This course reviews issues of theory and methods in education research. Language, principles, reasoning, methodologies, and tests of validity for both quantitative and qualitative research will be critically examined.

Aims, Goals, Objectives, Outcomes:
This is a senior graduate course designed to provide students with a deeper knowledge and understanding of key issues related to conducting educational research. It deals with philosophical, epistemological, political and ethical issues and is designed to equip students with a necessary basis for understanding the language, principles, reasoning and methodologies of both qualitative and quantitative orientations to conducting research which need not be conceived as mutually exclusive approaches.

Ce cours a pour but de familiariser les étudiants avec les théories sur le bilinguisme de façon à pouvoir prendre en compte ces connaissances dans la recherche, que ce soit en milieu bilingue ou plurilingue, ou en rapport avec l'enseignement des langues. Il est composé de douze séances, dont les premières concernent plus particulièrement l'individu faisant l’acquisition ou ayant recours à deux ou plusieurs langues. Les séances subséquentes abordent l’étude du bilinguisme de l’optique des théories sur la linguistique pédagogique pour mieux comprendre le développement du bilinguisme en milieu scolaire. Finalement, on examine le décalage qui peut exister entre la théorie et la mise en pratique, prenant comme exemples la réaction publique à l’éducation bilingue en milieux divers. Donc, dans un premier temps, on se concentre sur des notions de base au niveau du bilinguisme individuel dont le bilinguisme «balancé» ou «asymétrique», le bilinguisme enfantin et les atouts cognitifs qui peuvent en résulter, le bilinguisme d’élite, etc. Par la suite, les séances seront consacrées à des aspects éducatifs et pédagogiques du bilinguisme. On examinera des explications théoriques touchant sur le développement du bilinguisme suite à des interactions langagières au sein du système scolaire (le développement de la compétence communicative en L1 et en L2, les habiletés de communication interpersonnelle comparées aux habiletés de communication analytique-cognitive, le rôle relatif du statut des langues, etc.). Finalement, on se penchera sur la réalisation des programmes d’éducation bilingue, programmes controversés si la population estudiantine en question représente le groupe minoritaire, non pas le groupe majoritaire, d’une société. Pour conclure, on analysera l’argumentation des défenseurs et des adversaires de l’éducation bilingue au Canada et aux États-Unis.

In this course, candidates will examine ongoing and more recent concerns, issues, and debates in applied linguistics that currently inform second language acquisition (SLA) research and second/foreign language teaching. Among the concerns, issues, and debates to be explored are: (a) What does second language (L2) proficiency entail? What promotes L2 proficiency? What is the relationship between L2 proficiency and overall academic achievement? What is the role of L2 instruction in promoting L2 proficiency? How does L2 proficiency influence learners’ ability to reference reading material? (b) Can one ever “learn” an L2 or can an L2 only be “acquired”? Can one separate L2 acquisition and learning? Which instructional innovations heighten grammatical accuracy (focus-on-form) yet maintain/enhance communicative competence? (c) What is the role of mother tongue (L1) development in L2 learning (e.g., the Interdependence hypothesis)? How do different L1s influence learning different L2s? How can L2 educators draw on learners’ L1 knowledge to heighten their L2 proficiency? (d) What can L2 educators do to promote learners’ L2 learning strategies and socio-academic success? What is the role of learner perceptions and emotions in SLA? (e) How can these issues be accounted for in L2 program planning, evaluation, and teacher preparation? Issues in Second Language Teaching and Learning is a broadly based course designed to meet the needs of a wide spectrum of language educators with experience in elementary, secondary, or college language teaching.

In this course--of interest to language educators with experience in elementary, secondary, or college/university level language teaching--students will explore theories of first, second and additional language acquisition and the relationships, if any, between them. The focus of the course is on the acquisition process, and instructional and environmental influences on language acquisition as both have bearing upon the extent and success of acquisition or, at times, language loss.

Ce cours servira d=introduction à un champs d=études multidisciplinaire, celui des langues minoritaires. Compte tenu de la signification de certaines notions d=usage courant qui demeurent floues (par exemple, de la langue maternelle), on introduira des notions de base pour répondre à des questions dont (i) langue minoritaire/langue majoritaire, comment différencier entre les deux ? (par le nombre de locuteurs ou le statut officiel ou national de la langue ?), (ii) comment classifier les droits linguistiques qui (ne) sont (pas) accordés aux groupes ethnolinguistiques divers dans des contextes internationaux ? (iii) quelles peuvent être les répercussions socioculturelles du maintien ou de la mort (dit *linguicide+) d=une langue minoritaire ? On répondra à ces questions tout en proposant des outils d=analyse et de différentes réponses linguistiques, sociales et éducatives.

Course Objectives:

• to introduce students to principles of minority language learning and teaching Students will identify factors in the first and second language learning experiences of minority language speakers, note differences in the educational experience of minority and majority language speakers, and examine the implications of these factors and differences for teaching minority language speakers.
• to acquaint students with minority language issues which recur in different settings Students will be encouraged to focus on a particular minority language group and analyse minority language issues which arise in the education of that group.
• to encourage students to become more aware of beliefs, assumptions and educational structures Students may explore this topic by way of an empirical study or research paper.

In Progress - Faculty of Education, Western University

Attaia, Shaden. Discrimination and social justice: Non-native English-speaking teachers in the Canadian and Emirate job markets (expected completion, 2023)

Liang, Wenmin. Student voice & making content comprehensible for language minorities: A case study of a Canadian content-based ESL program (expected completion, 2023)

Hakooz, Yasmeen. Drawing on 3rd Space to investigate Canadian Muslim identity and its impact on schooling (Co-supervision with Goli Rezai-Rashti; expected completion, 2022)

Killick, Natalie. Intertextuality in film for second language comprehension (expected completion, 2022)

Paterson, Kate. Learning to teach for equity, diversity, and social justice: An examination of initial teacher education in Ontario (expected completion, 2022)

Completed - Faculty of Arts & Humanities, Western University

Akpene Gomashie, Grace. The language vitality of Nahuatl in Santiago Tlaxco, Mexico (Co-supervision with Joyce Bruhn de Garavito, 2020)

Completed - Faculty of Education, Western University

Russette, Alan. Why learn a minority second language? An investigation into the motivations, investment, and lived experiences of non-heritage minority second language learners (2020)

García-Allén, Ana. The flipped Spanish classroom: Student engagement, satisfaction and autonomy (Co-supervision with Joyce Bruhn de Garavito, 2020)

Chen, Le. The enactment of academic language policy in the international university (2018)

Kozak, Jennifer. Social transformation & investment in Spanish language learning through international service learning: a case study (Co-supervision with Marianne Larsen, 2018)

Habibie, Pejman. An investigation into academic writing for publication by novice scholars: Practices of Canadian Anglophone doctoral students (2015)

Fyn, Dawn. Our stories: Inuit teachers create counter narratives and disrupt the status quo (2014)

Li, Vickie. Learners’ stories: A study of Hong Kong students’ English learning experiences and identity construction (2014)

Despagne, Colette. An investigation into identity, power and autonomous EFL learning among Indigenous and minority students in post-secondary education: a Mexican case study (2013)

Masters Theses, MRP & Mémoire Supervision

In Progress - Faculty of Education, Western University

Capanema, Rebeca. Investigating the role of peer tutoring in TESOL

Completed - Faculty of Education, Western University

Newman, Alexis. An investigation into education & student views on the prospect of task-based language teaching increasing students’ motivation & improving their oral fluency in FSL (2017)

MacCormac, Katherine. Canada’s bilingual dilemma: A Critical discourse analysis approach to the study of official bilingualism and FSL education in Canada (2016)

Mui, Tiffany. Professional development based on the CEFR & the new Ontario French immersion curriculum: a case study on reflective practice (2015)

Russette, Alan. A case study of how pedagogical practices and learning environment are orchestrated in an Ontario Francophone day care centre (2013)

Aeini, Kayoumars. A comparative/international investigation into the organization and delivery of English Language Teaching to adults in Turkey and Canada (2011)

Ng, Tiffany. Cantonese Chinese heritage/international language programs & the promotion of Chinese language maintenance: an opportunity or a lost cause? (2011)

Bobyk, Helen. Gender differences in SLA (2010)

Shoukri, Lynn. What form of language education do immigrant parents want? An investigation into the educational desires of members of Ontario’s Arab community (2010)

Nelson, Ashley. Enhancing teacher effectiveness in teaching First Nations students (2009)

Quraishi, Waquar. Reading the students: Reading instruction in multilingual classrooms (2009)

Vanderveen, Tamara. Irish language maintenance and classroom motivation (2009)

Joubert, Amanda. Development of French grammar usage through the “Accelerative Integrated Method” (2008)

Liu, Yu. How do parents set up conditions to facilitate language and literacy development in a young Chinese-English bilingual child? A qualitative case study (2005)

Yang, Hong. Heritage language loss and maintenance by Chinese children from newly immigrant families in Canada (2005)

Kotsopoulos, Donna. Appropriating the discourse of language in mathematics education (2004)

Whalen, Shona. Future directions for French as a second language teaching in Ontario: rhetoric versus reality (2004)

So, Margaret. When the tables are turned: The language proficiency assessment test for English teachers in Hong Kong (2003)

Completed - Faculty of Arts & Humanities, Western University

Marroquin-Ponce, Silvia. La géographie d’une culture : une analyse sur la langue, la culture, l’identité et le sens de soi (2011)

Ahmadi Joobaneh, Mehrnaz. An investigation into second/foreign language education in the public-school system of modern-day Iran (2009)

Dakroub, Fida. La perte du français parlé en Ontario : Les facteurs extralinguistiques, le comportement linguistique et les conséquences structurales (2005)

Baldwin, Beth. L’influence du contexte sociolinguistique sur les programmes d’immersion et les théories d’acquisition (2004)

Paquin, Sarah. L’usage des stratégies : enseignement et application (2001)

Completed – College of Humanities, University of Utah

Krugman, Mark. Educational language issues involving Roma children in Eastern Europe (1997)

Linda Allington. The sociopolitical context of Deaf linguistic rights in education (1997)