“After Building Relationships, Language Is No Longer a Barrier”: Two Bilingual Mathematics Teachers’ Growth Through Student Teaching Experiences

Abstract

We followed the journeys of two bilingual mathematics teachers during their student teaching experiences. Both bilingual teachers initially expressed the high anxiety they experienced when speaking English as a Second Language speakers during their student teaching. As they interacted with supportive co-operating teachers, along with culturally and linguistically diverse students, both teachers showed how they underwent a crucial shift in their thinking from deficit views to asset-rich views in terms of their own cultural and linguistic identities. The results of this case study suggest that teacher preparation programs should integrate ways of supporting bilingual teachers to help foster a positive cultural identity and to bring enriching linguistic backgrounds into future classrooms.