Description:
This course introduces teachers to important concepts, ideas, and research in bilingual education, helping them apply this knowledge to their own teaching contexts. The first half of the course is dedicated to exploring bilingualism, while the second half focuses on bilingual education. Some of the important issues that will be discussed in the first half are 1) definitions and measurements of bilingualism; 2) languages in society; 3) development and maintenance of bilingualism; 4) theories and research on second language acquisition and bilingualism; and 5) bilingualism and cognition. These and other issues will be connected to differing models of bilingual education, from submersion to dual language immersion programs, as well as to the ongoing debate about the need and effectiveness of bilingual education in the United States and Indiana.
As professionals, we’ll work together in this course to improve our knowledge, competence, and understanding of our own and other areas of instruction and bilingual/multilingual education. Each of us in this class will know more in some areas and less in others; each participant will take on the role of mentor in some situation and novice in others. In all of these contexts, you should expect from yourself and the other participants very high standards of professional conduct.
Readings:
Required Text:
Baker, C. (2001). Foundations
of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism (3rd Ed). Bristol, PA: Multilingual
Matters, Ltd.
Course Guidelines and Orientation to Oncourse :
Course participants are expected to stay abreast of daily readings and turn in assignments on time. Class discussions depend on careful reading of the chapters in the text. Late assignments will not be accepted.
On Oncourse you will find this syllabus and the calendar under the ‘Syllabus’ tab. Chapter guides are posted under ‘Schedule’. These guides are not homework, but please print them out and bring them to class. Questions from these guides will often serve to guide in-class discussions.
Course Assignments:
1. Participation & Attendance, and Daily Oncourse Posting (20%)
Active participation is expected and required from all course participants during both large and small group activities and discussions. Attendance is mandatory. Participants who know they will miss a class session should alert the instructors.
Participants are required to post on Oncourse their reactions to the daily textbook readings. These postings can take one of many forms: a question that needs to be clarified, a personal reaction to the content, an area of interest that might be worth pursuing in future study or instruction, an application to a particular teaching context, an illustration from personal experience, etc. These postings need not be longer than 3-4 sentences! Postings are due by midnight the day before class.
To post your reaction, go to Oncourse and click on the 'In Touch' tab. Open the 'Discussion Forum' that corresponds to the day, and click on 'Expand All' in the left upper corner. Click on the folder of the topic to which you would like to react and post your message. (Instructors will post several possible topics for each day's reading.) If your reaction doesn't seem to fit a topic, feel free to begin your own!
2. Reflection Paper (10%)
A reflection paper will be collected after the first half of the course. The reflection paper topic should be relevant to course discussions and textbook readings. The paper offers participants an opportunity to reflect on course content, relate it to personal thinking and/or apply it to specific teaching contexts and experiences. Participants are encouraged to choose one (at most two) topics about which to write, and examine the topic(s) from a variety of perspectives: textbook readings, class discussions, personal and teaching experiences, community practices, preconceived ideas and misconceptions, etc. The paper should be between two and three double-spaced pages (500-700 words). NOTE: If two topics are chosen for the paper, there must be an evident relationship or connection between the two.
Reflection papers will be posted to Oncourse under 'In Touch' and 'Discussion Forums.' In addition to writing and posting their own paper, participants will be asked to read and react to at least two other papers within their assigned group. Each reaction should be around 100 words long (this paragragh is about 50 words long).
3. In-Service Outline Draft (20%)
The most significant project for the course is the creation of an in-service plan to administer at the participants’ school corporation. In addition to the rubrics on the assignment page, specific guidelines for the in-service can be found at http://www.indiana.edu/~icp/inservicemenu.html.
In-service outline drafts will be posted on Oncourse to the participants’ small group discussion forum. Small group members will provide feedback to at least two other outlines. Feedback for each outline should be around 200 words long. Though there is no rubric for this feedback, it is expected that participants will address some of the following issues:
- What are strengths of the draft? What did you like in particular?
- Does the outline follow the guidelines given? Are all components present?
- Given the focus of the outline, are there issues missing from the in-service?
- Is the outline cohesive or is the scope of the project too broad or too narrow?
- Share suggestions for any creative activities you think appropriate and/or helpful.
4. In-Service Mini-Workshop (10%)
During the last days of class (before the on-campus workshop), participants will present in their pairs a mini-workshop from their in-service project. Participants should choose an activity from the in-service that does not exceed 12 minutes (strict time limit enforced) and guide participants from their site through the activity (in some cases, presentations will be across sites). The purpose of this exercise is to give participants the opportunity to practice on a real audience, as well as receive feedback on the activity.
The in-service mini-workshop will be graded according to the criteria below.
Purpose: Is the purpose of the activity relevant to course content? Is it clear?
Activity: Does the activity work? Does it do what it is intended to do?
Structure: Is the activity well-structured? Is it well-organized?
Creativity: Is the activity creative? Does it capture and hold attention?
Materials: Are materials used and designed appropriately for the activity?
Presentation: Is the presentation conducted in a professional manner?
Participants presenting should begin by briefly contextualizing the activity within their in-service agenda. Presenters should not state the purpose of the activity until the end of the activity. After the presentation, there will be a few minutes during which the audience may discuss some of the criteria listed above and provide feedback to the presenters.
5. In-Service Final Guide (40%)
In their ICP pairs, participants will be planning a guide for a 6 hour in-service. These hours can be split up into several shorter presentations as needed. Participants should compile their final in-service materials and provide enough details in their write-up so that other ICP participants or non-ICP colleagues would be able to understand the guide and lead the in-service without need for clarification.
All components must be submitted in two formats: a hard copy must be handed in upon arrival to Bloomington and electronic copies must be posted on Oncourse. The posted materials serve as future resources for fellow participants.
Class
Evaluation:
At the end of the
semester, you will be asked to evaluate your experience in the class. The
evaluation form for the class will be created toward the end of the semester
and you will be able to access the form at EvalOnline.
General
Distance Education Policies at IUB:
Our courses are designed
to be highly interactive and to include regular dialogue between student and
instructor and between students. Because of this, we need students to
participate regularly, and to keep up with the course readings and
assignments.
If a student does not
complete a course within a given semester, it is the student's
responsibility to make arrangements with his/her instructor regarding how
and on what timeline they will finish up the course. Students should not
assume that they will automatically be granted an Incomplete grade at the
end of the semester.
If a student has not
completed the course requirements for the course by the end of the semester,
the instructor will give the following grade that is most appropriate:
FN (failed for
non-attendance) should be used to indicate that the failing grade was earned
because he student failed to participate in the course or stopped
participating, rather than for poor performance. Participation in an online
course consists of communication with the instructor and other students,
turning in assigned work on time, etc - add details here. A student that has
ceased communication with his/her instructor may receive this grade.
I (Incomplete) may be
used to indicate that the work done is satisfactorily as of the end of the
semester, but has not been completed. This usually means that the majority
of assignments have been done and only a fraction remain. The student also
needs to make specific arrangements with his/her instructor regarding how
and when the rest of the required work will be submitted. The maximum time
allowed for the removal of an Incomplete grade is one calendar year, but
most incompletes should extend for only a few weeks or months. After 12
months, the university automatically converts an Incomplete to a grade of F.
If a student has completed
some, but not all, of the required coursework, and has not made arrangements
with the instructor to complete the rest of the requirements, the instructor
may give a grade that reflects the graded coursework up to that point.
Last updated: August 8, 2004
URL: http://www.indiana.edu/~slmi/l524_l441 Coursedescription.html
Comments: heawarre@indiana.edu
Copyright 2004, The Trustees of Indiana University