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Course Syllabus
Fall 2001, Thursdays 4:30-7:00, Dane Smith Hall 329
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Instructor: Julia Scherba de Valenzuela, Ph.D.
Office: Education Office Building, rm. 206
E-mail: devalenz@unm.edu Phone: 7-1406
Web site: http://www.unm.edu/~devalenz/ Fax: 7-8679
Office Hours: Tuesdays 3:30-6:30: drop-ins
Thursday 3:30-6:30: appointments		  
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The following information is included in this syllabus:

Course Overview:

Readings: Course Design and Course Requirements
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Evaluation Procedures Class Schedule
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Mission Statements:
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Course Description:
The purpose of this course is to provide a framework for considering how language development in bilingual individuals is both similar to and different from that of monolinguals. This course is designed to assist educators in understanding how the multiple realities of bilingualism interact with the educational context and therefore may influence the academic performance and assessment of bilingual students. This knowledge should lead to more considered instructional decision making on the part of course participants.

Rationale:
The mission of the College of Education is to advance the quality of the educational experience for all learners and to educate professionals who can facilitate human growth in schools, homes, communities, and workplaces. In carrying out this mission, the College explicitly values diversity in people and perspectives. This course supports the College of Education framework by addressing student abilities within the context of a diverse society, recognizing the need to support all individuals in life-long learning, and validating all individuals as valuable members of their communities, including their communities of learners.
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Course Objectives:
The objectives of this course are to prepare and develop teachers and other leaders who:

  • understand that cultural and linguistic differences do not constitute an educational handicap;
  • can articulate the relationship between first and second language development;
  • comprehend the relationship of second language development to the broader social, political and educational context;
  • are knowledgeable about the major theories in second language acquisition and can discuss them in relation to issues of teaching practice,
  • value and support the native cultures, languages, and dialects of their students and their students’ families and communities;
  • are advocates for second language learners and families; and
  • recognize all students as life-long learners.
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    Required Readings:
    (reading packet on sale at the COE Publications Center)
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        Anzaldúa, G. (1987). Borderlands: La frontera = the new Mestiza. San Francisco, CA: Aunt Lute Books. (chapter 5 included in packet)
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        Cummins, J. (1989). Language and literacy acquisition in bilingual contexts. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 10(1), 17-31.
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        Cummins, J. (1997). Cultural and linguistic diversity in education: A mainstream issue? Educational Review, 49(2), 105-114.
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        Donato, R., & Hernández, J. S. (1994). Metacognitive equity for Mexican American language-minority students: Questions of policy. In R. Rodríguez, N. J. Ramos, & J. A. Ruiz-Escalante (Eds.), Compendium of readings in bilingual education: Issues and practices (pp. 22-30). San Antonio, TX: Texas Association of Bilingual Education.
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        Echevarria, J., & Graves, A. (1998). Sheltered content instruction: Teaching English-language learners with diverse abilities. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
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        Gersten, R., & Baker, S. (2000). What we know about effective instructional practices for English language learners. Exceptional Children, 66(4), 454-470.
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        Krashen, S. D. (1994). Bilingual education and second language acquisition theory. In B. E. Office (Ed.), Schooling and language-minority students: A theoretical framework (2nd ed., pp. 47-75). Los Angeles: Evaluation, Dissemination and Assessment Center, California State University.
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        Krashen, S. D. (1996). Under attack: The case against bilingual education. Culver City, CA: Language Education Associates. (chapters 1 & 3 included in packet)
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        Marinova-Todd, S. H., Marshall, D. B., & Snow, C. E. (2000). Three misconceptions about age and L2 learning. TESOL Quarterly, 34(1), 9-34.
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        McKeon, D. (1994). Language, culture, and schooling. In F. Genesee (Ed.), Educating second language children (pp. 15-32). New York: Cambridge University Press.
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       Ochs, E. (1988). Culture and language development. New York: Cambridge University Press. (chapter 1 included in packet)
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       Oksaar, E. (1989). Psycholinguistic aspects of bilingualism. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 10(1), 33-46.
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    Pinker, S. (1994). The language instinct. New York: HarperCollins. (chapter 1 included in packet)
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        Saville-Troike, M. (1988). Private speech: Evidence for second language learning strategies during the "silent" period. Journal of Child Language, 15, 567-590.
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        Schiff-Myers, N. B., Djukic, J., McGoven-Lawler, J., & Perez, D. (1993). Assessment considerations in the evaluation of second-language learners: A case study. Exceptional Children, 60(3), 237-248.
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        Short, D. J. (1994). Integrating language and content instruction: Strategies and techniques. In R. Rodríguez, N. J. Ramos, & J. A. Ruiz-Escalante (Eds.), Compendium of readings in bilingual education: Issues and practices (pp. 150-164). San Antonio, TX: Texas Association of Bilingual Education.
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        Tharp, R. G. (1997). From at-risk to excellence: Research, theory, and principles for practice (Research Report 1). Santa Cruz, CA: Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence.
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        Tharp, R., & Gallimore, R. (1991). The instructional conversation: Teaching and learning in social activity (Research Report 2). Santa  Cruz, CA: The National Center for Research on Cultural Diversity and Second Language Learning, University of California, Santa Cruz.
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        Timm, L. A. (1993). Bilingual code-switching: An overview of research. In B. J. Merino, H. T. Trueba, & F. A. Samaniego (Eds.), Language and culture in learning: Teaching Spanish to native speakers of Spanish (pp. 94-112). Washington, DC: The Falmer Press.
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        Trudgill, P. (1995). Sociolinguistics: An introduction to language and society. New York: Penguin Books. (chapter 1 included in packet)
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        Walker de Félix, J. (1994). Second language acquisition: Theory into practice. In R. Rodríguez, N. J. Ramos, & J. A. Ruiz-Escalante (Eds.), Compendium of readings in bilingual education: Issues and practices (pp. 124-132). San Antonio, TX: Texas Association of Bilingual Education.
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        Wong Fillmore, L. (1991). Second-language learning in children: A model of language learning in social context. In E. Bialystok (Ed.), Language processing in bilingual children (pp. 49-69). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
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    Non-required Readings included in the Required Reading Packet
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        American Psychological Association. (1994). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. (4th. ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. (selected pages only)
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        Fowler, H. R. (1980). The Little, Brown handbook. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Co. (appendix A: Avoiding plagiarism included only)
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    Ochs, E. (1986). Introduction. In E. Ochs & B. Schieffelin (Eds.), Language socialization across cultures (pp. 1-13). New York: Cambridge University Press.
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    Recommended Readings:
    (please check with instructor if unable to obtain at Zimmerman library)
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        Baca, L., & de Valenzuela, J. S. (1998). Background and rationale for bilingual special education. In L. Baca & H. Cervantes (Eds.), The bilingual special education interface (3rd ed., pp. 2-25). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
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        Bohannon, J. N., & Bonvillian, J. D. (1997). Theoretical approaches to language acquisition. In J. Berko Gleason (Ed.). The development of language (4th. ed.) (pp. 259-316). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
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         Cummins, J. (1991). The development of bilingual proficiency from home to school: A longitudinal study of Portuguese-speaking children. Journal of Education, 173(2), 85-98.
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        Cummins, J. (1994). Primary language instruction and the education of language minority students. In C. F. Leyba (Ed.), Schooling and language-minority students: A theoretical framework (2nd ed., pp. 3-46). Los Angeles: Evaluation, Dissemination and Assessment Center, California State University.
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         Cummins, J. (1999). Alternative paradigms in bilingual education research: Does theory have a place? Educational Researcher, 28(7), 26-32.
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        de Valenzuela, J. S. (1998). Language acquisition and the bilingual exceptional child. In L. Baca & H. Cervantes (Eds.), The bilingual special education interface (3rd ed., pp. 121-143). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
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        Francis, N. (2000). The shared conceptual system and language processing in bilingual children: Findings from literacy assessment in Spanish and Náhuatl. Applied Linguistics, 21(2), 170-204.
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        Genesee, F., & Nicoladis, E. (1995). Language development in bilingual preschool children. In E. E. Garcia, B. McLaughlin, B. Spodek, & O. N. Saracho (Eds.), Meeting the challenge of linguistic and cultural diversity in early childhood education (pp. 18-33). New York: Teachers College Press.
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        Genishi, C., & Brainard, M. B. (1994). Assessment of bilingual children: A dilemma seeking solutions. In E. E. Garcia, B. McLaughlin, B. Spodek, & O. N. Saracho (Eds.), Meeting the challenge of linguistic and cultural diversity in early childhood education (pp. 49-63). New York: Teachers College Press.
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        Goodz, N. S. (1994). Interactions between parents and children in bilingual families. In F. Genesee (Ed.), Educating second language children: The whole child, the whole curriculum, the whole community (pp. 61-81). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
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        Krashen, S. (1991). Sheltered subject matter teaching. Cross Currents, 41(4), 183-189.
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        Krashen, S. (1997/1998). Bridging inequity with books. Educational Leadership, 55(4), 18-22.
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        Lessow-Hurley, J. (1996). The foundation of dual language instruction. White Plains, NY: Longman.
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        Miramontes, O. B., Nadeau, A., & Commins, N. L. (1997). Restructuring schools for linguistic diversity: Linking decision making to effective programs. New York: Teachers College Press.
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        Paley, V. G. (1995). Looking for Magpie: Another voice in the classroom. In H. McEwan & K. Egan (Eds.), Narrative in teaching, learning, and research (pp. 91-99). New York: Teachers College Press.
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        Pease-Alvarez, C., & Vasquez, O. (1994). Language socialization in ethnic minority communities. In F. Genesee (Ed.), Educating second language children: The whole child, the whole curriculum, the whole community (pp. 82-102). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
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        Ramos, F., & Krashen, S. (1998). The impact of one trip to the public library: Making books available may be the best incentive for reading. Reading Teacher, 51(7), 614-615.
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        Romaine, S. (1995). Bilingualism. (2nd ed.). Oxford, England: Blackwell. (especially suggest chapters 5 & 6)
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        Sánchez, R. (1994). Chicano discourse. Houston, TX: Arte Público Press. (especially suggest chapter 5)
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        Saville-Troike, M. (1991). Teaching and testing for academic achievement: The role of language development (Occasional Papers in Bilingual Education 4). Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education.
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        Shorrocks-Taylor, D., & Hargreaves, M. (1999). Making it clear: A review of language issues in testing with special reference to the National Curriculum mathematics tests at key stage 2. Educational Research, 41(2), 123-136.

        Valdés, G., & Figueroa, R. (1994). Bilingualism and testing: A special case of bias. Norwood, NJ: Ablex. (especially suggest chapter 10)
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        Wong Fillmore, L. (1991b). When learning a second language means losing the first. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 6, 323-346.
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    Course Design:
    This course is designed so that students will interact actively with the course material -- whole and small group discussion, rather than instructor lecture, will make up the bulk of in-class sessions. Therefore, it is imperative that students arrive at each class having read all of the assigned readings. Graded assignments are designed to be instructional as well as providing a means of arriving at a final grade for each student. Therefore, emphasis will be placed on graded out-of-class assignments that rely on interpretation of course materials and development of critical thinking. Students who require special accommodations or instructional modifications need to notify the instructor by the beginning of the semester, or as soon as difficulties become apparent, with appropriate documentation from the Learning Support Services Center (277-6670).
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    Specific Course Requirements
    Descriptions of and criteria for grading each assignment will be handed out in class. Extra copies can be obtained at the instructor's web site -- http://www.unm.edu/~devalenz/
     
    Assignments:
    1) interview with a second language learner
    2) classroom observation
    3) quick writes (2 points each)
    4) final essay drafts (7 points each)
    5) final essay    		 Points Possible:
    20 points
    20 points
    20 points
    14 points
    25 points

    The total points possible for all of the above assignments add up to 99 points. The final point will be added to the student's grade at the instructor's discretion for any assignment that goes significantly above and beyond the work of other students. This allows the instructor to assign a grade of 'A+' only in the case of the student fulfilling the stated requirements for all assignments, attending all class sessions (or making up those missed) AND performing clearly superior work on at least one assignment.
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    Evaluation Procedures:
    Grading System:  Final grades will be determined by a point system (X out of 100 total possible points). Fractionated grading will be used, with the following breakdown:
     
    A+ = 100 B- = 80-83 
    A = 94-99 C+ = 78-79
    A- = 90-93 C = 74-77
    B+ = 88-89 F = below 74*
    B = 84-87

    *Please note that, according to UNM regulations, graduate students may not be assigned a grade of C-, D+, D, or D-. Therefore, graduate students who do not accumulate a minimum of 74 points by the end of the semester will be assigned an F.

    Incompletes and withdraws at the end of the semester will be allowed only in accordance with UNM policies. Please see the UNM catalog for a description of these policies.

    Written directions for all assignments will be provided, along with the criteria for determining point values. Extra copies of assignments will be available at the instructor’s web site at: http://www.unm.edu/~devalenz/. All written assignments will be expected to be typed and follow the American Psychological Association Manual (4th ed.) format, unless otherwise specified. A brief guide to APA is also available on the instructor's web site, under the "handouts" link.

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    .Late Paper Policy: Late assignments will receive a one (1) point deduction for every day late, with a limit of seven days allowed. If assignments are not turned in within 1 week of the assigned date, they will not be accepted, except in the case of significant illness (doctor's note required) or family emergency. If you will be not be able to be in class, please arrange for a friend to turn in your assignment during class, have the assignment faxed to the special education office by the time/date due, or have it handed in in person to either Terri or Jo in the Special Education office (Hokona Hall 273) prior to 5 p.m. on the date due. If your assignment will be turned in at the Special Education office, please make sure that the time and date it is received are documented by the staff. Do NOT turn late papers in to the LLSS/Bilingual Ed staff on the first floor -- several papers have been lost that way! Also, do not put late assignments under my office door, unless you want them accepted as turned in on the day I find them, which may or may not be the same day as you turned them in. Since I am not at the university every day, this could cost you points.
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    Re-Writes: In order to be fair to all students, re-writes will not be allowed, except under extraordinary circumstances beyond the student's control. However, students are STRONGLY encouraged to talk with, e-mail questions to, and/or submit drafts to the instructor at least 1-2 weeks ahead of time, so that revisions can be made, if necessary, by the assigned due date.

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    Class Attendance & Participation Policies:Class attendance is mandatory - Students who miss more than 3 class sessions will be dropped from the course, regardless of the reason.  Missed class sessions can be made up with the following, turned in no later than 3 weeks after the missed class:

    Five points will be deducted for every absence that is not made up. No excuse or documentation is necessary for missed classes.

    Late arrivals to class interrupt the learning of all students. Therefore, a point will be deducted for arriving more than 15 minutes late to class. Arriving more than 45 minutes late will be considered a class absence and will need to be made up, as indicated above.

    Class participation that is conducive to the learning of all course participants is expected. Behaviors that are considered to be conducive to learning (of the student him/herself and others) include:

    A rubric indicating the instructor's expectations for appropriate classroom participation will be distributed at the beginning of the course. Students who repeatedly violate these expectations will be dropped from the course.
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    Class Schedule:
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    August 23, 2001 (#1)
    Topic: Introduction - Instructor’s vision, expectations and classroom norms, assignments & grading criteria, and web site orientation
    Read: no reading due 1st day of class
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    August 30, 2001 (#2)
    Topic: What is language?
    Read: McKeon
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    September 6, 2001 (#3)
    Topic: Theories of language acquisition
    Read: Pinker AND Ochs (1988)
                Ochs (1986) -- Optional
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    September 13, 2001 (#4)
    Topic: Theories of second language acquisition
    Read:  Walker de Félix AND Oksaar
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    September 20, 2001 (#5)
    Topic: Theories of second language acquisition, cont.
    Read:  Cummins (1989) AND Krashen (1994) -- (grad students)
                 Echevarria & Graves -- (undergrads)
    Due: 1st draft of final essay
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    September 27, 2001 (#6)
    Topic: Theories of second language development, cont.
    Read: Wong Fillmore
    Note: last day to drop a class without a grade is September 28th
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    October 4, 2001 (#7)
    Topic: Foundations of bilingual education
    Read: Krashen (1996) AND Tharp
    Due:   Interview with a Second Language Learner
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    October 11, 2001 (#8)
    No class - Fall Break
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    October 18, 2001 (#9)
    Topic: Instructional strategies
    Read: Tharp & Gallimore AND Short
    **mid-semester class evaluation (how is it going so far?)
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    October 25, 2001 (#10)
    Topic: Instructional strategies, cont.
    Read: Donato & Hernández AND Gersten & Baker.
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    November 1, 2001 (#11)
    Topic: Misconceptions about second language learners: dialects and the silent period
    Read: Trudgill AND Saville-Troike
    Due:   second draft of final essay
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    November 8, 2001 (#12) - Guest Speaker
    Topic: Misconceptions about second language learners: code-switching
    Read: Timm
    .Note: November 12th is the last day to withdraw from a course without Dean's approval (WP/WF required)
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    November 15, 2001 (#13)
    Topic: Misconceptions about second language learners: critical periods
    Read: Marinova-Todd, Marshall, & Snow
    Due: classroom observation assignment
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    November 22, 2001 (#14)
    No class - Thanksgiving Break
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    November 29 (#15)
    Topic: Misconceptions about second language learners: language attrition
    Read: Schiff-Myers, Djukic, McGovern-Lawler, & Perez

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    December 6, 2001 (#16)
    Topic: Recognizing the sociopolitical context around bilingual education
    Read:  Anzaldúa AND Cummins (1997)
    Due: final essay
    Note: December 7th is the last day to withdraw from a course with Dean's approval (WP/WF required)
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    Instructor's vision and mission statement

    VISION: A classroom climate that fosters thoughtful and respectful consideration of alternative viewpoints and ideas, personal ownership of learning, and individual construction of personally meaningful knowledge.

    MISSION: To facilitate the collaborative construction of the above learning environment via attention to the following:

    whole and small group dynamics;
    increased literacy in academic discourse (comprehension and production, oral and written); and
    opportunities for active engagement with course content and materials.
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    The vision of the College of Education:
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    Excellence and diversity through people, ideas, and innovation.

    Our mission is the study and practice of education through teaching, research, and service. We

     In carrying out our mission we value .
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    College of Education's Conceptual Framework:
    Professional Understandings, Practices, and Identities

    The College of Education at the University of New Mexico believes that professional education should seek to help individuals develop professional understandings, practices, and identities. These understandings, practices and identities frame the life-long learning of professional educators and reflect the values articulated in our Mission Statement and in state and national standards and competencies.

    Understandings frame the identity and practice of educational professional. We seek to help you better understand:

    These understandings enable you, as a professional, to value and engage in practices that embody the following qualities: Developing a professional identity is central to lifelong growth as a professional educator. The University of New Mexico College of Education will help you to develop the following attributes of a professional: .
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    Last updated: August 3, 2001