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Through a pedagogical lens, this literature review highlights how social class, as a primary analytical construct for understanding identity in English language learner instruction, interacts with teacher class identity while creating implications for teaching and learning. In the past two decades, race, class, and gender have been the foci in TESOL identity research, yet race and gender have often been privileged as primary constructs of analysis while class is relegated to tertiary status. The article reviews poststructuralist identity theories in linguistics/TESOL to analyze the concept of multiple subjectivities as dynamic, shifting, conflicting, and situated in particular sociohistorical contexts. Then, through a multidisciplinary approach, the author discusses teacher identity conceptualization and draws from TESOL research on race/racial privilege to illustrate ways in which teacher privilege may result from student positionality based on social class for English language learners in primary and secondary public schools. Concluding with implications for the field, the author suggests future avenues of research on social class in the second language classroom.

This study examines how an English language learner (ELL) educator negotiated conversations about the intersectional nature of race in an elementary ELL classroom using a critical literacy framework. Few studies examine the ways in which teachers of young children negotiate conversations about the complexities of race with their students. Even fewer address the way in which African refugee children can explore the contested nature of racial labeling as a part of language instruction in the classroom. The students in this study experienced a history of persecution and displacement in Somalia in the 1990s. Their experiences in Somalia, relocation to refugee camps in Kenya, and finally relocation to the United States exposed their families to the very real impact of static and stereotypical notions of race. Through the lens of critical literacy, classroom interactions and activities are analyzed through one cycle of literacy events in an ELL classroom. Findings show that ELL educators can explore the contested nature of racial identities in ways that support and enhance language instruction. Findings also highlight the complexities of immigrant and refugee identity positions, even among members of the same group.

Given the collaborative nature of the TESOL profession, models are needed that provide opportunities for teachers and other school-based stakeholders to interact with students to understand their successes, challenges, and particular needs more clearly. In this article, the authors advocate for the use of cogenerative dialogues, a promising practice for learning more about the teaching and learning needs of English language learners (ELLs) in a specific learning context. Cogenerative dialogues are discussions involving students and teachers that foreground problems and generate strategies to improve teaching and learning. The dialogues were implemented as part of a larger, mixed-methods study in two urban middle school science classrooms in the United States. The authors discuss beneficial outcomes and tensions for both ELL students and teachers. Benefits included (1) creating opportunities for students to develop a voice, (2) assuming responsibilities for learning, (3) sharing responsibilities for language acquisition and learning, and (4) developing a sense of community. They also address two other specific concerns: the language proficiency levels of the students who are involved, and the cultural practices around critiquing teaching and learning.

This article details a study that focused on the supports that enabled an English language learner (ELL) facilitator to contribute to a culture of collaboration between the English as a Second Language (ESL) and Language Arts Departments to more effectively meet the instructional needs of ELLs in one culturally and linguistically diverse high school. Findings emphasize the importance of (1) a supportive leadership context for inclusion of ELLs and the ELL facilitator's work, (2) schoolwide supports for ELLs, and (3) collaboration and influence of the literacy team. The article describes the contributions of the ELL facilitator to the culture of collaboration between the ESL and Language Arts Departments, analyzes the structures and organization of the school context that contributed to this collaborative work to meet the instructional needs of ELLs, and discusses the importance of these findings for both research and practice.

The current study compares the responses and statements of English as a second language (ESL) and content area teachers in discussions about the instruction of English language learners (ELLs). A study on how these two sets of teachers understand the field is important because commonalities and differences in their opinions may have an impact on the effectiveness of their collaboration. Such collaboration has become essential given the increasing number of ELLs in U.S. public schools. The findings of the study highlight areas of commonalities that could serve as a foundation for ESL and content area teachers to initiate their collaboration. The findings also yield areas of differences in the teachers' responses, indicating clearly where support and bridge building are needed for collaboration to be sustained. Based on these results, recommendations are offered that aim to support ESL and content area teacher collaboration in ways that can help avoid problematic issues identified by teachers in the study. These include the relegation of ESL teachers to the personal assistant role, the sense of helplessness and isolation that content area teachers experience when working with ELLs in their classroom, and lack of advocacy efforts for ELLs.

This article documents our efforts to design and implement a transformational opportunity for teacher credential candidates prior to their student teaching. Through the Case Study Project, candidates participated in an intensive one-on-one teaching and learning experience with a K–12 English language learner (ELL) in classroom settings. In addition to the tutoring experience, the project required candidates to gather and analyze student language proficiency data for instructional design, report school and district ELL policies and support services, and collect information on state and federal regulations regarding ELL instruction and programs. As a result, candidates reported that they were better prepared to meet the educational and emotional needs of ELLs. Some of the categories in which candidates reported significant professional growth were developing a greater understanding of self as teacher, developing a greater awareness of the learner and the learning process, and realizing the importance of maintaining the integrity of the content—not reducing the level of complexity. doi: 10.5054/tj.2010.214880