This dissertation seeks to illuminate additive significance of the entanglements within a Dual Language Immersion Spanish Science classroom where arts-based pedagogies are employed. Using a theoretical framework that combines Jane Bennett's Vibrant Materialism (2010) and notion of Enchantment (2002) and Gloria Anzaldua's concept of Nepantla…

Purpose and Method of Study: The purpose of this study was to review a Cherokee language immersion school's effort to revitalize the Cherokee language and contribute to the knowledge base of native language immersion school leaders regarding the revival of Native American languages. The research design for this study was a qualitative evaluative…

Extensive research has demonstrated the importance of struggling reader identification in monolingual children Compton et al. ("Journal of Educational Psychology," 102, 327-340, 2010). However, very few studies have explored identification of struggling readers in bilinguals. The aim of this study was to investigate (1) the overlap of…

The first goal of this study was to examine how individual differences in initial L2 proficiency help explain L2 grammar development in oral production during short-term immersion abroad. The second goal of the study was methodological, and evaluated challenges that can result from operationalizing learners' initial L2 proficiency as pretest…

In the United States, there is a nationwide shortage of bilingual teachers, but limited research on factors that contribute to their burnout and attrition. This exploratory multiple case study aimed to identify stressors unique to Spanish-English bilingual teachers and how they cope with these stressors. Interviews with two dual language immersion…

Dual language immersion (DLI), an educational program in which students study grade-level content in English and a partner language, began in the United States in the early 1960s and has surged since the 2010s. Nationwide, DLI continues to rise in popularity (Freire, Alfaro, & de Jong, 2024). To some extent, this is because DLI has been…

In October 2023, a new deaf student, "Zuri," showed up in my second grade classroom. This often happens. Parents move into and out of the district for work, and it is common to get a new student in the middle of the year without warning. Zuri's eyes were wide when she came into the classroom, and she looked scared. Who were all these…

Dual language programs provide content instruction in two languages by leveraging the linguistic assets of English speakers and English learners. By elevating the status of the home language, students develop higher levels of bilingualism, reclassify at higher rates, and have improved self-concept. In this way, dual language has been seen as a…

The purpose of this study is to investigate challenges and tensions encountered by university supervisors working with student teachers in dual language immersion (DLI) settings. Despite the growth of Utah's statewide DLI program, Utah university teacher programs have few faculty members familiar with the partner cultures and languages of Utah's…

Previous studies on second language (L2) phonetic acquisition in early bilingual learners have mainly examined immigrants to the L2 country; however, with recent growing dual-language immersion programs, the immersed bilingual group emerged and required more attention in the research. This study aims to investigate vowel patterns of young…

The purpose of this qualitative study is to gain insight into the experience of bilingual teachers undergoing a change of bilingual education program, from a TBE model to a DLBE model. This study documents the ways the bilingual teachers experienced changes in their language ideologies, their teaching practices, and the support, or lack thereof,…

This mixed methods descriptive case study explored the perceptions of 162 leaders and French immersion (FI) teachers related to their roles and responsibilities for the target-language proficiency (TLP) of FI teachers in an urban school division. To date, no research has explored leaders' and FI teachers' knowledge and understanding of the system…

The purpose of this evaluation was threefold: (1) to assess Diversity Unified School District's Hmong dual language immersion program for implementation alignment; (2) to examine whether the program was meeting intended outcomes; and (3) to measure parent perceptions of the program's impact on their child's development of bilingualism, biliteracy,…

Many adults work with children in schools to provide support in a variety of forms. This study aimed to explore perceptions of the role of classroom assistants in supporting children's learning in the primary classroom. Aligning with an interpretivist paradigm, a case study approach was used to explore the deployment of classroom assistants in one…

This study examined whether the assessment of executive function (EF) added a unique contribution to second language (L2) reading comprehension in children in French immersion. Participants were 8- to 9-year old children who completed a collection of measures assessing French reading (i.e., word reading, decoding, and reading comprehension ) and…