<p> This qualitative study explored multimodal biliteracy found in the Arizona-Sonora borderland, a region thriving with linguistic and cultural diversity despite having an English-only policy. According to Reyes (2012) biliteracy is to think, speak, read, and write in two or more languages, and there are various modes for reading and writing in the 21st century (Reyes, Acosta, Fierro, Fu, &amp; Zapien, 2017). This dissertation focused on Spanish and English bilinguals. First, I present a literature review (Appendix A) informed by a sociocultural framework (Vygotsky, 1978) for understanding biliteracy as a social practice and valuing language as a resource (Ruiz, 1987). Funds of knowledge (Gonz&aacute;lez, Moll, Amanti, 2005; Moll, Gonz&aacute;lez, Amanti, &amp; Neff, 1994) is an important component in framing this qualitative study and applying methods informing an inclusive pedagogy for bilinguals. Subsequently, I go over the photographs and multimodal composition presented in two case studies of Spanish and English bilinguals. The first case study (Appendix B) documents biliteracy in the household and local community of bilinguals through photography. It contributes to previous research by Reyes, DaSilva Iddings, and Feller (2016) and the two themes from their analysis: 1) Expanding definitions of language and literacy and 2) Deepening the understanding of funds of knowledge. The second case study (Appendix C) examines how bilinguals critically and creatively expressed their Spanish and English in a multimodal composition. Thinking critically about literacy meant reflecting on their everyday reading and writing practices as bilinguals, while being creative meant thinking about the various modes of reading and writing in two languages. This moves literacy beyond a monolingual and monomodal practice into one that cultivates diversity for equity in education for bilinguals. I seek an empowering pedagogy for bilinguals by valuing and making space for linguistic and cultural diversity in the classroom. Biliteracy is a valuable contribution to class and the learning process of students with more than one language. The primary purpose of this dissertation, like funds of knowledge, was to develop critical innovations in teaching (Moll, Amanti, Neff, &amp; Gonz&aacute;lez, 1992) biliteracy for the 21st century. Findings from the photographs, multimodal compositions, written reflections, and retrospective interviews demonstrate how Spanish and English biliteracy is practiced in various modes (e.g. music, dancing, singing, traditional family recipes, and religious/spiritual altars) in the Arizona-Sonora borderland.</p><p>

This study investigates teacher attitudes about language and education. The purpose of the study is to help program designers develop professional development efforts that successfully address some of the major identified challenges teachers face when transitioning into Mother Tongue Based Multi-Lingual Education (MTBMLE), including negative attitudes. It also suggests protocols and issues that trainers should consider when designing professional development for MTBMLE teachers. The research question guiding this study is: (1) Do teachers' attitudes towards and knowledge about mother tongue-based instruction change after they participate in professional development that is consistent with good professional development practice? (a) What were teachers' knowledge and attitudes about MTBMLE before the professional development program? (b) Did teachers' knowledge and attitudes change after participating in the professional development program? (c) Why did teachers hold particular attitudes towards MTBMLE prior to professional development and what factors influenced their change? I conducted this research during a three-month MTBMLE professional development program with a group of indigenous first grade teachers and their school principals in Save the Children's outreach areas in rural Mindanao in the Philippines. I used a Q sort methodology for initial interviews conducted with a subset of five first grade teachers followed by a second interview after the professional development program. The interview data showed that teachers came into the trainings with two distinct viewpoints; mother tongue supporters and one mother tongue resister. After the professional development program, however, teachers were all more positive about using the mother tongue as the language of instruction. Interviews revealed that teachers were more positive and confident in teaching the mother tongue when they had the opportunity to: (1) spend time learning about their own language, (2) create mother tongue teaching and learning materials, and (3) reflect on their early learning experiences and experience what it is like to learn in a language that is not familiar. This paper will discuss the research findings in depth and will provide a clearer picture of how to train and support teachers who are transitioning into MTBMLE.

The purpose of this dissertation is to define and implement a theoretical construct of decolonizing theory as it pertains to the current issues of multicultural teacher education. A direct application of decolonizing methodologies and design will occur by focusing on the critical personal narratives of four preservice teachers and instructor involved in an introductory course on multicultural education. The rhetoric of multicultural teacher education and the challenging realities facing the field today will be addressed through qualitative research with a emphasis on critical ethnography and decolonization. The significance of this study is embedded in the voices of the students and instructor affected by the neocolonial conditions of U.S. schools, policies and practices. The goals of this research are to further the discourses on the sociopolitical constructs of decolonizing multicultural teacher education and to critically examine multicultural course construction and the potentially transformative praxis for future teachers.

Student academic growth is one of the most heated issues surfacing in the frequent debates revolving around school reforms, particularly since the enactment of the No Child Left Behind mandate. Often missing in such debates is a clear articulation of what available resources students have drawn on to grow academically. Informed by socio-cultural theoretical and systemic functional linguistic frameworks and drawing on data collected in a three-year ethnographic case study, this study explores what contributed to the academic growth of Pablo, a middle school English language learner, who was institutionally recognized as an "achiever." Specifically, this study examines in what ways and to what extent school resources, such as teaching practices, enabled Pablo to grow academically. This study also explores how and to what degree outside resources, such as parental involvement and support from the community, led to his growth. In addition, this study examines to what degree Pablo's level of motivation contributed to his growth in academic writing. To determine whether or not Pablo's writing changed over time and whether Pablo made progress with his academic writing, I performed a textual analysis of a selective set of essays Pablo wrote over the course of one academic year. Findings suggest that Pablo's institutional status as an achiever stems from his ability to find ways to produce essays that were institutionally valued, recognized, and defined as "good essays." Findings also suggest that while such a status helped Pablo maintain his institutional identity as a "good student," it may at the same time have slowed down his learning process, prevented the school personnel from exploiting his full potential as a student and, worse yet, led to the over-generalization of student achievement.

As the minority student population in the United States has grown, so has the number of non-native English-speaking students in higher education. However, many of these students are not meeting with success, and they are leaving school, often during their first semester of 'mainstream' classes. This study focused on the developmental English class and examined what happens to students as they leave ESL (English as a Second Language) classes and enter the mainstream of the community college. This ethnographic study used both emic and etic perspectives to show some of the factors that come together to influence participation and engagement of non-native English-speaking students in the developmental English class. It involved an exploration of the theories that have traditionally explained minority student failure in school, as well as a discussion of the importance of interaction to learning. Through ethnographic means, this dissertation has described the experience of teaching and learning in the developmental English classroom, and shows that students need to enter into meaningful interaction with instructors if they are to be successful. Through ethnographic interviewing and participant observation, a picture has emerged of relationships between teachers and students that can be characterized by apprenticing or gatekeeping. Teacher-student relationships can be undermined by Discourse mismatch. Students' primary Discourses are not traditionally valued by society, and they may not be valued in the college. This can cause resistance on the part of students. This study suggests that there are many factors that come together to influence the participation of non-native English speakers in the community college developmental English classroom. These include teacher and student preparation, class atmosphere, the use of contextualization cues, apprenticing or 'hand holding', and the use of content which relates to students' background knowledge. It also suggests that English proficiency may not be the most important factor influencing student participation of non-native English speakers, and recommends that developmental education be reexamined by those in this critical area.