Stories of self, stories of practice: enacting a vision of socially just pedagogy for Latino youth

Teacher Advocacy in Bilingual Programs

“…To address the needs of their emergent bilingual students, teachers voluntarily went into the community to set up support networks in order to establish programs for students, including mentoring, tutoring, and arts programs (Ray, 2009). In their commitment to bilingual education, some teachers worked with parents and community activists to promote bilingual programs and organize advocacy groups for bilingual education (Delgado-Gaitán, 2001;Galindo & Olguín, 1996;Jiménez et al, 1996;Lemberger, 1997;Lenski, 2006;Rodríguez, 2011).…”

“…The studies offered multiple examples of advocacy activity in which teachers made space in the explicit curriculum for students to share their histories and/or build their capacity to resist deficit views of themselves through focused studies of the immigrant experience and the contributions of their home cultures and languages in themes within the "mainstream" curriculum (Arce, 2004;Brito, Lima, & Auerbach, 2004;Flores-Duñas, 2005;García, 1991;Montero-Sieburth & Pérez, 1987;Rodríguez, 2011). In some cases, an emphasis on diversity of languages and cultures in the curriculum was extended to framing classroom discussions around topics that were "culture bound" so that language-minority students could participate as experts and have knowledge status (Arce, 2004;Flores-Dueñas, 2005).…”

“…Together with their students, they critically analyzed the content of mainstream texts and curriculum to identify the missing or alternative stories. These teachers helped students develop the ability to critically analyze the consequences of unequal status of languages and cultures (Brito et al, 2004;Rodríguez, 2011) and structured their classrooms as safe places for learners to address prejudices toward classmates from other cultural groups and transform prejudicial ideas (Fránquiz, 1999;Lima, 2000;Montero-Sieburth & Pérez, 1987;Shannon, 1995). In classrooms that included learners from both dominant and minority cultures, teacher advocates ensured that all learners were equal members by not allowing class discussions to be dominated by the learners from the dominant culture or language group (Arce, 2004).…”

Enacting Advocacy-Oriented Visions of Bilingual Education: Lessons from Experienced Bilingual Educators

“…In the studies reviewed by Dubetz and de Jong (2011), a number of teacher advocates reported that personal and/or professional experiences shaped the curricular and linguistic choices they made. Personal experiences that inform teachers' advocacy efforts include previous K-12 educational experience, experiences they have had as members of immigrant families and as minorities, and their previous experiences as activists (Bos & Reyes, 1996;Flores, 2001;Galindo, Aragon, and Underhill, 1996;Lemberger, 1997;Lenski, 2006;Petrón, 2006;Rodriguez, 2011;Varghase & Stritikus, 2005). Additionally, a number of studies have suggested that formal education, i.e., teacher preparation and professional development, support teachers' ability to challenge subtractive views of bilingualism (Arce, 2004;Flores, 2001;Gersten & Rivera, 1996;Montero-Sieburth & Perez, 1987;Lemberger, 1997;Leone, 1995;Ramos 2005).…”

Enacting Critical Literacy: The Case of a Language Minority Preservice Teacher

“…Language minority prospective teachers, such as Rose, have reported facing more obstacles than their native‐speaking counterparts, ranging from language barriers, lack of role models, and less‐positive schooling experiences, to awareness of covert and overt discrimination in education (Banks & Banks, ; Irizarry, ; Rodriguez, ). While English native‐speaking teacher candidates often experience an incongruity between the identities and discourses they must adopt to participate in higher education and those of their home cultures, this can pose a much greater challenge for language minority students due to differences in linguistic expectations (Canagarajah, ).…”