In recent years, much research has shown that the first language (L1) is being used in the majority of foreign language classrooms. However, these findings have often failed to include secondary foreign language teachers and their teaching context. The current mixed-methods study explores Spanish teachers' use of and beliefs about first and target…

The primary goal of the current study was to test whether parent and adolescent preference for a common language moderates the association between parenting and rank-order change over time in offspring substance use. A sample of Mexican-origin 7th-grade adolescents (M[subscript age] = 12.5 years, N = 194, 52% female) was measured longitudinally on…

This study builds on research examining the in-school technology practices of adolescent language learners by exploring the patterns of classroom literacy practices that emerge when a telecollaborative project is introduced into a conventional secondary language classroom. We draw on the conceptual frameworks and discourse analytical tools…

The growing "Latinization" of the United States is drastically changing the demographics of the students served in PK-12 public schools (Irizarry, 2011). To understand how educational leaders can best serve this changing student population, we used Critical Bilingual leadership, "Liderazgo," to interrogate the aim to create a…

Classrooms tend to be absolute spaces, places where fluidity is rejected and nearly everything--from people, to ideas, to practices and policies--is viewed and organized through binary logic. Because binary logic is implicitly accepted as the natural order in schools and the structures resulting from it are highly unmalleable, individuals who…

Multiple studies conducted over the past decade have suggested the motivational and proficiency-related benefits of commencing language instruction at an early age. Limitations in many of these studies, however, have prevented their results from being applied to the teaching of foreign languages in the United States. In response to calls for…

This paper investigates the validity of a national, standards-based teacher evaluation programme by examining the relationship between teachers' evaluation results and their students' learning progress. We used census achievement data that assessed the same cohort of students at the end of 8th and 10th grade. We applied multilevel modelling and…

This article draws on scholarship in educational and linguistic anthropology to explore awareness of Spanish-English code-switching among bilingual Chicana/o and Latina/o students in a sixth-grade English Language Arts classroom. Analysis of qualitative data gathered via participant observation, video/audio recording, and semistructured interviews…

Preparing students as 21st century learners is a key reform in education. The Partnership for 21st Century Skills developed a framework that identifies outcomes needed for successful implementation of rigorous standards. The Dual Language (DL) program was identified as a structure for reform with systems and practices which can be used to prepare…

Foreign language teachers experience difficulties in teaching students with learning disabilities. The challenge is to teach students with and without disabilities in the same classroom while having no background knowledge of how to teach towards all these students. Through observations and interviews with two foreign language teachers, the use of…

The methodology of Task-based teaching (TBT) has been positively regarded by many researchers and language teachers around the world. Yet, this language teaching methodology has been mainly implemented in English as a second language (ESL) classrooms and in English for specific purpose (ESP) courses; and more specifically with advanced-level…

A developmental model of children's understanding of nationality (Nationality Perspective-Taking Ability or NPTA) was proposed and evaluated in this study. The NPTA model expands extant definitions and provides a theoretical foundation for the developmental progression of national identity. Children (Mean age = 9.33 years) from Latin American and…

The problem that this dissertation investigated is the insufficient representation of teachers' voices in the discussion of motivational characteristics of second language learners in middle and high schools especially with consideration of instructional information and communication technologies. The purpose was to determine the nature of…