The Foreign Language Educator In Society

This text brings together two significant domains of educational practice: foreign language education and critical pedagogy--linking them in a way that can help foreign language educators develop a critical awareness of the nature, purposes, and challenges facing foreign language pedagogy. Unique among texts in the field, this is the first to deal explicitly with the social, political, ideological, and economic aspects of language, language learning, and language teaching in our society and to connect the practice of foreign language education with these critical, and crucial, aspects of language and language use. The Foreign Language Educator in Society: Toward A Critical Pedagogy: *emphasizes what teachers and future teachers of foreign languages in this country ought to know and understand about language-- language attitudes, practices, rights, and policy-- and related issues; *focuses on helping students to move beyond pragmatic pedagogical concerns to the social and political concerns relevant to their teaching; and *provides students with the opportunity to develop critical perspectives on the central facets of the language education process. Intended for foreign language education programs at both basic and advanced levels, as well as courses in critical pedagogy, critical language awareness, sociolinguistics, and social and cultural foundations of education, the text provides helpful pedagogical features to direct the reader in applying the content of each chapter to his or her own context.

Accessible and cutting-edge, this text is a pivotal update to the field and offers a much-needed critical perspective on world language education. Building off their classic 2002 book, The Foreign Language Educator in Society, Timothy G. Reagan and Terry A. Osborn address major issues facing the world language educator today, including language myths, advocacy, the perceived and real benefits of language learning, linguistic human rights, constructivism, learning theories, language standards, monolingualism, bilingualism and multiculturalism. Organized into three parts – "Knowing Language," "Learning Language," and "Teaching Language" – this book applies a critical take on conventional wisdom on language education, evaluates social and political realities, assumptions, and controversies in the field. Each chapter includes questions for reflection and discussion to support students and educators in developing their own perspectives on teaching and learning languages. With a critical pedagogy and social justice lens, this book is ideal for scholars and students in foreign/world language education, social justice education, and language teaching methodology courses, as well as pre- and in-service teachers.

This book addresses many of the issues facing language teachers, researchers and policy makers in a world where languages are becoming extinct at an alarming rate and are frequently the focus for dispute and conflict.

This book introduces a state-of-the-art model for second/foreign language language teacher education ─ Knowing, Analyzing, Recognizing, Doing, and Seeing (KARDS). Its goal is to develop prospective and practicing teachers into strategic thinkers, exploratory researchers, and transformative teachers.

This book introduces pre-service and in-service foreign language teachers to the basic concepts of critical educational study as applied to the sociological position occupied by foreign language education in the United States. Although contemporary foreign language teachers typically know about second language acquisition and instructional methodology, they are not prepared to understand issues of power in relation to, for example, language variety, language status, and education. The author addresses issues such as the supposed "failure" of foreign language education, the educational filter role played by language classes, the concept of foreignness as seen in national standards, language curricula and textbooks, and the implications of these issues in terms of power relationships and cultural mediation both in and out of the classroom. The reader is encouraged to analyze the forms of cultural struggle which can be found within the foreign language classrooms of the United States including the likely impact those struggles have on members of the dominant and subordinate cultures. Teachers are led through the development of skills in critical reflection and pedagogical application geared to social justice.

New Directions for Research in Foreign Language Education brings together contributions by reputed scholars that examine the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of teaching and learning foreign languages. With a particular focus on languages other than English, the book looks at the socio-political dimension of language learning and teaching and the need to re-theorize multilingualism for our age. The volume includes a range of perspectives, from language teaching as an act of reconciliation to language learning across the lifespan, from innovations in assessment and curriculum to critical appraisals of pedagogy and textbook materials. Each chapter presents a clear case study drawn from diverse contexts to illustrate the different concerns of the contributors. The book is a valuable resource for all students, teachers, teacher educators and researchers who share an interest in researching multilingualism and the different facets of teaching and learning foreign languages.

Published by Routledge for the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education This volume addresses the pressing reality in teacher education that all teachers need to be prepared to work effectively with linguistically and culturally diverse student populations. Every classroom in the country is already, or will soon be, deeply affected by the changing demographics of America’s students. Marilyn Cochran-Smith’s Foreword and Donaldo Macedo’s Introductory Essay set the context with respect to teacher education and student demographics, followed by a series of chapters presented in three sections: knowledge, practice, and policy. The literature on language education has typically been discussed in relation to preparing ESL or bilingual teachers. Typically, needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students, including immigrants, refugees, language minority populations, African Americans, and deaf students, have been addressed separately. This volume emphasizes that these children have both common educational needs and needs that are culturally and linguistically specific. It is directed to the preparation of ALL teachers who work with culturally and linguistically diverse students. It not only focuses on how teachers need to change but how faculty and curriculum need to be transformed, and how to better train teacher education candidates to understand and work efficaciously with the communities in which culturally and linguistically diverse students tend to be predominant. The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) is a national, voluntary association of higher education institutions and related organizations. Our mission is to promote the learning of all PK-12 students through high-quality, evidence-based preparation and continuing education for all school personnel. For more information on our publications, visit our website at: www.aacte.org.

This book challenges the reader to consider issues of language and linguistic discrimination as they impact world language education. Using the nexus of race, language, and education as a lens through which one can better understand the role of the world language education classroom as both a setting of oppression and as a potential setting for transformation, Democracy and World Language Education: Toward a Transformation offers insights into a number of important topics. Among the issues that are addressed in this timely book are linguicism, the ideology of linguistic legitimacy, raciolinguistics, and critical epistemology. Specific cases and case studies that are explored in detail include the contact language Spanglish, African American English, and American Sign Language. The book also includes critical examinations of the less commonly taught languages, the teaching of classical languages (primarily Latin and Greek), and the paradoxical learning and speaking of “critical languages” that are supported primarily for purposes of national security (Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Russian, etc.).