Teachers of all students, particularly English Learners (ELs), need to integrate social justice pedagogy into their lessons so that all learners are included in the learning process, thinking critically about curriculum and taking action in the face of injustice. There has been some research into teacher preparation programs focusing on how they integrate culturally responsive and social justice pedagogy into their curricula and whether there has been a positive impact on teachers’ self-awareness, social justice knowledge and classroom practices as a result (Ruffin, 2016; Thieman, 2016). However, these studies do not address lesson content. This document analysis study, framed theoretically with critical intercultural communication (Halualani & Nakayama, 2010), explored the integration of social justice principles into lesson plans developed by pre-service and in-service English as a second language (ESL) teachers who were pursuing a TESOL graduate degree (Initial License) at a university in the Northeast of the United States. The lesson plans were analyzed using a rubric aligned with the Social Justice Standards: The Teaching Tolerance Anti-Biases Framework. The exploration unveiled the need for more connections to students’ backgrounds, structured in-class dialogues, support for linguistic needs and modeling of intercultural practices.

It is critical that pre-service teachers have exposure to practice in order to be successful in their future classrooms. This article describes a step-by-step process of implementing mixed-reality simulation in teacher preparation courses in order to provide teacher candidates with an almost-real classroom experience. Through using this mixed-reality simulation platform, teacher candidates teach student avatars who are being controlled by a live, behind-the-scenes person, trained to facilitate classroom scenarios. Following an overview of the implementation of this mixed-reality technological tool into their classes, authors share successes and challenges, highlighting some key takeaways for those considering integrating this into their future classes.  

Teachers of English learners (ELs) often have solid knowledge in education theory and methodology but are challenged with identifying appropriate language demands in the content that they teach and creating language objectives (LOs) that focus on such demands. The document analysis study reported in this article examined the effectiveness of LOs from 60 lesson plans created by teachers enrolled in sheltered English immersion endorsement courses at a university in the northeastern United States to explore their ability to meet ELs’ language needs. The data analysis demonstrated an overemphasis on productive skills, a limited scope of the language target or lack thereof, deficiencies related to language functions, and a tendency to view LOs as lesson activities. Following a discussion of these themes, the authors suggest practical recommendations for teacher educators and teachers to support ELs’ language development and content learning.