Language learning and the development of language proficiency are central concerns in the study of immigrant adaptation. This paper analyzes the social construction of language proficiency among Indigenous Guatemalan Maya youth in the United States--specifically, undocumented young adults who migrated to Los Angeles, California as unaccompanied…

This research is a study of the relationship between language acquisition and the status of equity. The history of the Maya people in Guatemala gives strong evidence that their failure to acquire competence in Spanish, which is the national language of their nation, has resulted in their failure to compete in the social, economic, and political…

Researchers in second language socialization (SLS) often examine those interactions relating to a learner's integration within a target community. Kramsch and Whiteside (2008) noted the importance of "symbolic competence" in this integration. Symbolic competence, defined as the ability to access contextually relevant social and political…

A bilingual program was implemented to meet the educational needs of Spanish American and Indian children with noted deficiencies in English and/or their native languages. The program components were an English Oral Language Program coupled with concept reinforcement in the vernacular for kindergarten children using non-standard English, along…

Cultural factors should be taken into consideration in a bilingual education program. The cultural background of the students learning English as a second language should not be regarded as inferior. A realistic analysis of a student's language capability must be made so that his language-learning problems can be recognized and solved as much as…

A study of the kinds of educational services provided to limited English speaking students, how schools provide these services, factors shaping and guiding the programs, and instructional practices fostering the development of school-related language of bilingual students is summarized. The report is divided into two parts: (1) a descriptive study…

This guide is a companion to its predecessors, "Linguistically and Culturally Diverse: African American and Hmong" and "Language Sample Analysis: The Wisconsin Guide." It focuses on children from American Indian and Spanish speaking populations. It provides information pertaining to: historical background, including legal and…

Highlights of a state survey of educational programs to assist limited-English-proficient (LEP) students in Idaho's elementary and secondary schools are reported. An introductory section describes the legislative background and history of the survey and the methods used to gather data on programs and students. These methods include questionnaires,…

This journal consists of guides to instructional materials and articles on subjects of interest to teachers in bilingual education programs. The following articles and regular features appear in this issue: (1) "Social Class or Culture? -- A Fundamental Issue in the Education of Culturally Different Students," by Frank Angel, an excerpt from a…

Papers from a 1993 conference on linguistics, all in French, include essays on the following: Yoruba morphophonology; literary Arabic morphophonology; grammatical cohesion in Burushaski; phonological and lexical variation in French Canadian dialects, including Acadian; insults in Madrid Spanish; discourse analysis; maintenance of meaning in…