Education faculty, doctoral students participate in language studies conference

Two groups from the Language, Literacy and Culture concentration in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies represented the School of Education at the International Society on Language Studies conference held June 13-15 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

 

Lecturer Marie Christine Polizzi and doctoral candidates Keiko Konoeda and Bridgette Moriarity presented their classroom-based research in a symposium titled “Exploring the Use of Multimodal and Multilingual Literacies in Diverse Language Classroom Contexts: Empowering Practices.” The symposium reported on research that documented the use of multilingual and multimodal literacies by learners in diverse world language classroom contexts in the northeastern U.S. These new literacies were analyzed critically as potential tools for development for the language learners, research participants in these studies.

 

A second group, including LLC doctoral candidate and South Hadley school teacher Yvonne Fariño, LLC professor Theresa Austin and Carmen Veloria of Suffolk University, organized a symposium on the “Impact of English-Only Language Policies: Latinas in Transitions and Transformations.”

The symposium examined the impact of English-only legislation on teachers’ and learners’ language ideologies in Massachusetts. They presented three case studies of Latinas: a student’s transition to college, a teacher in transition, and transformation of a Latina educator. Cross-case analysis provides more nuanced understandings about how language policy impact particular multilingual populations.
 

Austin was also an invited panelist at the symposium on “The Graduate Student and Establishing Scholarly Opportunities.” The session was an informal panel discussion geared for graduate students and tenure-seeking faculty. The presenters discussed concerns in submitting manuscripts for peer review, what to do with reviewers’ comments, and common truths and myths about publishing. They also discussed ways that graduate students could begin to build connections within the scholarly community in terms of publishing and service. The panel provided advice for finding the position that’s the right fit, and discussed how to balance scholarship, teaching and service.