Restrictive Language Policy in Practice: English Learners in Arizona (Bilingual Education & Bilingualism, 103, Band 103) - Hardcover

Heineke, Amy J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1783096411 ISBN 13: 9781783096411

Verlag: Channel View Publications - IPSUK, 2016

Inhaltsangabe

As the most restrictive language policy context in the United States, Arizona's monolingual and prescriptive approach to teaching English learners continues to capture international attention. More than five school years after initial implementation, this study uses qualitative data from the individuals doing the policy work to provide a holistic picture of the complexities and intricacies of Arizona's language policy in practice. Drawing on the varied perspectives of teachers, leaders, administrators, teacher-educators, lawmakers and community activists, the book examines the lived experiences of those involved in Arizona's language policy on a daily basis, highlighting the importance of local perspectives and experiences as well as the need to prepare and professionalize teachers of English learners.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Amy J. Heineke is Associate Professor of Education in the School of Education, Loyola University Chicago, USA, where she leads undergraduate and graduate teacher education programs focused on English learners and bilingual education. Her research interests include language policy, English learners and teacher preparation.

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Restrictive Language Policy in Practice

English Learners in Arizona

By Amy J. Heineke

Multilingual Matters

Copyright © 2017 Amy J. Heineke
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-78309-641-1

Contents

Part 1:Context, 
1 Introduction, 
2 Looking Back: Historical Lens on Arizona Policies and Practices, 
3 Contemporary Context of English Learner Education, 
Part 2:Findings, 
4 Starting at the Center: English Language Development in Classrooms, 
5 Local Policy (P)layers: Classroom, School and District Educators, 
6 Administrators and Educators: State Educational Policy in Practice, 
7 Legislators and Lobbyists: Power, Politics and Policy in Arizona, 
Part 3:Discussion, 
8 Rationalizing the Education of English Learners in Arizona: The Complexities of Language Policy in Practice, 
9 Looking Forward: Recommendations for English Learner Education, 
References, 
Index, 

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

The face of classrooms and schools across the US is changing with more cultural and linguistic diversity today than ever before (US Department of Education, 2010). The student body in K-12 schools continues to become more linguistically diverse as the number of English learners (ELs) rapidly increases in classrooms in all corners of the nation (Gándara & Hopkins, 2010; Shin & Kominski, 2010). Representing a subgroup of children and adolescents who speak a native language other than English, students labeled as ELs are still in the process of attaining English as measured by standardized tests of language proficiency in speaking, listening, reading and writing (Linquanti & Cook, 2013). In the past decade, the population of ELs enrolled in US public schools has nearly doubled, climbing from 3.5 million to 5.3 million, with approximately 80% of students coming from Spanish-speaking homes and families (Gándara & Hopkins, 2010; National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition [NCELA], 2010). If the growth trend continues, one in every three students will be considered an EL by the year 2043 (Crawford & Krashen, 2007). Nevertheless, ELs are often the most underperforming student population in the US (Gándara & Hopkins, 2010).

The EL achievement gap (Fry, 2007) denotes the current reality that ELs' academic performance remains substantially lower than their mainstream peers in nearly every measure of achievement (Gándara & Hopkins, 2010; Zamora, 2007). Minority students have long been juxtaposed from the mainstream in schools with the common assumption that diminished social resources outside of school leads to underperformance at school (Murrell, 2007). The historical trend of minority students having poor standardized test scores in comparison with mainstream peers' scores has led to the oft-cited phenomena of the achievement gap – inequality of educational outcomes for African Americans, Latinos and Native Americans as compared to European Americans (Meece & Kurtz-Costes, 2001). When analyzing the academic outcomes specifically for those labeled as ELs, the achievement gap widens even further, demonstrating that US schools have not met the unique and diverse needs of this heterogeneous group of students (Fry, 2007; Heineke et al., 2012). For example, in a nationwide assessment of fourth-grade reading, 8% of ELs scored at or above the proficient level as compared to 40% of non-ELs; in eighth grade, only 4% of ELs scored proficient in contrast to 36% of non-ELs (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2015). Further exacerbating the issue of supporting and measuring ELs' learning, standardized tests written for and statistically normed on native English speakers serve as the sole measure of EL student performance and achievement (Adebi & Gándara, 2006).

As educators and other stakeholders across the nation seek to understand and close the academic achievement gaps between native and non-native speakers of English (Fry, 2007), various questions continue to arise: What is the best way to educate ELs? How can educators support the teaching and learning of ELs? The persistence of EL achievement gaps throughout various approaches and models of language education has led national and international educational researchers and practitioners to fix the microscope on the recent shift in EL educational policy and practice in the southwestern state of Arizona (Carpenter et al., 2006; Fry, 2007). Adopting what scholars now deem to be the most restrictive educational context in the US for ELs, Arizona's English Language Development (ELD) approach requires ELs to be separated daily from mainstream, English-speaking peers for four hours of skill-based, English language instruction with discrete blocks of time dedicated to grammar, vocabulary, conversation, reading and writing (Gándara & Hopkins, 2010; Heineke, 2015).

This text investigates this unique context of language policy in practice, honing in on the state of Arizona education for ELs five years after the initial implementation of the ELD approach to teaching and learning. Like peeling layers away from the dense and complex series of processes and policies that directly and indirectly influence EL education, the chapters that follow provide windows into the lived experiences of those engaged in the daily work of language policy. Drawing from the varied perspectives of teachers, leaders, administrators, teacher educators, lawmakers and community activists, the text presents the complex realities of restrictive language policy in practice for educators, stakeholders and readers to consider the definitive impacts on the large and growing population of ELs in the state and nation.

The State of Arizona Education

Situated on land that was Mexican territory prior to the Gadsen Purchase of 1854, Arizona's geography includes a 370-mile border with Mexico; over 25% of the state's land is designated for tribal reservations (Milem et al., 2013). In part because of the rich history of both groups in the Grand Canyon state, Latinos and Native Americans make up greater proportions in the state population than in the US as a whole (see Figure 1.1): twice the nation's proportion of Latinos and four times the proportion of Native Americans live in Arizona (Milem et al., 2013). In Arizona classrooms and schools, the past 15 years have brought dramatic transformation in students' racial and ethnic backgrounds, where students of color are the increasing majority. Latinos now surpass Whites as the largest group enrolled in Arizona K-12 classrooms (Milem et al., 2013). As a whole, Arizona K-12 education lags behind national averages and trends of student performance, with multiple data sets in the past decade showing negative gains across all demographic groups and academic subjects (Ushomirsky, 2013).

Challenges faced by ELs in classrooms across the state highlight the shortcomings of Arizona's education system. Similar to the 51% growth nationwide, there was a 48% increase in ELs in Arizona schools in 10 years, with approximately 94% speaking Spanish as a native language (NCELA, 2010). The 166,000 ELs enrolled in Arizona schools in 2007–2008 comprised 15% of the state student population (Jiménez-Castellanos et al., 2013); however, existing policies and programming within the education system in Arizona have yet to make a meaningful dent in successfully supporting ELs' development and achievement. In 2010–2011, 86% of Arizona ELs scored below basic proficiency on Arizona's Instrument to Measure Standards...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Channel View Publications - IPSUK
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2016
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1783096411
• ISBN 13: 9781783096411
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 240
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: GPSR Kontakt; gpsr@libri.de; ; Europaallee 1; Bad Hersfeld; 36244; Deutschland