Preparing Teacher Leaders for English Language Learners in Rural Settings

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3776/tpre.2019.v9n1p44-60

Keywords:

English language learner, teacher education, rural education, professional development, teacher leaders

Abstract

The number of English language learners (ELs) across the United States continues to grow, particularly in rural and new destination settings. However, educators remain un- and under-prepared for working with ELs nationally. This article provides findings from a study of one teacher leader professional development program in a rural school district that sought to prepare educators for ELs. We describe the professional development program and the rural context of the district. Findings from this study derive from an online survey of participants. Data reveal that rural educators seek to acquire skills and strategies that go beyond the classroom setting and that enable them to connect with EL families. They also believe that teacher leaders of ELs demonstrate compassion and build social-emotional support networks for themselves as professionals, as well as with EL families.

Author Biographies

  • Maria R Coady, University of Florida

    Dr. Maria Coady is an Associate Professor of ESOL and Bilingual Education and the Irving and Rose Fien Endowed Professor of Education at the University of Florida. She received her Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Colorado, Boulder, where she was a U.S. Department of Education Title VII Fellow. Dr. Coady prepares both in- and pre-service teachers to work with English Learners (ELs) and studies bilingual education worldwide. She has directed multiple projects in rural north central Florida with English learner children, teachers, preservice teachers, and families. She is PI and Director of a $2.4 million US Department of Education grant providing professional development to teachers of English learners in rural north Florida. She has published widely in education journals (TESOL Journal, Theory into Practice) and research journals (TESOL Quarterly, Bilingual Research Journal). Her books include: Why TESOL (5th ed., 2018, with E. W. Ariza), Connecting School and the Multilingual Home: Theory and Practice for Rural Educators, (2019, Multilingual Matters), The Coral Way Bilingual School (2019, forthcoming Multilingual Matters), and Early Language Learning Policies in the 21st Century (Editor with S. Zein, 2020).

  • Mark Preston Lopez, University of Florida

    Mark Preston S. Lopez is a Fulbright Scholar from the Philippines and is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. He is specializing in Curriculum and Instruction with a major in ESOL/Bilingual Education. His research interests include mother tongue-based multilingual education, culturally and linguistically responsive teaching, professional development for rural EL teachers, and ESL teacher preparation, among others. He has been a teacher educator in the Philippines for more than a decade.

  • Nidza Marichal, University of Florida

    Nidza Marichal is a doctoral candidate in bilingual education at the University of Florida School of Teaching and Learning. She received a bachelor’s degree in biology from Yale University and a master’s degree in Spanish Linguistics/Second Language Acquisition at the University of Florida. She has taught university and high school Spanish for more than 15 years and has served on numerous administrative committees. She is interested in rural education, English learners, teacher knowledge, bilingualism, translanguaging, and immigration issues. She has served as Program Coordinator of Project STELLAR and facilitated professional development to educators of English learners. Presently, she is working on her dissertation proposal on Teacher Knowledge for English Learners in Rural Settings.

  • Deon Heffington, Universidad de Quintana Roo a

    Deon Heffington received her PhD in ESOL and bilingual education from University of Florida in 2019. She is an Associate Professor at Universidad de Quintana Roo (UQRoo). She was appointed Chair of the Department of Language and Education at UQRoo from 2009 to 2013. She collaborates in Project STELLAR as a Program Coordinator (PI Dr. Maria Coady). She has been a teacher for more than 15 years at different grade levels (K-12). Her research interests include effective instructional practices with ESOL students in K-12 classrooms and higher education.

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Published

2019-06-01

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 1 (2019): Theory & Practice in Rural Education

Section

Research Forum

License

Copyright Notice

Articles will be published using a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial Sharealike license. (For more information on this license, please visit the Creative Commons license page.) Please also note that the authors are explicitly granting permission for Academic Library Services to store a copy of the article in The ScholarShip, ECU's Institutional Repository under the terms of the current ScholarShip license. As a North Carolina agency, ECU contributes copies of all publications to the North Carolina State Archives.

How to Cite

Preparing Teacher Leaders for English Language Learners in Rural Settings. (2019). Theory & Practice in Rural Education, 9(1), 44-60. https://doi.org/10.3776/tpre.2019.v9n1p44-60