Although a substantial amount of professional literature argues for the potential benefits of content-based instruction, limited research exists on how this type of instruction actually is appropriated, understood, and carried out in practice by foreign language teachers. This study examines the role of two sixth grade Spanish teachers' discursive…

As interest and concern rise in U.S. educational circles around the reading achievement of English language learners (ELLs) and struggling readers, researchers and practitioners alike are calling for the increased use of technology as a means to decrease achievement gaps in reading (Jimenez, 2003; Strangman & Dalton, 2005). In this article, we…

In the United States, more than 2 million children in Grades pre-K through 6 speak Spanish as their primary language. Approximately 50% of these students receive academic instruction in Spanish. This tutorial provides research-based recommendations for presenting phonological awareness tasks to children who receive literacy instruction in Spanish.…

Results are reported for an exploratory study of eligibility decisions made for 21 Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) with learning disabilities (LD) and no secondary disabilities who received special education support in reading. Eligibility determinations by an expert panel resulted in decisions that differed significantly from…

When viewed through the lens of critical pedagogy, children's literature offers a viable avenue for tapping the "funds of knowledge" abounding in culturally and linguistically diverse communities. It is an effective means for promoting dialogue, arousing critical consciousness, and facilitating the "coming to voice" of…

This paper shows how Latina, immigrant mothers expanded their mathematical boundaries by participating in a community mathematization project. These mothers were not only participants, but also curriculum designers in collaboration with university researchers. By involving the mothers in the design of the project, researchers improved the…

Teaching Spanish has become increasingly popular in the United States due to demographic shifts. This study focuses on a Spanish-only initiative for an existing Foreign Language in the Elementary School (FLES) program proposed by a southeastern public school district's school board. It analyzes discourses underlying the policymakers' rationales…

Success for All (SFA) is a comprehensive reading, writing, and oral language development program for students in pre-K through eighth grade. Its underlying premise is that all children, including those with limited English proficiency, can and should be reading in English at grade level by the end of third grade. (SFA can impact Spanish literacy…

The relation of language of instruction and vocabulary to the English spelling of bilingual first graders receiving either English or Spanish literacy instruction and of monolinguals in English literacy instruction was explored. Only bilingual students in Spanish literacy instruction (SLI) exhibited Spanish-influenced spelling, indicating a…

This guide informs parents about some instructional practices that work well for all elementary school students, in particular English learners. It includes questions parents can ask teachers and principals to help them understand how their children's school approaches teaching and learning. Both English and Spanish versions of the document are…

This study focuses on the characteristics of discourse between Latino immigrant children and their teacher during science instruction. Peer interaction was analyzed to identify the use and importance of the native language (L1) for the development of content knowledge during group collaboration. In addition, the interaction between teacher and…

Austin Partners in Education, a nonprofit organization, helps the community and AISD classrooms work together to ensure academic excellence and personal success for students. Academic outcomes, student engagement, and other variables for school year 2008-2009 were examined in this report.

This study explores influences on bilingual children's phonological awareness (PA) performance in English, examining the role of language of instruction and vocabulary. English monolingual and Spanish-English bilingual kindergartners and first graders receiving either English or Spanish literacy instruction were assessed in English PA and in…

This single-subject case study evaluates effects of treatment of a complex onset on the sound system of a monolingual Spanish-speaking child (female, aged 3;9) with phonological delay. Pretreatment, the child excluded all consonant+liquid clusters, as well as [the alveolar tap] and trill /r/. Immediately following training on [using the alveolar…

This paper proposes that young children who are growing up in a bilingual and biliterate environment may, at a fundamental level, experience their worlds not as separate linguistic and cultural entities but as "simultaneous". The data comes from a study of 6-year-olds in London who were learning to write in Chinese, Arabic or Spanish…