Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 2024

Abstract

Excerpt:

In recent years, conversations at both a national and local level have centered on issues of belonging and identity. Who belongs in this county? Who should be kept out? What does it mean to identify as American? Not only are these conversations in the ideological sense, but also manifest in daily realities for children and families. This is often especially evident in English Language Development (ELD) classrooms. Given the potential diversity of multilingual learners (ML) in terms of language, citizenship, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status, race, and more, language teachers are often uniquely positioned to help students think about their identities.

We know that learning English as an additional language involves more than syntax and vocabulary. Learner identity is intimately connected to the language learning process. For some students, learning a new language results in assimilation accompanied by a loss of original identity in the attempt to fit in to the new language context and expectations. For other students, becoming multilingual is an additive process that creates a sense of belonging to additional discourse communities while retaining their home culture. I would venture to guess that all students can experience elements of both at various times in their lives. As a former teacher, I often implicitly thought about this process but never had the schema to discuss this with my colleagues or students. I believe that a nuanced use of the terms belonging and fitting in may be useful.

Comments

As published in:

Keller, T.M. (2024). Belonging or Fitting-in; Multilingual Learners and Acculturation. PTE Voices Penn TESOL, 3,13, Spring 2024. PTE Voices Spring 2024 (wildapricot.com)

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