013).  Given  the  well-­‐documented  need  to  maintain  the  first  language  (L1)  while  learning  English  (Cummins,  1980,  1989,  1994),  and  the  mounting  evidence  of  the  cognitive  benefits  of  bilingualism  (Bialystok,  2001),  the  teacher  (who  is  also  the  author  of  this  paper)  strived  to  promote  pride  in  the  ability  to  speak  more  than  one  language.    The  program  was  

taught  over  a  4  week  period  in  a  classroom  of  27  children,  21  of  whom  had  a  language  other  than  English  as  their  L1.  A  pre  and  post-­‐program  survey  was  conducted  to  gauge  the  extent  to  which  bilingual  and  monolingual  children  valued  bilingualism.  The  results,  which  were  analyzed  by  the  students  themselves  as  part  of  the  math  curriculum  requirements,  indicated  that  bilingual  students  were  less  impacted  by  the  program  than  were  the  monolingual  students,  with  only  slight  differences  in  their  responses  to  the  two  surveys.  The  monolingual  students,  on  the  other  hand,  showed  significant  increases  in  their  understanding  of  the  value  of  being  able  to  speak  two  or  more  languages.    

El-­‐Fiki,  Hana   The  role  of  first  language  in  second  language  and  literacy  development:  Insights  from  Arabic/English  transitional  school  programs    

Research  has  highlighted  the  centrality  of  students’  prior  knowledge  to  their  subsequent  learning.  In  the  development  of  second  language  (L2)  and  literacy  skills,  students’  first  language  (L1)  is  seen  to  provide  a  platform  upon  which  they  can  rely  in  their  learning.  However,  the  use  of  target-­‐language-­‐only  approaches  to  teaching  is  a  common  practice  in  the  field.    This  paper  highlights  the  role  the  L1  plays  in  the  development  of  L2  and  literacy  skills  for  linguistically  and  culturally  diverse  school-­‐aged  learners.  It  is  based  on  an  Ontario  school  program  evaluation  project  lead  and  supervised  by  professor  Jim  Cummins  of  the  University  of  Toronto,  in  2010.  The  program  is  an  elementary-­‐level  transitional  plan  that  meant  to  provide  students  with  opportunities  for  literacy  development  in  both  English  and  Arabic  while  relying  on  their  home  language  (Arabic).  The  evaluation  aimed  to  assess  students’  progress  in  English  and  Arabic  literacy  skills;  the  perceptions  of  various  stakeholders  of  the  program  as  being  successful;  and  identify  related  challenges.    I  begin  with  an  overview  of  the  literature  on  the  facilitative  role  L1  may  serve  in  L2  teaching  and  learning;  describe  the  projects’  assessment  tools  and  procedures;  then  discuss  the  findings  which  confirm  the  additive  aspects  of  bilingual  education  and  multi-­‐literacy.    Finally,  the  paper  presents  implications  to  teachers,  school  administrators,  teacher  educators,  parents  and  students.  

Engen,  Thor  Ola     The  recognition  of  origin  in  liquid  times  

The  question  of  whether  students’  origins  –  their  (sense  of)  belonging  –  should  be  recognized  by  the  school,  has  –  explicitly  or  implicitly  –  been  on  the  agenda  of  educators  since  the  days  of  Comenius.  Today,  the  assumption  is  widespread,  however,  that  in  so  called  “liquid  times”  identities  have  become  so  unstable,  hybrid  and  plural  that  the  opportunities  for  altering  the  Self  have  become  almost  unlimited.  By  encouraging  the  revival  of  certain  languages  and  cultural  traditions,  which  even  today  might  serve  as  reassurance  for  certain  marginalized  migrant  and  mobile  individuals,  societies  themselves  will  contribute  to  create  groups  (us  vs.  them)  and  thus  label  those  within  and  outside  (Bauman,  2001).  The  implication,  then,  is  that  the  recognition  of  students’  origins  is  no  longer  necessary,  or  even  dysfunctional.  In  the  paper,  I  will  argue,  however,  that  students  from  marginalized  groups  of  different  ethnic  backgrounds  still  need  to  have  their  origins  acknowledged.  However,  as  the  recognition  of  origins  is  just  as  fundamental  for  cognitive  learning  as  it  is  for  identity  formation,  the  need  therefore  applies  to  all  students.  When  it  appears  that  some  students  can  manage  without  having  their  origins  recognized,  it  is  because  recognition  in  many  cases  takes  place  implicitly,  or  on  a  meta  level,  and  therefore  also  concealed.  

Faez,  Farahnaz,  &  Mithila  Vidwans  

Teacher  efficacy  in  linguistically  diverse  

Classrooms  across  Canada  include  a  substantial  number  of  English  language  learners  (ELLs).  Research  attests  to  the  positive  outcomes  of  including  ELLs  in  mainstream  classrooms  and  providing  content  and  

classrooms  

 

language  integrated  instruction.  Influenced  by  the  work  of  Bandura  (1977,  1997)  and  drawing  on  a  growing  body  of  research  examining  teacher  self-­‐efficacy,  (e.g.,  Tschannen-­‐Moran,  Woolfolk  Hoy,  &  Hoy,  1998;  2001;  2007),  this  presentation  reports  on  a  study  examining  teacher  efficacy  to  teach  ELLs  in  mainstream  classrooms.  Based  on  a  comprehensive  literature  review  on  knowledge  base  frameworks  for  teaching  ELLs,  an  examination  of  the  contents  of  English  as  a  second  language  (ESL)  and  additional  qualification  courses  as  well  as  focus  groups  with  ESL  faculty,  teachers  and  supervisors,  this  study  sheds  light  on  what  constitutes  effective  instruction  for  ELLs  in  mainstream  classrooms.  These  findings  formed  the  basis  for  designing  a  questionnaire  to  measure  teacher  efficacy  to  teach  ELLs.  The  findings  have  implications  for  educators  who  are  committed  to  providing  content  and  language  integrated  instruction,  focusing  on  language  and  curriculum  objectives  simultaneously,  to  support  the  increasing  number  of  ELLs  in  mainstream  classrooms.  

Fleming,  Douglas   Diversity  and  justice-­‐oriented  citizenship:  Second  language  students  in  a  secondary  school  setting  

How  do  second  language  students  from  a  variety  of  immigrant  families  experience  diversity,  multiculturalism,  language  learning,  national  icons  and  citizenship?  This  presentation  reports  on  findings  from  a  longitudinal  SSHRC  –funded  collaborative  study  situated  in  a  large  inner-­‐city  secondary  school  in  Ottawa.    

Social-­‐cultural  context  of  the  study  will  be  described  in  the  presentation,  along  with  the  outline  of  the  Deleuezian  concepts  of  becoming,  deterrtorialisation  and  reterritorialisation  that  framed  study,  and  data  collection  and  analysis.    The  author  will  present  the  findings  with  excerpts  arranged  in  the  five  themes  emerged  from  data:  the  challenges  associated  with  coming  to  Canada;  respecting  diversity,  multiculturalism  and  tolerance;  the  key  importance  of  language  learning,  the  ambiguity  of  cultural  icons  and  justice-­‐oriented  citizenship.  The  presentation  will  be  concluded  with  concrete  implication  for  the  theory  and  practice.    

Freitas,  Danielle     Diverse  learners  in  TESL  programs:  A  case  study  of  teacher  learning  

Despite  a  growing  number  of  diverse  trainee  teachers  learning  how  to  teach  in  pre-­‐service  teacher  education  programs,  intensive  introductory  TESL  training  courses  are  still  designed  to  instruct  a  “standard”  type  of  trainee  teacher.  This  research  investigates  how  three  diverse  trainee  teachers  learned  how  to  teach  English  during  such  a  course  in  Southern  Ontario,  Canada.  Using  a  qualitative  holistic  single-­‐case  study,  this  study  explores  the  factors  that  mediated  these  trainee  teachers’  learning  process  as  well  as  the  how  these  factors  influenced  one  another,  either  facilitating  and/or  hindering  trainee  teachers’  success  during  the  course.  An  integrated  conceptual  framework,  formed  by  a  sociocultural  perspective  of  teacher  learning,  a  holistic  view  of  curriculum,  and  a  transformative  pedagogy,  was  employed  as  a  lens  through  which  these  trainee  teachers’  learning  was  more  thoroughly  understood.  Findings  include  how  trainee  teachers’  past  learning  experiences  and  beliefs,  their  prior  teaching  experience,  and  their  classroom  learning  and  practice  mediated  their  learning  process  as  well  as  how  these  factors  interacted,  facilitating  and/or  hindering  their  success  during  the  program.  A  more  inclusive  holistic  TESL  curriculum,  oriented  by  a  transformative  pedagogy,  which  creates  a  personal  space  where  teacher  educator  and  trainee  teachers  negotiate  their  identities  and  generate  knowledge,  is  suggested.  

Fu,  Jing   Which  does  matter?  L1  or   Over  the  past  four  decades,  bilingual  education  and  related  research  has  made  significant  contributions  in  

L2?  Purilingual  speakers’  perception  

Canada.  Research  on  multiliteracies  has  been  been  at  the  forefront  of  scholarship  in  the  last  ten  years,  with  researchers  arguing  that  plurilinguals  have  certain  advantages  from  psycholinguistic  and  sociocultural  perspectives,  whereas  they  may  have  some  weakness  in  language  proficiency  (e.g.  Taylor,  2013).  Regarding  this  controversial  issue,  how  do  plurilingual  students  perceive  their  L1  and  L2?      This  paper  highlights  the  complexities  of  multilingual  adult  speakers’  perceptions  of  language  use  in  a  Canadian  university  context.  Adopting  the  BICS  and  CALP  framework  (Cummins  1987,  2000),I  examine  what  bilingual  university  students  think  about  the  importance  of  the  first  language  (L1)  and  the  second  language  (  L2).  I  will  use  six  case  studies  from  simulated  recall  that  were  conducted  for  this  research.  I  argue  two  points:  1)  language  usage  depends  on  individual  language  proficiency,  learning  competence,  previous  experience,  and  characters;  and  2)  cultural  identity  constructs  within  the  distinctive  community  and  institution.  Furthermore,  the  construct  is  fluid,  dynamic  and  multidimensional  rather  than  fixed.  Pedagogical  implications  will  be  addressed.  

Fu,  Jing   Diverse  learning  styles  and  teaching  in  the  multilingual  classroom    

Canada  is  a  multicultural  country,  which  attracts  thousands  of  immigrants  annually.  This  large  number  of  immigrants  also  contribute  to  a  unique  school  culture,  in  which  almost  half  of  student  populations  in  the  Great  Toronto  Area  (GTA)  are  from  immigrant  families  speaking  languages  other  than  English  at  home  (Statistics  Canada,  2010).  Numbers  of  plurilingual  students  are  rapidly  increasing  at  the  university  level  as  well.  How  to  manage  the  multilingual  classroom  efficiently  in  university  settings  is  a  challenge  to  instructors.  Drawing  on  integrated  learning  theory  (Cummins,  2005,  2007),  this  presentation  explores  possibilities  for  language  classroom  instruction  and  practices  informed  by  students’  varied  backgrounds.  Mixed  approaches  that  generate  students’  interest  and  involvement  are  suggested.  Since  language  learning  is  a  complicate  cognitive  process  rather  than  based  on  listening  only,  teacher-­‐centered  methods  no  longer  meet  the  needs  of  contemporary  classrooms.  Student-­‐centered  and  multiple  approaches  tend  to  be  more  efficient  and  meaningful  in  language  pedagogy.  

Fynes,  Laurel   "We  Can  Count":  Using  the  many  languages  in  the  classroom  for  collaborative  

My  students  and  I  created  a  “Voicethread”  digital  book  involving  students  counting  in  their  many  languages.  The  project  became  a  source  of  pride  shared  with  families  at  home  and  extended  families  all  around  the  world,  as  we  posted  the  book  on  my  class  site.    This  year  students  asked  to  begin  again,  and  the  idea  provoked  other  multi-­‐lingual  projects  to  share  our  wonderful  knowledge.  We  are  an  AM/PM  class  in  Mississauga  in  very  multicultural  school.  

Gagné,  Antoinette,  &  Stephanie  Soto  Gordon  

Learning  about  self  and  the  world  beyond:  Canadian  teens  in  school-­‐based  cultural,  religious,  and  social  justice  clubs  

Although  there  is  considerable  research  on  the  impact  of  student  involvement  in  school  clubs  (Kort-­‐Butler&  Hagewen,  2012;  Knifsend  &  Graham,  2012;  Bohnert,  Fredricks,  &  Randall,  2010;  Darling,  Caldwell  &  Smith,  2005;  McNeil,  1998),  there  is  very  little  on  the  topic  of  involvement  in  cultural  or  religious  and  social  justice  clubs.  One  of  the  primary  goals  of  school  clubs  is  to  facilitate  social  interactions  among  the  students  who  join  (Darling,  Caldwell,  &  Smith,  2005).  Fitzgerald-­‐Gersten’s  (1998)  research  highlights  the  value  of  cultural  clubs  as  a  strategy  to  break  down  barriers  and  to  promote  understanding  between  English  language  learners  (ELLs)  /  immigrant  students  and  mainstream  students  whereby  they  create  a  context  which  nurtures  an  exchange  of  social,  academic,  and  cultural  information.    

Our  exploratory  multiple  case  study  focuses  on  the  nature  of  adolescents’  experiences  in  cultural,  

religious  or  social  justice  clubs,  and  the  effect  of  club  participation  on  identity  (Wenger,  1998)  and  intercultural  citizenship  development  (Bennett,  1998;  Byram,  2006  &  2011)  in  several  Toronto  area  secondary  schools.  We  will  explore  the  nature  of  these  empowering  intercultural  encounters  and  their  related  themes  including  relationship  building  across  cultures,  honoring  one’s  roots,  dealing  with  discrimination,  and  social  justice.    

Geva,  Esther   Cross-­‐linguistic  Transfer  and  L2  Literacy    

Cross-­‐language  transfer  has  been  a  central  theme  in  the  study  of  L2  language  and  literacy  development  (Geva,  in  press).  Definitions  of  L1-­‐L2  transfer  vary  in  the  extent  to  which  they  emphasize  innate  vs.  acquired,  cognitive,  and  developmental  aspects,  and  attention  to  facilitating  or  debilitating  outcomes  of  L1-­‐L2  similarities  and  differences.  Basically,  two  cross-­‐language  transfer  frameworks  dominate  the  field  –  the  Contrastive  or  typological  framework  (Lado,  1964),  and  the  linguistic  interdependence  framework  (Cummins,  1981).  Most  studies  on  L1-­‐L2  transfer  can  be  placed  in  one  of  these  frameworks.    In  the  presentation  I  will  describe  briefly  the  core  features  of  each  of  the  two  frameworks  and  demonstrate  how  cross-­‐language  transfer  and  the  relationship  to  literacy  development  have  been  conceptualized  in  a  number  of  recently  published  studies  of  L2  literacy  development.  These  studies  were  conducted  in  various  educational  contexts,  and  involve  different  language  combinations  and  age  groups.  Conclusions  will  offer  a  comprehensive  model  that  demonstrates  the  relevance  of  each  of  these  two  transfer  frameworks,  as  well  as  the  importance  of  considering  development,  cognition,  and  additional  contextual  factors  for  a  better  understanding  of  L2  literacy  development.  

Giampapa,  Frances   Building  inclusive  communities  for  change:  Researching  multilingual,  multiliterate  identities  in  a  Bristol  early  years  nursery  school    

In  the  21st  century,  the  effects  of  globalization  can  be  seen  across  the  educational  landscape  of  urban  schools  through  the  increase  of  linguistic  &  cultural  diversity,  which  has  resulted  in  both  pedagogical  challenges  and  opportunities.  Within  an  educational  climate  of  increased  standardized  testing  for  literacy  attainment,  schools  are  being  challenged  to  rethink  what  forms  of  literacy  to  teach  and  the  pedagogical  options  that  are  most  appropriate  for  teaching  a  linguistically  and  culturally  diverse  student  body  (Early,  2007,  Giampapa,  2010).  There  is  an  abundance  of  research  across  the  literacy  field  (Blackledge,  2000;  Cummins  et  al.  2005;  Martin-­‐Jones  &  Jones,  2000;  Pahl  &  Rowsell,  2005;  Street,  2000;)  that  have  problematized  the  disjuncture  between  literacy  practices  that  are  valued  in  schools  and  the  out-­‐of-­‐school  literacies  and  identities  that  students  and  their  families  engage  in.    

This  paper  will  report  on  preliminary  critical  ethnographic  research  findings  from  a  Reggio-­‐Emilia  inspired  nursery  school  in  Bristol.  Drawing  data  from  interviews,  classroom  observations  and  school  documents,  I  will  show  how  teachers  and  staff  are  making  pedagogical  and  assessment  choices  that  foregrounds  EAL  students’  creativity,  their  families’  linguistic  and  cultural  resources  to  open  up  opportunities  for  learning  within  an  inclusive  educational  community.  

Grant,  Cynthia,  &  Sherida  Hassanali  

Jim  Cummins’  legacy  in  schools:  Promoting  practices  in  support  of  negotiating  identities  

Jim  Cummins  once  said  that,  “human  relationships  are  at  the  heart  of  schooling”.  Cultural  Proficiency  is  defined  as  an  inside-­‐out,  transformational  approach  to  social  change,  whereby  courageous  conversations  and  interactions  between  educators  and  all  equity-­‐seeking  students  can  occur.  This  presentation  is  twofold.  First  Hassanali  from  the  Nova  Scotia  Department  of  Education  and  Early  Childhood  Development’s  (EECD)  Cultural  Proficiency  Training  will  share  how  participants  (teachers,  vice-­‐principals,  

  principals,  superintendents,  and  non-­‐teaching  personnel)  in  the  program  learned  how  to  orchestrate  nurturing  interpersonal  spaces  where  students’  identities  are  affirmed  and  where  everyone  is  valued  equally.    This  learning  increased  the  confidence  with  which  participants  engaged  and  invested  their  diverse  identities  in  learning  outcomes  of  their  students,  and  supported  them  in  creating  active,  successful  places  where  engaged  learning  occurs.    Through  these  processes,  teachers  changed  the  power  structure  in  their  own  classrooms  (and  thusly,  their  schools)  to  be  a  better  representation  of  a  socially-­‐just  society  committed  to  human  rights.    

Second,  drawing  from  her  dissertation,  Grant  explores  the  means  by  which  young  people  ‘voice’  their  preoccupations  with  their  cultural  identity  through  creative  expressions,  in  particular,    transformative  moments  in  their  own  lives.    Her  case  studies  discuss  the  ways  in  which  young  people  use  creative  expression  in  performance  and  poetry  as  a  means  of  meaning-­‐making  and  critical  reflection  dealing  with  the  tensions  associated  with  cultural  mismatch.    The  investigation  considers  both  the  creative  works  and  their  life  narratives  in  an  interdisciplinary  framework  that  unpacks  how,  through  the  creative  process,  matters  of  individual  and  cultural  group  identity  are  surfaced,  examined  and,  possibly,  reconciled.    Through  creative  expression,  young  people  may  navigate  the  contradictory  experiences  of  multiple  worlds  of  home,  school  and  peers  (Phelan,  Davidson  &  Yu,  1993),  of  discriminatory  experience  and/or  the  consequences  of  migrancy  in  a  global  landscape.    It  sheds  light  on  the  pedagogical  possibilities  for  positive  intervention  as  youth  ‘negotiate  identity’  in  school  settings  and  elsewhere.    

Griggs,  Tom   Guideposts:  Five  key  Cummins  contributions  to  SLA  theory  and  how  they  fit  into  my  (and  your)  classrooms    

As  an  instructor  of  second  language  acquisition  theory  in  a  graduate  program  in  Culturally  and  Linguistically  Diverse  Education,  I  rely  heavily  on  some  key  ideas  that  Jim  has  contributed  to  the  literature  in  second  language  acquisition  (SLA)  theory.  These  are:  (a)  the  relationship  between  identity  and  empowerment  in  SLA  and  instruction;  (b)  the  coercive  and  collaborative  relations  of  power  manifested  in  macro-­‐  and  micro-­‐interactions  in  and  around  schools;  (c)  the  “three  faces”  of  language  proficiency;  (d)  the  cognitive  and  contextual  demands  inherent  in  language  use  and  acquisition;  and  (e)  the  dual  iceberg  representation  of  bilingual  proficiency.  All  of  these  are  presented  and  elaborated  upon  in  Cummins  (2001).      The  purpose  of  this  session  is  to  allow  participants  to  learn  about  these  concepts  (if  they  are  not  already  familiar  with  them),  how  I  teach  them  in  my  graduate-­‐level  teacher  education  program,  and  the  relationships  between  and  practical  implications  of  these  various  theoretical  constructs  for  classroom  pedagogical  practice.  Although  designed  partly  as  a  paper  (and  Power  Point)  presentation,  the  session  is  intended  to  be  appropriately  interactive,  and  provide  opportunities  for  participants  to  apply  this  knowledge  in  useful  and  effective  ways.  

Harbon,  Lesley,  Robyn  Moloney,  &  Ruth  Fielding  

Expanding  inclusive  pedagogy  to  embrace  the  ‘intercultural  turn’:  Preparing  pre-­‐service  language  teachers  for  an  

Since  Cummins’  (1986)  notion  of  “empowering  inclusive  pedagogies”  highlighted  integration  of  students’  background  languages  and  cultures  through  the  school  curriculum,  language  teachers  now  acknowledge  that  classroom  pedagogy  is  key  to  language  teaching  and  learning  success.  In  our  research  with  pre-­‐service  language  teachers  we  have  examined  classroom  questioning  techniques  in  a  process  we  have  termed  “expanding  inclusive  pedagogies”.  We  propose  that  teachers  of  culturally  and  linguistically  diverse  

empowering  languages  classroom  

students  not  only  need  to  build  students’  first  language  literacy,  but  also  need  to  build  their  own  questioning  techniques  resulting  in  all  students  becoming  intercultural  ‘investigators’  through  inquiry.  These  processes  result  in  students  knowing  more  about  first  and  second  language  and  culture.  Classrooms  can  become  contexts  where  all  students’  cultures  and  subjectivities  become  valued  contributions  to  inquiry.  The  purpose  of  this  presentation  is  to  share  findings  arising  from  a  project  that  explored  teacher  training  in  intercultural  questioning  and  effects  on  student  learning  relating  to  how  to  construct  themselves  and  others  through  discourses  they  use  and  encounter.  Teachers  examined  examples  of  the  I.R.E  turn,  exploring  where  classroom  interaction  patterns  were  either  fostering  or  inhibiting  the  intercultural  stance.  Concurrent  Verbal  Reporting  (Bowles,  2010)  with  pre-­‐service  teachers  during  training  and  reflective  journaling  shed  light  on  whether  and  how  the  teachers  were  able  to  learn  to  construct  an  intercultural  classroom  discourse,  thereby  expanding  inclusive  pedagogies.  

Harbon,  Lesley,  &  Ruth  Fielding  

Teaching  languages  through  content  –  Exploring  the  implementation  of  four  bilingual  programs  in  varying  contexts  in  NSW,  Australia  

Researchers  from  the  Faculty  of  Education  &  Social  Work  at  the  University  of  Sydney  conducted  descriptive  and  evaluative  research  on  the  implementation  of  four  ‘pilot’  bilingual  programs  in  New  South  Wales  (NSW)  primary  schools  during  2011  and  2012.  This  poster  provides  an  overview  of  the  research  findings.  This  investigation  of  the  four  bilingual  programs  has  been  significant  as  these  are  the  first  fully-­‐government-­‐supported  bilingual  programs  in  NSW  primary  schools.  The  model  of  implementation  in  the  four  schools  is  innovative,  as  the  mandated  mode  of  implementation  has  been  incremental  and  because  each  program  follows  a  ‘CLIL’  model,  which  is  unusual  for  languages  education  in  the  Australian  context.  Data  collection  involved  questionnaires,  interviews  and  focus  groups  with  students,  parents,  teachers,  executive  staff  and  education  officers,  as  well  as  classroom  observation  in  each  school.  This  project  has  gathered  data  across  the  first  three  years  of  program  implementation  in  order  to  develop  a  fuller  understanding  of  the  programs  and  how  they  operate,  exploring  the  different  characteristics  of  implementation  in  each  school.  The  researchers  also  sought  to  facilitate  conversations  between  the  schools  and  significant  stakeholders  to  ensure  productive  dialogue  on  how  to  foster  the  strengths  of  the  programs  into  the  future.  (196  WORDS)  

Hatano,  Lilian,  Atsuko  Koishi,  Junko  Majima,  Kazuko  Nakajima,  Daisuke  Onuki  

Educating  minority  language  children  in  Japan:  Dr.  Jim  Cummins’  contributions  in  theory  and  practice  

This  presentation  consist  of  three  topics.    These  include  1)  reporting  on  a  5-­‐year  research  project  on  Chinese  and  Vietnamese  children  in  Japanese  primary  schools  from  the  perspectives  of  JSL  (Japanese  as  a  second    language)  and  heritage  language  education;  2)  addressing  the  secondary  school  children  of  temporary  workers  from  South  America  in  two  Brazilian  schools  in  Japan.  The  authors  used  Identity  Text  approach  in  studying  students’  attitudes  toward  the  three  languages  and  their  writing  skills:  Portuguese  (home  language,  for  most  of  the  students),  Japanese  (local  language)  and  English  (international  language).  In  Brazilian  schools,  they  use  Portuguese  as  a  medium  of  instruction  and  learn  Japanese  and  English  as  school  subjects;  and  3)  discussing  the  deaf  education  in  Japan  in  connection  with  the  contributions  made  by  Jim  Cummins  through  his  two  special  lectures  in  Japan  as  well  as  his  writings.    

Herath,  Sreemali   Field-­‐based  placement  as  a  space  for  transformative  

This  presentation  focuses  on  how  pre-­‐service  English  language  teachers  used  their  field-­‐based  placements  as  a  space  for  transformative  critical  inquiry  that  changed  their  school  communities.  Cummins’  (2009)  

critical  inquiry  in  pre-­‐service  teacher  education      

nested  pedagogical  orientations,  depicts  how  a  transformative  approach  to  pedagogy  goes  beyond  transmitting  the  curriculum  and  constructing  knowledge,  to  enable  students  to  gain  insight  into  how  knowledge  intersects  with  power.  Such  an  approach  to  pedagogy  uses  collaborative  critical  inquiry  to  enable  students  to  analyze  and  understand  the  social  realities  of  their  own  lives  and  of  their  communities.  Drawing  on  data  from  a  narrative  case  study  conducted  in  post  conflict  Sri  Lanka,  this  paper  discusses  how  English  language  teacher  candidates  in  three  teacher  education  programs,  took  action  to  transform  their  school  communities.  Their  actions  ranged  from  dealing  with  issues  related  to  poverty,  social  justice,  intercultural  awareness,  and  the  aftermath  of  a  war  as  it  was  felt  in  local  schools.  The  teacher  candidates  implemented  the  projects  with  the  collaboration  of  the  wider  school  community.  The  presentation  concludes  with  a  discussion  on  how  field-­‐based  placements  in  pre-­‐service  teacher  education  can  provide  a  mediational  space  for  prospective  teachers  to  understand  and  analyze  the  social  realities  of  their  communities  and  take  action  to  transform  them.  

Hou,  Xu     Construction  of  teaching  principles  in  the  context  of  post-­‐method  era  of  English  teaching  in  China    

The  concept  of  “post-­‐method”  is  an  effort  to  challenge  the  traditional  understanding  of  language  teaching  and  learning  that  some  methods  must  work  more  effectively  than  others.  Post-­‐method  pedagogy  maintains  that  English  teaching  and  learning  should  be  an  open  and  complicated  system  consisting  of  multiple  factors  such  as  social,  cultural,  political,  educational  dimensions,  thus  no  single  method  is  perfect.  However,  de-­‐construction  of  method  is  only  an  initial  step;  how  to  construct  English  teaching  and  learning  processes  in  the  post-­‐method  era  is  a  more  important  issue.  This  research  aims  to  construct  teaching  principles  in  the  context  of  the  post-­‐method  era  of  English  Teaching  in  China,  using  both  qualitative  and  quantitative  methods.  The  research  consists  of  three  phases  -­‐-­‐-­‐Phase  1  is  a  quantitative  research  of  a  nation-­‐wide-­‐scale  survey  by  means  of  teacher  questionnaire  and  student  questionnaire  to  form  a  general  picture  of  English  teaching  in  China;  Phase  2  employs  a  qualitative  method  to  construct  teaching  principles  based  on  data  analyses  from  Phase  1  to  guide  English  teaching  practice  and  Phase  3  is  a  practice  of  those  teaching  principles  in  Phase  2  and  by  means  of  teacher  and  student  questionnaire,  interview  and  teacher’s  self-­‐evaluation  scheme,  it  is  hoped  to  further  improve  the  teaching  principles  .  

Huang,  Ju,  &  Saren  Gaowa   Language  diversity  issues  faced  by  Mongolian  English  teachers    

Despite  some  attention  given  to  minority  language  issues  in  China  (White  1992;  Zhou,  2000),  little  research  has  been  conducted  on  the  language  issues  of  Mongols  in  Xinjiang  Boertala  Mongolian  Autonomous  Prefecture.  Unlike  Mongolian  is  the  medium  instructional  language  in  Inner  Mongolia,  the  Mongolian  students  learn  Mongolian  and  take  Mongolian  as  a  subject  in  ‘Gaokao’,  the  National  Higher  Education  Entrance  Examination  rather  than  English.  Therefore,  it  is  hard  to  retain  quality  Mongolian  English  teachers  in  Mongolian  schools  while  literature  suggests  that  bilingual  teachers  are  in  pressed  need  in  minority  areas  (Postiglione,  2009;  Bai,  2008).  

Dewey’s  (1938)  philosophy  of  education  that  we  learn  from  experience  and  reflection  on  experience,  can  illuminate  the  ways  in  which  a  beginning  bilingual  teacher’s  identity  is  constructed  in  a  low-­‐income  urban  Mongolian  school  in  Xinjiang  Boertala  Mongol  Autonomous  Prefecture.  We  are  using  narrative  inquiry  (Clandinin  &  Connelly,  2000)  as  the  methodology  to  better  understand  a  Mongolian  beginning  teacher’s  experiences  as  a  minority  teacher  and  the  construction  of  her  professional  identity  as  

a  teacher  of  English  as  a  foreign  language  in  the  diverse  context  of  Xinjing,  China.  Based  on  interviews  and  field  notes,  we  present  the  narratives  of  the  teacher’s  dilemma  and  evolving  professional  identity  in  a  Mongolian  community.  This  paper  illustrates  the  linguistic  realities  and  how  to  position  Mongolian,  Mandarin  and  English  in  Mongolian  schools.    

Hughes  Janette,  &  Laura  Morrison  

Two  halves  of  a  whole:  Exploring  bi-­‐cultural  identity  using  a  multiliteracies  pedagogy  and  social  media  to  improve  ELLs’  language  and  literacy  skills    

Our  study  examined  the  impact  of  using  the  social  networking  site  [SNS]  called  Ning  to  aid  in  language  acquisition  and  literacy  development  for  adolescent  English  Language  Learners  [ELLs].  Using  a  mixed  methods  research  approach  of  qualitative  case  study  analysis  and  quantitative  surveying,  our  research  investigated  the  relationship  between  a  multimodal  pedagogy,  including  the  Ning,  and  the  development  of  ELLs’  identities,  acculturation  and  subsequently,  their  English  language  and  literacy  skills.  More  specifically,  the  study  answered  the  following  research  questions:  (a)  How  does  the  use  of  a  multiliteracies  pedagogy  and  the  Ning  in  the  classroom  potentially  transform  teaching  and  accelerate  ELLs  language-­‐learning  and  the  development  of  their  literacy  practices?  (b)  How  are  English  Language  Learners’  bi-­‐cultural  identities  shaped  and  performed  as  they  use  multimedia  and  social  networking  tools  in  the  classroom?  Our  study  found  a  strong  correlation  between  the  development  of  a  bi-­‐cultural  identity  and  social  presence  in  the  classroom  and  the  development  of  an  ELL’s  language  and  literacy  skills.  Most  notably,  the  study  also  found  that  social  networking  sites  and  the  use  of  a  multi-­‐literacies  pedagogy  accelerated  the  aforementioned,  as  these  allowed  ELLs  to  express  themselves  and  connect  with  peers  faster  than  with  traditional  literacies  where  stronger  reading,  writing  and  speaking  skills  would  have  been  required.    

Jonsdottir,  Frida,  &  Kirstin  Vilhjalmsdottir  

Celebrating  linguistic  and  cultural  diversity  of  young  children  and  their  families  living  Reykjavik    

During  the  past  few  years  Icelandic  society  has  changed  from  being  more  and  less  homogenic  into  a  country  with  significant  cultural  and  racial  diversity.  Nineteen  percent  of  the  children  in  Reykjavík’s  preschools  have  international  dimensions  in  their  lives  and  many  of  them  speak  two  or  more  languages.  The  first  multicultural  policy  for  Preschools  in  Reykjavík  was  published  2001  and  has  since  then  developed  and  focused  increasingly  on  celebrating  linguistic  and  cultural  diversity  with  a  newly  published  policy  on  language  and  literacy  where  the  goal  is  active  bilingualism.    

Reykjavik  City  Library  runs  several  multicultural  projects  where  the  goal  is  to  promote  awareness  of  the  positive  values  of  cultural  and  linguistic  diversity  in  our  society  based  on  the  IFLA  Multicultural  Library  Manifesto.  In  our  presentation  we  will  focus  on  the  main  goals  of  the  preschool’s  policy  and  how  projects  based  on  celebrating  linguistic  and  cultural  diversity  have  been  developed  and  brought  into  practice  in  cooperation  of  the  Department  of  Education  and  Youth  and  The  City  Library.  The  main  goal  of  our  work  is  to  work  closely  with  teachers  and  NGO’s,  developing  ways  to  make  every  child  and  parent  welcome  into  the  preschool’s  society  by  valuing  different  language-­‐  and  cultural  background.  

Kandil,  Ahmed   Diglossia  and  the  bilingual  mind    

 

The  presenter  will  tackle  two  discrete  areas  that  may  seem  wide  apart,  the  first  area  is  diglossia  and  the  second  concerns  some  of  Dr.  Jim  Cummins'  contributions  such  as  the  threshold  hypothesis  (TH),  the  common  underlying  proficiency  (CUP),  and  the  distinction  between  Basic  Interpersonal  Communicative  Skills  (BICS)  and  Cognitive/Academic  Language  Proficiency  (CALP)  (Cummins  &  Mulcahy,  1978;  Cummins  1996,  2000b,  2001).  First,  the  presenter  will  shed  light  on  the  diglossia  phenomenon  and  give  some  examples  of  diglossic  languages.  Then,  he  will  present  the  above  mentioned  contributions  of  Dr.  Jim  

Cummins.  Finally,  he  will  highlight  an  unchartered  research  area  where  researchers  could  investigate  if  diglossia  may  have  a  positive  impact  on  the  cognitive  skills  of  speakers  of  diglossic  languages  in  a  way  that  is  similar  to  the  cognitive  and  academic  advantages  that  balanced  bilinguals  have  over  monolinguals,  as  indicated  by  Dr.  Jim  Cummins’  threshold  hypothesis  (TH)  and  the  common  underlying  proficiency  (CUP)  of  bilinguals.  Even  though  both  concepts  (i.e.  the  TH  and  CUP)  were  introduced  by  Dr.  Cummins  in  a  bilingual  (versus  diglossic)  context,  the  presenter  will  delineate  that  these  concepts  do  have  a  place  of  investigation  in  diglossic  communities,  e.g.    in  the  Arab  world.  

Kerkes,  Julie,  Alison  Brooks,  Yuila  Smirnova,  &  Christopher  Harwood    

Internationally  educated  and  Canadian  educated  teachers  in  the  Greater  Toronto  Area:  How  employable  are  they?  

As  part  of  a  study  on  sociolinguistic  factors  influencing  internationally  educated  professionals’  (IEPs’)  employment  trajectories  in  Ontario,  this  paper  analyzes  23  interviews  of  internationally  educated  and  Canadian-­‐educated  teachers  (IETs  and  CETs).  Bourdieu’s  theory  of  symbolic  capital  (1989,  1991)  and  Kerekes  et  al.’s  (2013)  investigation  of  (dis)trust  among  IEPs  inform  the  discussion  of  participants’  efforts  to  improve  their  opportunities.  Participants  reveal  contrasting  experiences,  resultant  ideologies,  and  emergent  perspectives  on  living  and  working  or  seeking  work  in  Canada.  IETs’  challenges  include:  English  language  ability;  (lack  of)  previous  Canadian  work  experience;  navigating  the  complexities  of  Canadian  licensing  and  hiring  processes;  and  their  newcomer  identities.  The  topic  of  (dis)trust  emerged  in  descriptions  of  their  previous  belief  that  their  professions  were  prioritised  in  the  Canadian  job  market,  and  subsequent  discovery  that,  in  spite  of  having  taken  steps  to  improve  their  English  language  skills  and  upgrade  their  teacher  qualifications  after  having  immigrated,  many  remain  unemployed.  Findings  reveal  the  negative  impact  that  current  immigration  and  employment  policies  and  practices  have  on  many  IEPs,  as  well  as  contrasting  perspectives  of  employed  and  unemployed  IETs  and  CETs.  The  findings  raise  important  implications  for  critical  teacher  education  (Cummins  in  press),  as  a  way  of  breaking  the  cycle  of  educational  disadvantage.  

Koh,  Poh  Wee,  Mark  Sinke,  Xi  Chen,  &  Jim  Cummins  

Examining  the  bilingual  literacy  development  of  English  Language  Learners  (ELLs)  enrolled  in  an  English-­‐Mandarin  Bilingual  Program  

Research  findings  suggest  that  bilingual  school  programs  facilitate  development  of  both  L1  and  L2  of  ELLs  (e.g.  August  &  Shanahan,  2006).  This  longitudinal  study  examined  the  development  of  linguistic  abilities  of  ELLs  enrolled  in  the  Transitional  Mandarin  Bilingual  Program  initiated  by  the  Hamilton  Wentworth  District  School  Board.  Students  in  the  program  receive  approximately  equal  amounts  of  instruction  in  English  and  Mandarin.  Non-­‐verbal  ability,  phonological  awareness,  oral  language  proficiency  and  word  reading  skills  were  measured  in  ELLs  in  the  program  (from  Senior  Kindergarten  to  Grade  four)  over  a  period  of  3  years.  Longitudinal  comparisons  showed  that  ELLs  made  significant  improvements  in  all  English  skills  measured  as  well  as  Mandarin  character  reading,  morphological  and  syntactic  skills.  Analysis  of  covariance  was  used  to  assess  the  performance  of  participants  as  compared  to  a  group  of  students  of  similar  backgrounds  who  attend  a  monolingual  English  program  and  Chinese  heritage  classes,  controlling  for  length  of  residence  in  Canada.  Overall,  participants’  performance  was  comparable  to  the  comparison  group  on  all  English  measures  and  most  Mandarin  measures,  with  the  exception  of  Mandarin  character  reading,  where  the  participants  performed  significantly  better.  Findings  are  discussed  in  terms  of  the  benefits  and  suitability  of  dual-­‐language  programs  in  promoting  L1  and  L2  linguistic  development.  

Kourtis-­‐Kazoullis,  &  Vasilia  Giannis  Spantidakis,  Aspa  Chatzidaki  

Educating  minority  language  children  in  Greece:  Dr.  Jim  Cummins’  contributions  in  theory  and  practice  

Jim’s  Cummins  theoretical  frameworks  have  served  as  the  foundation  for  programs  of  the  Ministry  of  Education  in  Greece  dealing  with  second  language  learning  or  have  influenced  them  in  some  way  through  the  involvement  of  academics  (e.g.  projects  dealing  with  Immigrant  and  Repatriate  students,  Muslim  students,  Roma  Students  and  Greek-­‐language  learners  in  the  Diaspora).  Since  1995  he  has  visited  Greece  many  times  where  he  has  worked  closely  with  academics  and  educators  on  issues  of  literacy  development  for  culturally  and  linguistically  diverse  students.  This  paper  will  briefly  outline  this  activity  and  will  focus  on  one  example  of  how  Jim  Cummins’  theoretical  frameworks  have  been  put  to  effect.    Τhis  paper  will  present  an  electronic  learning  environment  designed  to  enable  the  teaching  and  learning  of  Greek  language  and  history  among  pupils  (K-­‐12)  who  attend  various  forms  of  Greek-­‐language  education  worldwide.  This  European  Union-­‐funded  project  is  run  by  the  Centre  of  Migration  and  Intercultural  Studies  of  the  University  of  Crete,  and  is  supervised  by  the  Greek  Ministry  of  Education.  

Lau,  Sunny   “I  am  what  I  speak”:  Promoting  affirming  attitudes  towards  linguistic  diversity  using  language  portraits    

Research  on  adult  education  and  teacher  training  (Ball,  2003;  Busch,  Jardine,  &  Tjoutuku,  2006;  Kearney,  2003;  Kinginger,  2004)  shows  that  engaging  adult  learners  or  teachers  in  writing  language  biographies  and/or  language  portraits  helps  them  rediscover  and  valorise  their  linguistic  resources,  enhances  their  metacogntive  skills  in  reflection  of  language  acquisition  and  practices,  and  fosters  a  more  positive  attitude  towards  multilingualism.  Recounting  biographies  on  language  practices  that  are  necessarily  tied  to  different  power  relations  helps  deepen  participants’  understanding  of  the  sociopolitical  dimension  of  language  learning  and  practices  (Busch,  Jardine,  &  Tjoutuku,  2006).  This  presentation  describes  an  exploratory  study  with  27  student  teachers  to  find  out  the  extent  to  which  language  portraits  (Prasad,  2010)  -­‐-­‐  the  mapping  of  one’s  language  and  cultural  make-­‐up  on  a  body  template  -­‐-­‐  help  improve  their  self-­‐understanding  towards  language  and  identities,  and  their  critical  reflection  on  their  attitude  towards  linguistic  diversity.  While  analysis  is  ongoing,  preliminary  findings  will  be  presented  and  the  potential  of  such  a  visual  mode  of  language  biography  will  be  further  discussed.  Audience  may  have  a  chance  to  do  their  own  language  portrait  if  time  permits.  

Lau,  Sunny,  Chu  Lau,  Betty  Kreuger,  Bonita  Juby-­‐Smith,  &  Isabelle  Desbiens    

The  ABC’s  of  children’s  rights:  A  bilingual  critical  literacy  project  with  3rd  graders      

The  presentation  describes  a  school-­‐university  research  project  in  engaging  third-­‐graders  in  exploring  the  issue  of  children’s  rights  in  their  English  and  French  second  language  classes.  Committed  to  critical  pedagogy  (Kincheloe,  2008),  the  project  aimed  to  foster  students’  critical  capacity  in  thought  and  in  action.  Through  partnership  with  a  university/community  education  project,  students  exchanged  letters  with  Burmese  migrant  students  in  Thailand,  and  together  with  a  range  of  other  experiential  learning  activities,  students  came  to  understand  what  children's  rights  are  and  appreciate  the  importance  of  justice,  peace  and  compassion  because  not  all  children  around  the  world  are  equally  enjoying  these  rights.    Through  hybrid  language  practices  (Manyak,  2001)  and  translanguaging  (García,  2012),  students  were  engaged  in  learning  activities  that  mobilize  their  first  and  second  language  and  cognitive  resources  in  critical  discussions  of  what  fairness,  social  rights  and  responsibilities  mean  to  them.  Their  inquiry  resulted  in  the  publication  of  their  own  abecedary  about  the  conventions  of  children’s  rights.  The  book  launch  offered  them  a  platform  to  reach  out  to  their  community  to  raise  people’s  awareness  of  the  issue.  Preliminary  findings  show  students’  increased  sense  of  empathy  and  self-­‐efficacy  for  social  change,  and  level  of  bi-­‐

literacy  engagement.  Lefever,  Samuel,  &  Robert  Berman  

Immigrant  secondary  school  students  in  Iceland:  languages,  education  and  socialization  

Immigrants  in  Iceland  are  less  successful  in  secondary  school  than  native  Icelandic  students,  whereas  in  other  Nordic  countries  such  variance  is  not  as  pronounced.  To  help  explain  immigrant  students’  overall  lack  of  success  in  Icelandic  secondary  schools,  the  present  study  examines  their  perceptions  and  attitudes  related  to  the  languages  they  speak,  to  their  academic  success  or  lack  thereof,  to  peer  and  family  pressures  and  relationships,  to  employment  opportunities  and  to  future  goals.  We  analyze  rich  information  gleaned  from  in-­‐depth  interviews  undertaken  with  21  young  Polish  and  Filipino  adults,  selected  through  snow-­‐ball  sampling,  who  currently  attend  secondary  school  in  both  urban  and  rural  Iceland,  as  well  as  those  recently  graduated  or  dropped  out.    Students’  widespread  perception  is  that  their  proficiency  in  academic  language,  or  CALP  (e.g.  Cummins,  1979,  1999,  2000)  has  been  their  root  problem,  often  blamed  on  poor  teaching  and  course  administration.  Other  relevant  findings  include  some  students’  use  of  English  (rather  than  Icelandic)  and  the  frequent  social  segregation  of  students  by  ethnic  background.  The  findings  will  be  of  value  for  providers  of  educational  services  for  immigrant  populations,  especially  those  in  environments  with  a  third,  “competing”  language.  The  study  is  linked  to  a  larger  Nordic-­‐UK-­‐Canadian  research  network  (NordForsk  Researcher  Network).  

Li,  Jia     Chinese  young  school-­‐age  children  in  a  transitional,  bilingual  program:  Parents  and  teachers’  perspectives  on  its  long-­‐term  impact  

 

First  language  (L1)  literacy  skills,  such  as  conceptual  knowledge  and  reading  skills,  can  be  transferred  to  a  second  language  (L2)  under  certain  conditions,  and  support  L2  reading  achievement  (Cummins,  1989;  Escamilla,  1987;  Krashen  &  Biber,  1987).    Nevertheless,  Chinese  language  education  for  Chinese  immigrant  children  remains  controversial  in  North  America.    This  paper  reports  on  a  study  led  by  Dr.  Jim  Cummins  that  investigates  Chinese  parents,  teachers,  and  administrators’  perspectives  on  the  long-­‐term  impact  of  a  transitional  bilingual  program  on  the  children’s  English  and  Chinese  language  development  and  their  identity  development.  

This  study  was  conducted  in  an  elementary  school  in  the  Greater  Toronto  Area  among  Chinese  Mandarin-­‐speaking  parents,  teachers  and  administrators  of  a  Chinese-­‐English  transitional  program  where  Chinese  children  from  K-­‐2/3  received  about  50%  of  their  instruction  through  Chinese  and  English.  The  results  of  the  project  have  shown  that  most  parents  expressed  strong  support  for  the  program,  despite  some  concerns.  Parents  and  teachers  believed  that  enhancing  the  children’s  L1  literacy  promoted  English  language  and  literacy  skills;  and  the  children  also  appeared  to  be  well-­‐adjusted  to  school  and  enjoyed  using  both  their  languages  within  the  school  context  (Cummins  et  al,  2011).  The  research  supports  the  continuation  and  extension  of  such  programs  and  identified  significant  themes  for  effective  long-­‐term  development  of  bilingual  programs  that  will  assist  parents’  decision-­‐making  and  support  teachers’  in-­‐service  training  and  curriculum  development  for  Mandarin  education.  

Li,  Jia,  &  Ann  LeSage     How  academic  language    skills  intersect  with  mathematics  performance?    Empirical  evidence  and  pedagogical  suggestions  for  

The  results  from  the  first  international  Survey  of  Adult  Skills  have  shown  that  Canadians  aged  16  to  24  scored  below  the  average  in  literacy  (ranking  14  of  21)  and  numeracy  (ranking  15  of  21)  as  compared  to  other  participating  countries  (OECD,  2013).  Meanwhile,  42%  and  48%  of  students  in  Grades  3  and  6  in  Ontario  did  not  meet  the  provincial  standard  for  reading  and  mathematics  respectively,  and  many  of  these  students  are  English  language  learners  (EQAO,  2013).  Educators  believe  that  there  is  a  possible  correlation  between  language  

English  language  learners    

proficiency  and  mathematics  achievement.  Limited  language  skills  can  be  a  barrier  for  students  to  understand  instruction,  effectively  develop  learning  strategies  and  seek  assistance.    The  distinction  by  Cummins  (2000)  about  language  skills  between  “basic  interpersonal  communicative  skills”  (BICS)  and  “cognitive  academic  language  proficiency”  (CALP)  highlights  the  varying  amounts  of  cognitive  demand  and  contextual  support  in  learning  tasks.  More  specifically,  limited  academic  language  skills  can  significantly  affect  students’  ability  to  understand  word  problems  as  well  as  encode  and  represent  mathematical  information,  which  in  turn,  can  gravely  impact  their  future  success  in  more  advanced  mathematics  (e.g.,  Dowker,  2009;  LeFevre  et  al.,  2010;  Kleemans,  Segers  &  Verhoeven,  2011).  This  paper  reviews  empirical  studies  that  investigate  the  relationship  between  ELLs’  mathematical  and  academic  language  skills.  Pedagogical  recommendations  are  made  to  address  ELLs’  limited  and  specific  language  and  literacy  skills  that  may  influence  mathematical  knowledge  development.    

Li,  Jia,  Linying  Ji,  &  Jingjing  Jiang  

Effects  of  annotated  videos  of  peer  example  debates  on  English  language  learners’  learning  of  academic  vocabulary:  An  intervention  study  

It  typically  takes  five  to  seven  years  for  English  language  learners  to  catch  up  to  native-­‐speaking  peers  in  the  aspect  of  academic  language  skills  (e.g.,  Collier,  1987;  Cummins,  1981a,  1981b).    As  a  results,  limited  academic  language  skills  can  significantly  affect  ELLs’  ability  to  learn  content  area  knowledge  and  their  overall  school  success.    We  argue  that  technology  including  social  media  has  a  great  potential  in  providing  many  possibilities  for  ELLs  to  improve  their  learning,  given  our  recent  studies  with  linguistically  diverse  urban  students,  which  results  indicate  that  ELLs  are  more  interested  in  technology  to  learn  literacy  skills  than  their  native  English-­‐speaking  peers  and  they  particularly  preferred  to  use  YouTube  for  learning,  compared  to  using  Facebook,  Twitter  and  text  messages  (Li,  Snow,  Jiang  and  Edward,  in  press).    

This  paper  reports  on  an  intervention  study  that  was  based  on  Word  Generation,  a  literacy  instruction  model  that  enhances  urban  students’  academic  vocabulary  learning  across  content  areas  (Snow,  2008).    Using  annotated  videos,  our  intervention  aims  to  help  students  learn  debate  on  a  topic  of  their  interest  using  academic  words.  The  video  clips  of  example  debates  of  8th  graders  provide  a  sort  of  virtual  coach  to  their  peers  in  grade  6,  mostly  ELLs  with  weaker  literacy  skills,  to  learn  critical  academic  words  in  meaningful  ways  inside  and  outside  the  classroom  via  YouTube  and  Vimeo.  The  results  showed  that  the  intervention  enhances  students’  learning  motivation  and  supports  their  mastery  of  the  debate  genre  that  ultimately  enhance  their  learning  of  vocabulary.  Video  clips  of  debates  will  be  demonstrated  in  the  presentation,  and  instructional  strategies  will  be  discussed  for  integrating  the  intervention  in  the  ESL  classroom.  

Meyers,  Alice     A  critical  review  of  official  policies,  documents,  guidelines,  related  to  First  Nations  language  education  in  Ontario    

Ontario  is  home  to  one-­‐quarter  of  Canada’s  Indigenous  population  (Glenn,  2011,  p.  6),  a  demographic  both  younger  and  growing  five  times  faster  than  the  non-­‐Indigenous  population  (Ontario  Ministry  of  Education,  2009,  p.  8),  creating  pressure  on  institutions  to  make  education  “accessible  and  relevant”(Battiste,  2008,  p.  498).  In  2004,  Hill  reported  little  support  for  First  Nations  (FN)  language  teachers  in  “adhering  to  provincial  curriculum  policy”  (p.  16).  A  critical  analysis  of  the  Ministry  of  Education’s  (2001)  Native  Languages  Curriculum  corroborates  demands  on  teachers  to  “accommodate  the  distinctive  features”  of  the  language  taught  (p.  22).  A  review  of  this  document,  Ontario  College  of  Teachers  (2013)  Native  Language  teacher  certification,  and  language  of  instruction  policies  form  the  bulk  of  the  poster.  Also  included,  a  critical  analysis  of  issues  such  as  a  culturally  appropriate  FN  language  

curriculum,  recognizing  a  growing  number  of  bi-­‐-­‐-­‐  dialectal/bilingual  speakers  of  First  Nations  English  Dialects  (Peltier,  2011,  p.  128),  a  demographic  sharing  features  with  ‘emergent  bilinguals’  in  the  U.S.,  where  resources  of  linguistically  diverse  students  remain  undervalued,  despite  proven  cognitive  and  economic  advantages  of  ‘additive  bilingualism’  (Cummins,  1989;  Miramontes,  Nadeau  &  Commins,  2011,  p.  14).  Incorporating  plurilingualism  (Piccardo,  2013)  could  benefit  FN  classrooms,  sites  for  exerting  language  rights  and  building  identity  (McCarty,  2008,  p.161).  

Mizuta,  Ai   For  English  speakers  only:  Chinese  language  education  in  Metro  Vancouver    

Despite  the  long  history  of  Chinese  immigration  in  British  Columbia,  it  was  not  until  recently  that  the  school  boards  introduced  early  start  Chinese  bilingual  programs  in  Metro  Vancouver.  However,  the  programs  do  not  accept  students  whose  first  language  is  Mandarin.  In  fact,  they  only  accept  students  from  English  speaking  households.  This  paper  examines  the  discourse  of  parents’  group  that  advocated  for  English  speakers  only  program,  public  debates,  as  well  as  the  program  policies  that  exclude  Chinese  speakers  from  the  program.    These  texts  reveal  the  desirability  of  Mandarin  language  use  as  an  added  value  for  English  speakers,  creating  an  idealized  bilingual  Mandarin/English  speaker  whose  mother  tongue  is  English.  However,  at  the  same  time,  they  carefully  exclude  from  the  proposed  program  any  kindergarten  age  children  whose  mother  tongue  is  Mandarin.    

The  parents  group  even  positions  Mandarin  speakers  as  the  other  to  whom  their  children  will  speak,  but  outcasts  from  their  program  as  those  who  should  learn  English  only.  This  double  tongued  discourse  that  idealizes  multilingualism  for  English  speakers  while  simultaneously  devaluing  the  multilingualism  of  ESL  speakers  has  been  a  common  discursive  feature  in  the  debates  about  heritage  language  education  in  Canada  and  the  U.S  (Cummins,  1996;  Cummins  &  Danesi,  1990).  

Mogadime,  Dolana   Teacher  education  students  studying  the  life  and  work  of  Jim  Cummins  as  a  bridge  toward  becoming  advocates  for  social  change  

Novice  Teacher  Education  students  (in  the  early  phase  of  their  concurrent  education  program)  need  to  understand  the  life  and  work  of  an  educational  advocate  for  social  justice  (Sachs,  2003).  Jim  Cummins  is  such  a  person.  For  the  past  11  years  I  have  taught  courses  in  diversity  and  equity  studies  to  mostly  white  undergraduate  and  graduate  students  in  the  Niagara  Peninsula  -­‐  who  may  not  have  had  exposure  to  culturally  diverse  communities  but  will  likely  end  up  working  within  these  settings,  given  the  growing  diversity  among  the  Canadian  population.  To  mediate  that  identified  gap,  the  topics  of  my  lectures  often  incorporate  teacher’s  life  stories  (and  the  personal/professional  connections  in  teaching).  The  approach  invites  education  students  to  delve  into  the  meaning  and  importance  of  teacher  agency  among  educators  who  work  in  diverse  settings.    

By  introducing  Jim’s  life  and  work,  teacher  education  students  can  envision  themselves  as  similarly  taking  up  an  interest  in  social  inequality  concerns  (along  new  lines  or  those  that  consider  multiracial  and  linguistically  diverse  students).  I  also  share  my  own  development  as  an  educational  researcher  working  on  a  project  during  my  doctoral  research  that  was  informed  by  Jim’s  work  (Mogadime,  2011,  2012).  Both  Jim’s  “Empowering  minority  students:  an  intervention  framework”  (Cummins,  2001)  and  the  theory  to  practice  approach  it  insists  upon,  highlight  the  productive  possibilities  for  teachers  interested  in  developing  curriculum  that  will  support  diverse  learners.  As  such  Jim  challenges  teacher  

education  students  to  become  more  socially  aware  of  their  responsibilities  to  develop  engaging  curriculum  that  supports  the  positive  life  chances  of  linguistically  and  culturally  diverse  learners.  

Mohanty,  Ajit  Kumar,  &  Minati  Panda    

Moving  from  bilingual  to  multilingual  education  in  linguistically  diverse  societies:  Challenges  and  issues  

As  bilingual  education  (BE)  gets  appropriated  in  linguistically  complex  societies  in  form  of  Multilingual  Education  (MLE),  its  principles  and  explanatory  tools  (like  ‘balanced  bilingualism’,  CALP-­‐based  cross-­‐linguistic  transfer  and  categorical  distinctions  between  monolingual,  bilingual  and  multilingual  proficiency)  need  to  be  revisited  with  emerging  insights  from  multilingual  societies  as  in  Asia  and  Africa.  Recent  programs  of  mother  tongue  based  multilingual  education  for  indigenous  children  in  India,  Nepal  and  other  countries  underscore  the  need  for  alternate  views  of  the  pedagogic  principles  for  effective  MLE.  Intervention  strategies  in  our  MLE  Plus  program  for  tribal  MT  children  in  Odisha,  India  will  be  discussed  to  show  that  innovative  pedagogic  practices  founded  on  children’s  cultural  knowledge  and  community  engagement  in  oracy  and  literacy  activities  bring  in  new  perspectives  to  understanding  of  the  principles  of  MLE.  We  argue  that  effective  classroom  learning  and  development  of  multilingual  proficiency  in  programs  of  MLE  must  go  beyond  some  limitations  of  the  theory  and  practice  of  BE  and  cease  to  be  promoted  as  a  marked  model  for  education  of  the  linguistic  minorities  only.  Further,  within-­‐classroom  linguistic  diversity  in  complex  sociolinguistic  conditions  calls  for  innovative  applications  of  the  principles  of  BE,  redefining  the  relationship  between  child’s  mother  tongue  and  other  languages  in  MLE.  

Monsen,  Marte   A  critical  view  on  the  Norwegian  reading  test  system  in  light  of  student  diversity  

Research  into  second  language  reading  suggests  that  linguistic  factors,  as  well  as  cultural  and  discursive  factors,  can  predict  the  proficiency  with  which  reading  is  mastered  in  the  second  language  (Bialystok,  2001;  Cummins,  1991;  Grabe,  2009;  Koda,  2004).  Researchers  have  also  highlighted  the  fact  that  standardized  reading  tests  developed  for  majority  students  cause  bias  when  they  are  used  in  the  testing  of  students  from  linguistic  or  cultural  minority  backgrounds  (August,  Francis,  Hsu,  &  Snow,  2006;  Willis,  2008).    Against  this  background,  this  paper  discusses  the  current  test  system  in  Norwegian  schools.  The  Norwegian  reading  tests  have  a  range  of  functions,  e.g.  informing  the  national  school  authorities  about  Norwegian  students’  reading  competency  and  being  a  pedagogical  tool  for  teachers.  In  many  areas  of  Norway,  the  test  results  at  each  school  are  made  public.    Since  the  reading  tests  are  mandatory  with  strict  rules  for  exemption,  even  students  with  very  little  Norwegian  training  participate,  many  of  them  with  poor  results.  This  leads  to  bad  publicity  for  areas  where  the  majority  of  students  have  immigrant  backgrounds.  My  research  into  the  grade-­‐eight  teacher  teams  at  three  different  schools  also  shows  that  teachers  find  it  difficult  to  make  use  of  the  test  results,  since  they  don’t  know  what  they  indicate.  

Montero,  M.  Kristina,  &   Examining  how  an  early   Secondary  school  teachers  who  work  with  refugee  youth  must  transform  and  extend  their  pedagogical  

Stephanie  Ledger   reading  instructional  intervention  with  non-­‐literate  and  semi-­‐literate  adolescent  refuges  can  respond  to  the  cultural  needs  of  non-­‐dominant  populations    

repertoire  to  include  a  greater  emphasis  on  literacy  development,  including  foundational  literacy  skills  (e.g.  phonological  awareness,  print  directionality,  and  alphabetic  principle)  (Dooley,  2009;  Woods,  2009).  Examining  adolescent  refugee  students’  English  language  and  reading  development  when  their  teacher  adopted  an  early  reading  instructional  framework,  Montero,  Newmaster,  and  Ledger  (under  review,  2013)  documented  an  average  reading  level  increase  of  8.3  levels  compared  to  1.2  levels  in  a  non-­‐intervention  group.  Knowing  how  to  read  and  write  are  required  life  skills  to  succeed  in  a  society  that  privileges  print-­‐based  literacy;  however,  focusing  on  adolescent  refugee  students’  early  reading  skills  is  insufficient  because  their  needs  run  deeper  and  teachers’  responsibilities  wider  (Woods,  2009).  To  understand  how  reading  level  attainment  can  be  understood  alongside  criticisms  of  pedagogy  that  deculturalize  non-­‐dominant  populations  (Spring,  2012),  we  analyze  the  classroom  practices  of  a  teacher  who  adopted  an  early  reading  instructional  framework  with  her  adolescent  refugee  students  enrolled  in  an  English  Literacy  Development  program  through  the  lenses  of  funds  of  knowledge  (Moll,  Amanti,  Neff,  &  Gonzalez,  1992)  and  culturally  responsive  pedagogy  (Gay,  2010).  We  will  report  on  the  observational  data  of  classroom  practices  collected  during  the  five-­‐  month  early  reading  instructional  intervention.  

Ortega,  Yecid     Pedagogy  of  a  second  language  at  an  early  age    

Learning  a  second  language  at  a  very  young  age  may  sound  counterintuitive  for  some,  but  when  children  are  appropriately  engaged  in  activities  that  are  meaningful  and  fun,  they  learn  quickly  and  effectively.  Children  learn  by  actively  being  involved  in  the  process,  by  playing  games,  singing  songs,  making  art  projects  and  exchanging  roles.  The  poster  will  portray  these  four  constructs  as  the  basis  of  any  second  language  pedagogy  at  an  early  age  and  the  work-­‐on-­‐progress  of  my  action  research  to  observe  and  analyse    which  pre-­‐literacy  skills  emerge  when  toddlers  (and  their  parents)  are  involved  in  second  language  instruction  (Spanish).      

Naqvi,  Rahat,  Aaron  Mason  &  Sarah  Soltesz  

Developing  metalinguistic  awareness  within  emergent  Spanish  bilingual  programs  

 

Historically,  French  Immersion  pedagogy  has  impacted  bilingual  programs  including  strict  segregation  of  learning  by  language  and  subject.  Dual-­‐language  space  that  explicitly  compares  and  contrasts  languages  has  not  been  considered  the  best  pedagogical  practice,  and  translation  or  code  switching  is  often  seen  as  a  threat  to  second  language  growth  (Cummins,  2000).  The  proposed  presentation  examines  one  urban  primary  Spanish  bilingual  program,  and  highlights  challenges  faced  in  light  of  current  research.  It  emphasizes  the  need  to  move  away  from  the  monolingual  solitude  assumption  (Cummins,  1979;  Cummins,  2005;  O’Duibhir  &  Cummins,  2012;  Garcia  &  Sylvan,  2011).  Drawing  upon  developing  theory  on  integrated  models  of  language  learning,  ie.,  the  strongly  supported  view  of  language-­‐as-­‐a-­‐resource  (Escamilla  &  Hopewell,  2009)  and  the  counterbalanced  approach  to  language  learning  (Lyster,  2011),  we  discuss  the  need  to  inform  practice  around  evolving  bilingual  pedagogy  and  literacy  acquisition.  We  highlight  the  learning  potential  associated  with  the  theory  of  linguistic  interdependence  (Cummins,  2001),  and  recognize  metalinguistic  awareness  as  being  central  to  the  learning  process  (O’Duibhir  &  Cummins,  2012).  Providing  students  with  strategic  mini-­‐readings  of  dual  language  books,  and  displaying  languages  on  the  interactive  whiteboard  so  that  comparisons  can  be  made  as  a  class,  develop  students’  sophisticated  metalinguistic  awareness.    This  supports  not  only  strong  second  language  learning,  but  also  enhances  

students’  knowledge  of  their  first  language.  

Perez,  Miguel,  &  Angel  Rincon  

Language  attitudes  toward  final-­‐/s/  weakening  among  young  adults  in  the  speech  of  Cartagena  and  Granada    

The  objective  of  this  study  is  to  analyze  linguistic  attitudes  in  the  speech  of  Granada  (Spain)  and  Cartagena  (Colombia)  toward  the  realization  of  the  final  /s/.  The  final  /s/  in  these  varieties  of  Spanish  is  traditionally  regarded  as  a  social  marker  where  the  variant  [s]  enjoys  prestige  over  the  variants  [h]  and  [Ø].  Twenty  college  students,  ranging  in  age  from  20  to  25,  participated  in  this  study.  Speech  samples  were  extracted  from  elicitation  tasks  and  linguistic  interviews.  Elicitation  tasks  rendered  a  total  of  1,850  tokens  of  /s/  in  each  variety;  whereas  linguistic  interviews  rendered  875  tokens  of  /s/  in  the  Granada  dialect  and  961  in  the  Cartagena  dialect.  All  occurrences  of  /s/  were  impressionistically-­‐coded  under  two  categories:  sibilant  [s]  or  weakened  [h,  Ø].  Results  show  that  in  the  Granada  dialect  final  /s/  weakening  is  thoroughly  consistent  in  both  tasks.  In  the  Cartagena  dialect,  however,  the  weakening  rate  of  final  /s/  is  significantly  higher  in  the  linguistic  interview  (85%)  than  in  the  elicitation  task  (45%).  These  results  suggest  that  Cartagena  speakers,  aware  of  the  linguistic  value  of  final  /s/,  maintain  the  national  standard  by  pronouncing  final  /s/  as  much  as  possible.  Conversely,  despite  social  stigma  toward  final  /s/  weakening,  Granada  speakers  do  not  attempt  to  retain  the  final  /s/  and  diverge  from  the  national  standard.  

Petrescu,  Maria  Claudia,  &  Rena  Helms-­‐Park  

Successful  minority  language  retention:  The  case  of  three  Canadian-­‐born  Romanian-­‐English  bilingual  children.  

Preserving  immigrant  children’s  first  language  is  important  for  the  children’s  overall  personal  and  educational  development  (Cummins,  2000;  Garcia,  2003).  However,  little  is  known  about  what  factors  lead  to  harmonious  bilingual  development  (De  Houwer,  2009).  The  present  study  investigates  the  conditions  under  which  a  first  language  (Romanian)  can  be  maintained  and  the  impact  that  L1  has  on  the  children’s  proficiency  in  the  L2  (English)  during  preschool  years.    For  the  purposes  of  charting  development  or  attrition,  language  proficiency  was  assessed  in  Romanian  and  English  through  separate  measures  of  lexical  (PPVT  and  Romanian-­‐adapted  PPVT),  syntactic  (picture-­‐story  based  instruments),  phonological  (CTOPP  and  Romanian-­‐based  CTOPP)  abilities,  and  more  holistically  through  evaluations  of  the  children's  communicative  competence  in  everyday  conversations.  The  results  demonstrate  that  all  three  children  continue  to  develop  their  minority  language  along  with  the  majority  language.  However,  the  lack  of  schooling  in  Romanian  leads  to  slow  progress  in  terms  of  academic  Romanian  vocabulary  and  possibly  in  terms  of  Romanian  narrative  skills.  Therefore,  providing  academic  minority  language  exposure  may  enhance  and  maintain  minority  language.  Two  years  of  schooling  in  English  narrows  the  gap  between  the  children  and  their  monolingual  counterparts,  with  children  mostly  showing  English  language  skills  on  par  with  those  of  the  monolingual  children.  

Piersma,  Carolyn   Literacy  inside  and  out:  Investigating  the  literacy  practices  of  adult  English  literacy  learners    

Adult  English  literacy  learners  (ELLs)  are  learners  with  limited  or  no  formal  schooling  in  their  first  language  who  are  learning  to  read  and  write  in  English.  At  present,  the  limited  research  surrounding  adult  ELL  instruction  does  not  fully  investigate  the  literacies  that  learners  make  use  of  outside  of  the  classroom  in  a  Canadian  context.  Through  the  lens  of  the  New  Literacy  Studies  (e.g.,  Gee,  1996;  Gee,  2001;  Gee,  2008;  Street,  1984;  Street,  1993;  Street,  2000),  this  presentation  highlights  a  variety  of  print-­‐literacy  practices  that  adult  ELLs  engage  with  inside  and  outside  of  the  classroom  as  gathered  through  interviews  and  observations.    

From  the  perspective  of  learners,  this  qualitative  research  study  indicates  the  value  and  variety  of  

literacy  practices  of  adult  ELLs  and  emphasizes  the  importance  of  connecting  out-­‐of-­‐class  literacy  practices  with  those  occurring  in  the  classroom.  Additionally,  this  study  provides  a  platform  for  adult  ELLs  to  discuss  their  in-­‐class  preferences.  The  findings  indicate  the  necessity  of  acknowledging  learner  prior  experiences  (Cummins,  2001),  and  the  importance  of  using  student  voices  to  inform  classroom  activities  and  materials.  The  results  provide  implications  for  in-­‐class  instruction,  program  design,  and  policy  development  for  adult  and  adolescent  learners  within  Canadian  high  schools  and  adult  educational  organizations.  

Prasad,  Gail   Looking  beyond  the  mirror  through  a  plurilingual  prism:  A  comparative  study  of  the  creation  of  plurilingual  identity  texts  as  a  research  methodology  with  children  in  Toronto’s  English  and  French  schools  

While  there  has  been  a  mounting  call  for  greater  research  over  the  last  decade  concerning  culturally  and  linguistically  diverse  (CLD)  learners  in  Canadian  schools,  little  comparative  research  has  been  conducted  across  English,  French  immersion  and  French-­‐language  minority  school  models.  Inspired  by  the  concept  of  Lahire  of  the  “plural  actor"  (2011)  and  growth  studies  on  plurilingualism  in  schools  (Coste,  2005;  Dagenais  &  Moore,  2008;  Garcia,  Barlett  &  Kleifgen  2007;  Gerin-­‐  Lajoie  ,  2008;  Moore,  2006;  Zarate,  Levy,  &  Kramsch  ,  2008),  this  study  engages  children  as  co-­‐  researchers  of  their  plurilingualism.  

Through  a  4-­‐month  intervention  in  4  English  and  French  schools  in  Toronto,  students  documented  their  plurilingual  and  multicultural  experiences  using  a  variety  of  multimodal  methods  including  digital  photography  and  iPads,  reflexive  drawing  (Molinie,  2009),  and  collage  (Butler-­‐  Kisber  ,  2010).    In  addition,  students  collaborated  to  create  plurilingual  "identity  texts"  Cummins  &  Early  2011).  Arts-­‐inspired  methods  were  used  to  allow  children  to  express  their  views  without  being  limited  to  the  language  of  schooling  (Molinié,  2009;  Auger,  2010),  and  to  scaffold  the  co-­‐construction  of  knowledge.  This  study  aims  to  support  an  inclusive  pedagogy  for  plurilingual  learners  across  English  and  French  schools  (Ontario  Ministry  of  Education,  2009).  

Ragnarsdóttir,  Hanna   Ethnic  minority  teachers  in  Icelandic  schools:  Opportunities  and  challenges  

The  paper  examines  findings  from  interviews  with  ethnic  minority  teachers  in  preschools  and  compulsory  schools  in  Iceland  conducted  in  2011-­‐2013.  The  study  applies  a  narrative  approach,  where  the  teachers  reflect  on  their  experiences  of  teaching  and  teacher  education  in  Iceland  and  in  their  countries  of  origin.  The  theoretical  framework  includes  writings  on  the  development  of  multicultural  learning  communities  (Banks,  2007;  Nieto,  2010).  Issues  such  as  equal  rights  for  participation,  equal  access  and  opportunities  for  teachers  and  students  in  school  settings  which  are  diverse  in  terms  of  ethnicities,  languages  and  religions  (Gundara,  2000;  Reid  &  Santoro,  2006;  Schmidt  &  Block,  2010)  will  be  addressed.  The  lenses  of  critical  multiculturalism  (May,  1999)  will  be  applied  in  order  to  understand  power  and  conflict  within  these  settings,  and  how  obstacles  for  inclusion  can  be  eliminated  with  new  visions  and  structures  for  school  communities.  The  findings  indicate  that  although  the  teachers  have  faced  various  challenges  in  Iceland,  related  to  first  languages,  Icelandic,  educational  experiences,  pedagogical  issues  and  prejudice,  they  have  all  had  the  opportunities  to  flourish  in  their  schools.  This  study  is  part  of  a  group  project  being  carried  out  by  members  of  the  Diverse  Teachers  for  Diverse  Learners  network  with  funding  from  the  NordForsk  Researchers  Network.    

Hetty  Roessingh   Academic  conversations  and  sophisticated  vocabulary  input  for  young  

K  –  3  classroom  practitioners  generally  do  not  provide  sufficient  sophisticated  vocabulary  input  to  advance  the  academic  language  proficiency  of  English  language  learners  (ELLs).    This  leaves  many  ELLs  linguistically  vulnerable  as  they  transition  into  upper  elementary  school  years.    This  presentation  focuses  on  teacher  led  

ELLs   academic  conversations  and  their  potential  to  enhance  language  learning  in  the  mainstream  class  setting.  Rowsell,  Jennifer   Being  Cindy  Sherman:  

Enacting  Multiliteracies  through  Photography  

This  presentation  will  feature  data  from  a  SSHRC  Insight  Development  grant  across  international  sites  focusing  specifically  on  a  visual  arts  project  that  took  place  over  6  weeks  in  two  high  schools  in  the  Niagara  area.    Based  on  the  interpretative  photographic  methods  of  Cindy  Sherman,  the  presentation  looks  at  how  teenagers  mediate  self  and  their  lived  experiences  through  visual  effects.  Drawing  on  multiliteracies  and  multimodal  theory,  I  will  analyze  photographs  as  applying  design  principles  to  produce  identity  texts  (Cummins,  2011).  For  my  presentation,  I  will  talk  through  the  conceptual  photographs  and  how  they  were  done  by  youth  in  the  style  of  Cindy  Sherman  because  of  her  artistic  ways  of  interpreting  the  roles  and  representations  of  women  in  society.  The  project  spanned  several  weeks  during  the  autumn  of  2013,  starting  with  sessions  on  Cindy  Sherman  by  the  visual  arts  teacher  and  a  colleague.  Data  for  the  study  include:  pre-­‐  and  post-­‐interviews,  researcher  observational  field  notes,  and  documentary  data  (i.e.,  photographs  and  written  reflections  about  the  process  and  final  products  including  an  artist’s  statement  and  student  journals).  For  my  presentation,  I  will  examine  visual  and  linguistic  data  as  signaling  different  sorts  of  thinking  processes  and  what  these  shifts  in  modes  imply  about  teaching  and  learning  practices.  

Russette,  Alan   A  case  study  of  pedagogical  practices  and  learning  environment  in  an  Ontario  Francophone  child  care  centre    

To  attend  Francophone  elementary  schools,  non-­‐Francophone  children  must  demonstrate  an  acceptable  proficiency  in  French.    This  leads  parents  to  enroll  their  children  in  Francophone  child  care  centres  in  order  to  become  sufficiently  proficient  in  French  to  pass  the  admission  interview.    This  case  study  explores  the  learning  environment  in  an  Ontario  Francophone  child  care  centre  where  the  majority  of  children  were  Anglophone.    Relying  on  Cummins’  (1989)  Minority  Empowerment  Framework  and  Lyster’s  (2007)  Counterbalanced  Approach  to  Second  Language  Teaching,  the  study  investigated  how  Franco-­‐Ontarian  culture  and  linguistic  character  are  reinforced  in  this  child  care  centre;  how  language  instruction  was  integrated  into  activities;  and  what  supports  were  in  place  to  assist  non-­‐Francophone  children.  Over  ten  weeks,  the  researcher  observed  day-­‐to-­‐day  practices  employed  by  Early  Childhood  Educators  in  the  centre  and  observed  interactions  between  staff  and  the  children.    The  researcher  documented  specific  language-­‐related  events,  and  conducted  interviews  with  the  staff  of  the  child  care  centre  and  one  parent.    The  researcher  found  that  the  centre  promoted  a  culture  of  acceptance,  rather  than  strictly  reinforcing  Franco-­‐Ontarian  culture;  the  centre’s  interpretation  of  Emergent  Curriculum  meshes  well  with  Lyster’s  (2007)  Counterbalanced  Approach;  and  that  gestures,  repetition,  and  praise  were  used  with  all  the  children,  regardless  of  language  background.  

Schmidt,  Clea   Professional  pathways  of  immigrant  teachers    

In  the  scholarship  on  the  integration  of  immigrant  professionals,  immigrant  teachers  remain  underrepresented  on  account  of  being  a  “low-­‐demand”  occupation  in  many  urban  centres  in  Canada.    Manitoba,  like  other  provinces,  generally  has  an  over-­‐supply  of  teachers.  Yet  the  impetus  for  integrating  immigrant  teachers  extends  beyond  labour  market  outcomes  and  is  appropriately  framed  within  a  critical  pedagogy  of  inclusion.  The  research  presented  in  this  poster  considers  the  professional  trajectories  of  immigrant  teachers  who  participated  in  an  academic  and  professional  bridging  program  and/or  a  mentoring  initiative  at  the  University  of  Manitoba  between  2006  and  2011.  Data  includes  employment  statistics  collected  via  electronic  surveys  to  program  participants  and  qualitative  interviews  with  those  

same  participants.  A  critical  theoretical  framework  guides  the  analysis.  The  longitudinal  impacts  of  bridging  programs  for  immigrant  professionals  offered  in  universities  in  close  collaboration  with  government,  NGO,  and  field  partners  are  especially  important  to  document  given  shifting  political  priorities  often  mean  valuable  programs  are  discontinued  before  significant  outcomes  can  be  documented.  Insights  from  the  research  presented  have  the  potential  to  inform  current  and  future  policy  making  to  support  the  ongoing  integration  of  immigrant  teachers  in  Canada,  and  to  establish  a  case  for  the  roles  various  stakeholders  might  play  in  responding  to  Canada’s  need  to  diversify  its  teaching  profession.  

Schmidt,  Elaine   Professional  learning  journey:  supporting  a  conceptual  shift  in  bilingual  pedagogy  

The  objectives  of  the  popular  50%-­‐50%  additive  bilingual  programs  in  Western  Canada  include  global  citizenship  and  strong  language  and  literacy  skills  acquired  through  engaging  content;  however  traditional  pedagogy  such  as  the  parallel  monolingualism  orientation  impedes  that  potential.  Through  this  longitudinal  study  on  an  English-­‐Spanish  Bilingual  K-­‐4  campus,  the  researcher  seeks  to  identify  both  emerging  pedagogical  principles  and,  professional  development  needs  of  teachers  as  they  explore  a  shift  toward  a  cross-­‐linguistic  learning  approach  in  this  bilingual  context.  Based  on  the  target  of  ‘improving  practice  in  the  company  of  peers’  (Willms,  Friesen  8:  Milton,  2009),  teachers  collaboratively  designed  for  inquiry-­‐based  learning  across  languages,  through  several  cycles  of  professional  learning  community  inquiry.  This  paper  draws  on  Cummins’  interdependence  hypothesis  and  principle  of  cross-­‐linguistic  transfer  (2001)  to  analyze  teachers’  observations  and  experiences  with  students  as  they  engaged  in  this  holistic  context.  Data  was  triangulated  through  teacher  focus  group  reflections,  questionnaires,  videos  and  student  interviews.  Results  indicate  that  the  shift  toward  dual-­‐language  inquiry  tasks  was  highly  engaging  for  students  who  demonstrated  numerous  examples  of  cross-­‐linguistic  transfer.  Teachers’  reflections  about  this  reconceptualised  pedagogy  included  many  observations  and  questions  about  the  role  of  explicit  language  instruction,  translanguaging,  metalinguistic  awareness  and  student  interaction.  Teachers  also  articulated  how  the  professional  collaborative  learning  process  is  critical  for  further  developing  the  pedagogy.  

Shin,  Hyunjung,  Debbie  Griffith,  &  Carmen  McCrea    

Critical  ESL  teacher  education:  Stories  from  Saskatchewan  classrooms    

Discussions  regarding  linguistically  and  culturally  diverse  students  have  traditionally  focused  on  schools  in  large  urban  settings.  Yet,  many  schools  in  Saskatchewan,  for  example,  are  no  longer  the  culturally  and  linguistically  homogeneous  places  they  were  ten  years  ago.  While  enriching  our  schools  and  classrooms,  this  rapidly  growing  English  Language  Learners  (ELLs)  also  challenge  teachers,  administrators,  and  school  divisions  to  support  them  appropriately.  In  this  presentation,  by  incorporating  insights  from  Cummins’  studies  on  language,  identity,  and  pedagogy  for  ELLs  (e.g.,  2000,  2001,  2006),  we  examine  the  unique  literacy  and  language  needs  of  ELLs  in  the  context  of  Saskatchewan.  More  specifically,  drawing  upon  critical  incidents  from  our  praxis  as  a  university  teacher  educator,  a  secondary  ESL  teacher,  and  an  adult  ESL  teacher,  we  discuss  challenges  we  face  daily  in  our  professional  practices  and  provide  implications  for  critical  ESL  teacher  education.  For  example,  we  examine  how  some  ELLs  may  be  positioned  subordinately  within  the  broader  program  due  to  their  lack  of  literacy  skills  and  how  this  positioning  may  be  exacerbated  by  federal  funding  policies  and  institutionally  adopted  English-­‐only  policies  (Simpson,  2011;  Cummins,  2006).  We  consider  implications  of  such  positioning  for  critical  K-­‐12  teacher  education  to  enhance  the  

learning  experiences  of  ELLs  in  Canadian  schools.  Sinke,  Mark   "What's  this  called  in  your  

language?"  -­‐  Examining  the  complex  negotiation  of  identities  in  the  English  language  classroom  through  student  life  histories  

Experiences  in  the  English-­‐as-­‐a-­‐second  language  programs  of  the  public  education  system  are  extremely  complex  and  intricate  encounters  with  direct  implications  for  the  academic  and  social  trajectories  of  students  from  minority  language  backgrounds  (Cummins,  2001).    When  young  former  refugees  from  Liberia  were  resettled  in  Canada  and  entered  their  new  school  environments,  they  immediately  encountered  an  environment  of  assumptions  and  generalizations.    Through  the  creation  of  life  histories,  these  students  related  the  complex  and  varied  ways  that  they  negotiated  their  placement  in  English  language  classes  (despite  being  first  language  speakers  of  English),  and  their  engagement  with  the  social  and  educational  context  of  Ontario  public  secondary  schools.    The  relatively  small  sample  of  four  Liberian  students  that  shared  their  life  histories  in  this  project  represents  within  themselves  the  extremely  diverse  backgrounds  and  experiences  of  the  larger  group  of  students  that  inhabit  the  ESL  classroom.    The  complex  ways  that  they  negotiated  their  identification  as  either  learners  or  experts  in  different  contexts  and  in  varied  ways  present  educators  with  valuable  insights  into  the  mindsets  and  motivations  of  students  in  similar  circumstances.  

Song,  Heejin   Deconstructing  cultural  representations  in  a  Korean  EFL  education  television  program  

 

The  paper  addresses  how  the  notion  of  English  as  an  international  language  (EIL)  is  reflected,  and  how  the  culture  of  EIL  is  represented,  in  an  English  education  television  program  in  South  Korea.  The  program  is  broadcasted  on  the  English  education  channel  run  by  the  Korean  government.  This  paper  examines  the  cultural  representations  of  EIL  embedded  in  the  television  program  through  the  lens  of  critical  discourse  analysis.  The  analysis  of  26  episodes  reveals  that  the  program  attempts  to  incorporate  Korean  English  language  learners’  voices,  culture,  interests,  and  current  global  issues  in  various  forms.  However,  these  cultural  and  linguistic  representations  and  intercultural  interactions  reproduce  unequal  power  relations  that  propagate  the  notion  that  the  American  English  variety  and  Anglo-­‐centred  culture  are  the  normative  variety  and  normative  culture  of  EIL.  These  findings  lead  to  a  discussion  on  the  discourse  of  inequality  embedded  in  EIL  teaching  and  pedagogical  suggestions  for  more  critical  intercultural  English  teaching  practices.  

Stille,  Saskia     Articulating  ‘the  subject’  of  language  teaching  and  learning  

Language  teaching  and  learning  is  connected  to  a  politics  of  global  location  and  broader  social  issues  of  race,  migration,  religion,  gender,  sexuality,  and  social  class.  Dichotomous  understandings  of  students  as  either  native  or  nonnative  speakers  ignore  these  interlocking  and  intersecting  dimensions  of  experience.  Engaging  with  these  concerns,  the  purpose  of  this  proposed  presentation  is  to  examine  how  powerful  discursive  conceptualizations  of  language,  diversity,  and  social  difference  shape  understandings  of  immigrant  students  in  the  Canadian  educational  context.  Despite  a  significant  body  of  research  that  articulates  the  role  of  identity  in  language  learning  processes  (i.e.  Cummins,  2001;  Cummins  &  Early,  2011;  Norton  &  Toohey,  2011),  curriculum  policies  and  classroom  pedagogy  often  overlook  the  rich  cultural  and  linguistic  resources  of  students  who  speak  a  language  other  than  English  at  home.  Mapping  the  terrain  of  ‘the  social’  in  SLA  research,  I  examine  how  discursive  constructions  of  identity  and  language  learning  uphold  monolingual,  monocultural  approaches  to  education,  and  marginalize  newcomer  students  and  students  from  non-­‐dominant  cultural  and  linguistic  backgrounds.  Drawing  on  examples  from  recent  fieldwork  involving  teachers  and  students  at  the  elementary  level,  I  describe  a  plurilingual  and  culturally-­‐sustaining  approach  to  pedagogy  that  offers  a  more  expansive  view  of  students’  linguistic  capabilities.  

Takeuchi,  Miwa,  &  Robin  Coyle  

Multiliteracies  approach  in  linguistically  diverse  mathematics  classrooms  

In  recent  years,  there  has  been  a  growing  body  of  research  examining  the  issue  of  multilingual  students’  access  to  high-­‐quality  instruction  in  mathematics  classrooms.  This  presentation  demonstrates  the  possibility  of  applying  multiliteracies  theory  to  teaching  and  learning  in  linguistically  diverse  mathematics  classrooms.  The  multiliteracies  theory  particularly  emphasizes  two  aspects  of  the  semiotic  resources  in  teaching  and  learning:  (a)  the  multiplicity  of  languages  that  students  bring  into  the  classroom,  and  (b)  the  multiplicity  of  communication  channels  and  media.  This  multiliteracies  theory  has  been  applied  to  classroom  practices  and  has  contributed  to  promoting  diversity  in  language  and  communication  modes  (Cummins,  2009).  This  presentation,  drawing  from  research  conducted  in  both  in-­‐school  and  out-­‐of-­‐school  contexts,  demonstrates  how  multimodal  resources  mediate  and  enhance  mathematics  learning.  The  first  context  is  linguistically  diverse  mathematics  classrooms  in  an  urban  school  in  Canada.  The  teacher’s  use  of  multiple  languages  and  physical  and  symbolic  tools,  along  with  her  affirmation  of  students’  identities  as  multimodal  users  were  highlighted.  The  second  context  is  mathematics  practices  among  transnational  families  to  get  an  out-­‐of-­‐school  perspective.  By  identifying  how  multiplication  is  mediated  by  culturally-­‐specific  physical  and  symbolic  tools,  this  presentation  will  highlight  the  significance  of  the  multiliteracies  approach  in  mathematics  teaching  and  learning.  

Taylor,  Shelley   Listen  to  the  plurilinguals!    ‘Hearing’  students’  background  knowledge  and  letting  it  ‘speak’  to  facilitate  their  progression  along  educational  and  linguistic  paths    

This  talk  presents  findings  of  a  longitudinal  case  study  involving  Spanish-­‐speaking  students  (Gr.  9-­‐Year  1  of  postsecondary  studies).  They  received  English  and  French-­‐medium  instruction  (French  immersion),  and  had  the  option  of  learning  their  heritage  language  and  international  languages  as  subjects  in  high  school,  yet  their  plurilingualism  was  largely  veiled  in  the  curriculum,  materials  and  classroom  language  policies.  This  talk  describes  their  plurilingual/pluricultural  experiences,  including  disparate  views  held  by  varying  social  actors  (the  students,  their  parents,  educators  and  community)  about  their  linguistics  repertoires;  affordances  for  identity  negotiation  and  L1-­‐Ln  acquisition  provided  to  them;  constraints  their  educators  experienced,  and  the  role  (a  lack  of)  affordances  played  in  shaping  their  postsecondary  paths.  Data  

collected  through  classroom,  home  and  community  observations  (Year  1),  and  surveys  and  interviews  (Years  1-­‐4),  were  analyzed  for  recurrent  themes  and  key  events.  The  findings  support  key  tenets  of  Cummins’  (2009)  framework  of  transformative  multiliteracies  pedagogy,  which  posits  that:  1.  students’  educational  outcomes  (including  L1-­‐Ln  acquisition)  depend,  to  a  large  extent,  on  whether  their  background  knowledge  is  reflected  in  the  curriculum,  materials  and  classroom  language  policies,  and  spaces  are  provided  for  co-­‐constructing  knowledge  and  identity  negotiation,  and  2.  power  relations  play  a  significant  role  in  student  achievement  and  agency.  

Valencia,  Marlon  &  Sreemali  Herath  

Developing  critical  teacher  educator  identities:  Two  doctoral  journeys  in  language  and  literacies  education  

Two  doctoral  candidates  and  teacher  educators-­‐in-­‐the-­‐making  document  their  struggles  to  develop  critical  teacher  educator  identities  as  they  engage  in  their  doctoral  research.  Drawing  on  qualitative  data  collected  from  four  international  pre-­‐service  teacher  preparation  programs  in  Canada,  Chile,  Colombia,  and  Sri  Lanka,  two  bi-­‐national  researchers  (a  Colombian-­‐Canadian  and  a  Sri  Lankan-­‐Canadian)  talk  about  the  complexities  surrounding  gaining  access  to  research  sites,  accessing  participants  and  generating  the  kind  of  data  required  by  their  doctoral  studies  on  pre-­‐service  language  teachers’  identities,  and  how  the  teacher-­‐researchers  enacted  their  own  identities  in  this  process.  The  researchers  kept  an  electronic  journal  comprised  by  audio  and  document  files,  and  created  multimodal  identity  texts  (Cummins,  2009)  to  explain  their  shifting  identities.  This  was  followed  by  a  critical  conversation/interview  between  the  two  researchers.  Findings  reveal  that  critical  teacher-­‐researchers’  identities  are  not  coherent  constructions,  but  are  constantly  constructed  and  reconstructed.  The  teacher-­‐researchers  enacted  multiple  and  diverse  identity  positions  in  relation  to  the  immediate  as  well  as  the  larger  sociopolitical  contexts  they  were  situated  in.  The  presentation  concludes  with  a  discussion  of  the  use  of  innovative  data  collection  tools  and  how  it  illuminates  the  language  teacher  identity  research.  

Vasquez,  Isabel   Traditional  or  transformative:  Host  teachers’  perceptions  of  their  roles  in  Chilean  schools    

In  my  role  as  a  practicum  supervisor  for  more  than  a  decade,  I  have  observed  the  vast  differences  that  exist  between  how  host  teachers  perceive  their  roles.  In  the  past  year,  I  have  interviewed  and  surveyed  these  teachers  in  an  attempt  to  understand  how  their  pedagogical  orientations  (Cummins  2006,  2011)  influence  the  way  they  work  with  student  teachers.  In  my  paper,  I  will  introduce  a  group  of  elementary  and  secondary  school  teachers  hosting  future  teachers  of  English  and  provide  specific  examples  of  the  support  strategies  they  implement  during  the  practicum  to  ensure  the  success  of  their  student  teachers.  I  will  also  consider  the  influence  of  the  type  of  school  in  which  the  practicum  is  situated.  In  Chile,  student  teachers  may  be  placed  in  private,  semi-­‐private  or  public  schools  for  their  practicum.  Finally,  I  will  discuss  the  role  of  national  education  policies  on  how  host  teachers  interact  with  their  student  teachers.