ERIC Number: ED603316
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2017-Apr-28
Pages: 31
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-
EISSN: N/A
ALL Teachers Are Language Teachers: Transforming Teachers' Practices through Collaborative Professional Learning
Dray, Barbara J.; Brancard, Ruth
AERA Online Paper Repository, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (San Antonio, TX, Apr 27-May 1, 2017)
Purpose: Findings from a multi-year project entitled, Teachers Working Together to develop and implement culturally and linguistically responsive practices (TWT-CLRP) conducted at a large urban 6-12 school that predominantly served Latino emerging bilingual learners will be shared. All teachers shifted practices and adopted an ethos that all teachers are language teachers. A school-wide model of collaborative professional learning that utilized collaborative inquiry will be shared. Theoretical Framework: In 2009, Lucas, Villegas, & Freedson-Gonzales first conceptualized the tenets for linguistically responsive teacher education, later Lucas and Villegas (2011) further developed a Framework for Preparing Linguistically Responsive Teachers (LRT) and articulated the qualities of linguistically responsive teachers. Their work served as a roadmap in developing a schoolwide initiative entitled Teachers Working Together to develop and implement culturally and linguistically responsive practices (TWT-CLRP) in which ALL teachers from across the content areas in a 6-12 school that predominantly serves emergent bilinguals from Latino backgrounds was implemented. Yet, after the first year of its' implementation, we found minimal shifts in teacher practice (García, 2013). What was missing was closer attention to the practices of transformative learning (Mezirow, 2000; King, 2009; Drago-Severson, 2009) alongside the core competencies laid out by Lucas & Villegas (2011). In her work with building administrators across the country, Drago-Severson (2009) has developed four pillars for supporting transformative learning in schoolwide professional learning: one - establishing teams, two - providing adults with leadership roles, three - engaging in collegial inquiry, and four- mentoring. Each of these features, guided the development of a new model for structuring the TWT-CLRP project because what we learned in year one of its' implementation is that process is equally if not more important than content (García, 2013). Drago-Severson (2009) further delineates the key elements of transformative professional learning to include: (a) allocating time, support, and parameters to focus on a specific task; (b) clarifying purpose and product of collaboration; (c) inviting team members to discuss work together; (d) establishing strategic, specific, measurable, attainable, results-oriented (SMART) goals that are time bound; (e) giving and learning from feedback that is relevant to practice; and (f) securing time for celebrating improvements by conveying that a difference is being made. Thus as we re-envisioned the implementation of the TWT-CLRP for years two and three of the project, we worked collaboratively with the administration and instructional coaches to design and implement the TWT-CLRP collaborative professional learning initiative by ratcheting up the infrastructure to support transformative learning of LRT practices across the content areas. Results & Significance: In this paper we will discuss how these key features of transformative learning guided the re-envisioning of the TWT-CLRP collaborative professional learning initiative to support ALL teachers in becoming language teachers. Results from multiple data sources will be shared that demonstrated stronger adoption and implementation of LRT practices and above all that teachers across ALL content areas adopted an ethos that "ALL teachers are language teachers."
Descriptors: Teacher Collaboration, Culturally Relevant Education, Language Usage, Urban Schools, Secondary School Teachers, Second Language Learning, Teacher Competencies, Bilingual Students, Hispanic American Students, English Language Learners, Program Effectiveness, Transformative Learning, Teamwork, Professional Development, Mentors, Leadership Responsibility, Teacher Leadership, Inquiry, Goal Orientation, Feedback (Response)
AERA Online Paper Repository. Available from: American Educational Research Association. 1430 K Street NW Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20005. Tel: 202-238-3200; Fax: 202-238-3250; e-mail: subscriptions@aera.net; Web site: http://www.aera.net
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A