Investigating Educational Experiences of ELL Educators: Searching for Instructional Insights To Promote ELL Students' Learning

Abstract

Sustained academic growth of the Mexican population in the public schools of the Rio Grande Valley of Texas has precipitated a need for new and innovative ways to effectively educate English Language Learners (ELLs). In place of common external factors typically used such as attendance, socio-economic status, and test scores to address ELL’s learning, this study uses the lived educational descriptions of ELL teachers, who were once ELL students, to mine for new instructional insights to promote ELL student learning. This study enlightens our perspectives about the role of student identities both at home and at school that can lead to greater language acquisition and greater academic success via new methodologies. To that effect, discourse analysis was utilized to ascertain the identity(s) of ELL educators, who were once ELL students.

The convergence of the N-Identity and I-Identity, lead to a third, albeit just as important D-Identity that provides much needed insight for school directors, curriculum facilitators, administrators, and educators who teach ELL students every day.