Reflections on Teaching in a
Multicultural Classroom
Martina Flores
&
Tere Troncoso
NSTWP 2006 Teaching Demonstration
floresma@cfbisd.edu
troncosot@cfbisd.edu
About us
• Bilingual Instructional Specialists
• Working with Bilingual/ESL teachers
• Martina was born in South Texas, in a border town and was
totally immersed in English when she entered pre-first
grade. She suffered a long silent period, approximately
three years.
• Tere was born in Mexico City and came to the United
States after finishing a semester at the University of
Mexico. She had had some English classes throughout her
school life, but was surprised to find that her English
experiences had not prepared her for communicating with
mono-lingual English speaking people.
• Both of us felt as if our tongue had been cut off.
• Upon reflection of our similiarities and differences we
decided to research the implications of second language
aquisition.
“Who Cares?”/¿A quíen le importa?
From The Dream on Blanca’s Wall
by Jane Medina
“I can’t read this, Blanca.”
My third grade teacher shoved the flat
white square covered with tiny Spanish
letters back across her desk.
“My dad wrote this note to tell you we’re going
to Mexico for a month, and to please
give me homework.”
-(Medina, 2004, p.40)
Using a trifold for pre-writing
Inside the left flap, write your philosophy
or thoughts on teaching in a multicultural
classroom where many of the students
could be second language learners.
Using a trifold to create a literacy map
• Create a literacy map.
• Start from your earliest recollections.
• Include your personal exposure to second
language experiences.
Using a literacy map to facilitate writing
Using your literacy map select a time in
your life which you would like to write
about and share with your group.
“I Felt Like My Tongue Was Cut Off”
“When my husband first arrived from Argentina, he
felt as if his tongue had been cut off. He was unable
to communicate as he had in his homeland. His sense
of humor, which normally attracted a crowd, was
lost. His quick wit in the context of a testy
conversation disappeared. His knowledge of the
world and of his profession could not be tapped. His
opinions on politics could not be shared. His sense of
fun and teasing were not understood. When he did
start to speak English, his jokes, which he insisted
on telling, never translated right. His newly aquired
swear words were always spoken at the wrong times.
His incorrect sentence structures often hid the
meaning of his words. And he found that most
people would not accept his imperfect speech.”
(Cappellini 2005, p.2)
“We must be wary of:
the privileging of literate behaviors…”
• “Greater respect is given to parents who follow a
teacher model of parenting.”
• “The more the child has a caregiver who acts like
a teacher, the more the child is considered
educable.”
• “There is a distance between what schools expect
parents to do and what parents actually know how
to do.”
• “Usually it is the mother who gets blamed for not
bridging that gap, not the father or the teacher.”
-(Zentella, 2005, p.24)
“Seeing What’s There, Con Respeto”
• “For those voices to be heard clearly, it is
necessary to look beyond sterotypes with
genuine respeto (respect) to see what is
really there.”
• “The comfort of our stereotypes is
ultimately destructive because the anger,
shock, and/or dismay they produce blind us
to the resources for learning that exist in
all homes and to the possiblities for
growth in everyone.”
-(Zentella, 2006, p.178)
Reflection
“Being totally immersed in English so young, I
suffered a silent period/had once been very
outgoing and talkative in Spanish/suddenly
had no voice. I spent my primary years
reading the teacher’s lips to see how to
pronounce words.”
-Kinder Bilingual teacher 2006
Reflection
I was pretty much stuck with worksheets
analyzing words and never enjoyed writing.
So after I became a teacher, I took
writing training because I really want my
students to love writing and actually learn
to write.
-5th grade Bilingual teacher 2006
Personal reflection
• On inside right flap, write a reflection.
• Think about what you need to do to
prepare yourself for the challenge of
teaching in multicultural classroom.
• Remember that some of your students
might be second language learners.
Is Reflection Worthwhile?
• After doing this activity and reflecting on
your own learning, do you think having a
reflection time in the classroom is
worthwhile?
• Do you think it enhances learning?
• Would it matter what language the
students are reflecting in?
Ways to use trifold to facilitate and display students’ writing
Allow time for students to create and decorate the outside of the trifold.
Extensions
Language Arts
Language Arts
Language Arts
Note from the author
Description
Poem
Story
Illustration
Comic Strip
About the author
Poem
Narrative
Any subject
Any subject
Any subject
Vocabulary
What I know
Important facts
Biography/Summary
What I learned
Timeline
Episodical
What I want to know
Summary of topic
Other ideas
Other ideas
Other ideas
Works Cited
Cappellini, M. (2005). Balancing Reading & Language Learning: A Resource for
Teaching English Language Learners, K-5. Portland Maine: Stenhouse
Publishers, and Newark, Delaware: International Reading Association.
Medina, J. (2004). The Dream on Blanca’s Wall: Poems in English and Spanish.
El sueño pegado en la pared de Blanca: Poemas en inglés y español.
Honesdale, Pennsylvania: Wordsong Boyds Mills Press, Inc.
Zentella, A. C. (2005). Building on Strength: Language and Literacy in Latino
Families and Communities. New York, New York: Teachers College Press,
and Covina, California: Association for Bilingual Education.