This study describes academic literacy development during mid-adolescence, when learners need to adjust to the demands of academic discourse as a gateway to linguistic adulthood. Unlike most research to date, which is cross-sectional and detached from disciplinary content, this study provides a two-year longitudinal description of academic…

Considerable research on the two-way Spanish immersion model of education highlights benefits such as biliteracy, high academic achievement in both languages of instruction, and sociocultural competence for students of various linguistic and sociocultural backgrounds. The desire to gain these 21st century skills has caused a proliferation of dual…

In the study of focus in this paper, I analyze the curricular experiences of fifth- through eighth-grade culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) Latina learners in their English Language Arts (ELA) dual language gifted and talented education (GATE) program. This research aims to understand the curricular experiences of CLD students…

As part of an ethnographic study of a secondary English Language Arts classroom, one teacher took a critical translingual approach to curriculum and instruction, encouraging students to engage in translanguaging and to explore the intersections of language with power and identity. The larger study's central question was, what does participation in…

Many schools attempt to address the needs of "English-language learners," who usually are Spanish-dominant Latinxs, by offering dual-language (DL) bilingual education. While undertaking a larger ethnographic study of one such secondary-level dual-language program, I examined how dual-language teachers understood the program as equitable…

U.S. Latinx youth from immigrant backgrounds bring to schools their transnational literacies, complex lived experiences of marginalization and resistance, and politicized translanguaging practices that are seldom recognized in classrooms. This article examines U.S. Latinx bilingual youth who participated in a podcast project within a…

For many Mexican-origin bi/multilingual children, Mexican music education begins early in their home. Music is inextricably linked with the sociocultural context in which it is produced, consumed, and taught and the interrelationship between music, society, and culture. Using ethnographic methods, this article examines a small group of bilingual…

Young people are increasingly connected in a digital and globalized world, but technology-mediated interactions alone do not necessarily lead to a culture of meaningful participation and meaning making processes. Students from disadvantaged contexts are especially vulnerable to this. Drawing on the "Activity-Centred Analysis and Design"…

Literacy Empowered (LE) was initiated during the 2017-2018 school year to provide literacy support for all Houston Independent School District (HISD) high school students through the reading of self-selected and assigned texts, the proficient use of PowerUp tools, writing, discourse, and authentic literacy practices across all foundation courses.…

Adolescents who are newcomers in a country and beginning to acquire English as an additional language are often in secondary classrooms with teachers who do not speak their languages. Due to these communication obstacles, there is a great need for teachers to build relationships with their students while setting optimal conditions for literacy…

This study investigated structural features of a newcomer program housed within a comprehensive high school and language practices among newcomer students and their teachers. Findings indicate efforts to provide newcomer students with "safe spaces," opportunities for language and literacy development in English and Spanish, and access to…

The purpose of this report is to describe the technical qualities of the 2018-2019 operational administration of the English language arts/literacy (ELA/L) and mathematics summative assessments in grades 3 through 8 and high school. The ELA/L assessments focus on reading and comprehending a range of sufficiently complex texts independently and…

The purpose of this report is to describe the technical qualities of the 2018-2019 operational administration of the English language arts/literacy (ELA/L) and mathematics assessments in grades 3 through 8 and high school. New Meridian, in coordination with multiple states and vendors, developed an alternate form of the summative assessment to…

I examine the development of my political clarity and its relation to the exercise of humanistic violence as a K-12 teacher in the United States. Reflecting upon my experiences as a classroom and community educator, I conclude that the mission of forging a new humanity is currently not possible from within the U.S. classroom. Presenting a series…

In recent years there has been growing awareness about a sub-group of students labeled "Long-Term English Language Learners" (LTELLs). Our study seeks to show how students who fall within the LTELL category see themselves through the lens of their lived experiences as (emergent) bilinguals, students, family/community members and…