From ELLs to Bilingual Teachers: Spanish-English Speaking Latino Teachers' Experiences of Language Shame & Loss

Transnationals are people who are residents in the post colony yet continue to maintain socio-economic relations in their country of origin, are hired for unskilled labor, and are often identified as immigrants. The children involved in transnational movements leave their respective countries of origin and corresponding ways of cultural, social, and linguistic understanding. As they enter the host state with their parents, they are placed in schools with the expectation that they will acquire the dominant language, understand the host country rules and norms, and perform well in school. Despite the high demand for teachers who have the cultural and bilingual expertise to teach these children of transnationals, there is a shortage of certified bilingual teachers to teach English language learners (ELLs). Adopting an identity framework, this multiple case study explored how bilingual and bicultural Latino teachers' lived experiences of language shame and loss influenced their teaching in classrooms with mainstream and multilingual children. Researchers employed a participatory research design promoting dialogue and self-analysis through critical reflection about the participants' perceptions of their lived experiences in schools as bilingual-bicultural children and subsequent preparation as bilingual teachers. The study took place at a state university in a large urban area in the Pacific Southwest of the United States. A recruitment survey indicated a variety of teaching experience among the participants, aged from 22 to 39, including three full-time in-service teachers and six substitute teachers. Participants had K-8 teaching credentials and worked at various school sites. They were enrolled in a Spanish-English bilingual authorization program. In order to address the overarching questions pursued in this study, researchers analyzed qualitative data for recurring patterns using an open coding scheme involving: (1) field notes from course participation, site visits, and teachers' classroom observation; (2) bilingual teacher survey; (3) taped, translated, and transcribed interviews of individuals and focus groups; and (4) artifacts from class reflections. Discussion and analysis indicated the bilingual teachers were able to relate their teaching experiences through critical reflection about language policy, linguicism as stimulus for discovering their bilingual selves, voice, and role as a bilingual teacher vis-a-vis social justice orientations and native language use in the program. Major themes emerged based on data coding and analysis, including language retention and pride at home and in the community while language shame in school contributes to language loss, negatively affects teaching, and causes cultural rejection and intergenerational distance.