The current issue of Social Policy Report, includes a peer-reviewed, American Academy of Pediatrics endorsed, qualitative review of over 100 studies related to multilingual children: Multilingual Children: Beyond Myths and Toward Best Practices. A short synopsis and interview with the lead author is posted on Education Week’s Learning the Language blog: Multilingualism an Advantage to Nurture, American Academy of Pediatrics Says.
Monthly Archives: February 2014
Joaquin Zihuatanejo at OSU
As part of Spiritual Wellness Week at OSU, Joaquin Zihuatanejo and Natasha Carrizosa will be performing in the MU Lounge on Friday, February 14 at 1:30-3:30 PM. I don’t know Carrizosa’s work, but I’ve used Zihuatanejo’s work in TCE 572 Foundations of ESOL/Bilingual Education. They are both nationally award-winning slam poets, and I am a Zihuatanejo fan. His website is http://artspeakstalent.com/home.html. I also recommend http://youtu.be/iOIVT01I3QU, where you get a flavor of how and why he teaches high school English language arts.
Race Is Not a Four-Letter Word
The College of Education and the Difference, Power, and Discrimination (DPD) Program invite you to attend a free talk by Nolan L. Cabrera of the University of Arizona—”Race is not a Four-Letter Word:” Exploring Whiteness, Racism, and Privilege in Education—on Thursday, February 20, 2014. It will talk place in Furman Hall 303 at 2-3:30 PM. In this presentation, Dr. Cabrera will explore the changing meaning of Whiteness historically, its relation to educational practice, and how we can critically as well as constructively engage race. A flyer is attached here.
Too Many Oregon Students Unready for Kindergarten
Betsy Hammond’s Oregonian recent article, Too Many Oregon Students Unready For Kindergarten, State Officials Lament, discusses the results of Oregon’s kindergarten readiness assessment, which was administered statewide for the first time ever this fall. It highlights patterns found among racial groups, gender, and socio-economic status. Megan McClelland of OSU is referenced in regards to her research about self-control and interpersonal skills as indicators of school success. Surprisingly, the article doesn’t reference English learners, and although it laments the small number of children in Head Start Programs, it doesn’t show evidence that children in Head Start fared better on the assessment.
Super Bowl Fury: “Speak English!”
In a blog post for Education Week, teacher Justin Minkel wrote:
The most contentious blunder to come out of the Super Bowl was not that first comic snap that arced past a bewildered Peyton Manning. It wasn’t the two tipped interceptions that followed that slip-up, or Joe Namath’s fur-coated Macklemore impression during the coin toss that proceeded it.
It was the audacity of Coke’s claim that there are people in the world who speak languages that aren’t English, and that some of those people might love America.
The article, Super Bowl Fury: “Speak English!“, continues with a discussion of the “damaging consequences to kids” of language loss and English-only laws, including what teachers can do to help prevent language loss.