Language Education Speaker Series
The Language Education Speaker Series at BU Wheelock College of Education & Human Development brings well-known scholars in the field of applied linguistics to campus to discuss their work. These talks are open to all members of the BU community, as well as scholars and students of applied linguistics throughout the Greater Boston area.
Upcoming Events
“False Positives, Re-Entry Programs and Long-Term English Learners”: Undoing Dichotomous Frames in U.S. Language Education Policy
Dr. Nelson Flores, University of Pennsylvania
Thursday, February 8th, 2024
5:00–6:30 pm (ET)
Photonics Center
8 St Mary’s St
Room 206
Boston, MA 02215
At the core of contemporary US language education policy is the dichotomous dividing of bilingual students into English Learners (ELs) who are entitled to extra support and non-ELs who are not entitled to this support. In this presentation, I examine the historical development of this dichotomous framing of bilingual students within the Bilingual Education Act. I then examine contemporary vignettes that point to the tensions that this ideological underpinning has created for contemporary US language education policymakers and the negative impact that it has on racialized bilingual students. I end with a discussion of ways of reconceptualizing US language education policy that is responsive to the tensions reported by these educators
About Dr. Nelson Flores
Nelson Flores is an associate professor in educational linguistics at the University of Pennsylvania. His research examines the intersection of language and race in shaping U.S. educational policies and practices. He has been the recipient of many academic awards including a 2017 Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship, the 2019 James Alatis Prize for Research on Language Planning and Policy in Educational Contexts and the 2022 AERA Early Career Award.
Previous Events in the Series
January 29, 2024
Unveiling Bias in Second Language Acquisition Research: A Critical Examination of Convenience Sampling and Implications for Generalizability
Dr. Aline Godfroid, Michigan State University
October 24, 2023
Understanding Wampanoag Culture Through Wôpanâak Language
Dr. Nitana Hicks Greendeer, Brown University
October 5, 2023
¿Soy Acaso Negra?: A Testimonio on the Erasure of Black Latines within, and beyond, Bilingual Education.
Dr. María Cioè-Peña. University of Pennsylvania
April 11, 2023
Researching Language Learning and Multilingualism: From Social Justice to a Decolonial Lens?
Lourdes Ortega, Georgetown University
April 3, 2023
Navigating language learning as a non-binary student: Insights into diverse experiences from participatory research with non-binary youth
Julia Donnelly Spiegelman, UMASS Boston
November 2, 2022
What Effect Do Heritage Languages Have on Majority English in Adolescent and Adult Heritage Speaker Bilinguals?
Shanley Allen, University of Kaiserslautern
September 26, 2022
Biliteracy as Property: The Promise and Perils of Seal of Biliteracy and Dual Language Programming through an Equity Lens
Chris Chang-Bacon, University of Virginia
March 28, 2022
Language Learning Apps: Do They Really Work?
Shawn Loewen, Michigan State University
February 22, 2022
Enacting a Critical Translingual Approach in Teacher Development
Kate Seltzer, Rowan University
November 16, 2021
Measuring L2 Grit Not Once, But Twice, and Exploring How Much Learners Need it to Succeed
Paula Winke, Michigan State University
October 26, 2021
Complex Dynamic Systems Theory—Learning-Centered Teaching
Diane Larsen-Freeman, University of Michigan
February 8, 2021
Shifting the Discourse from Deficit to Difference: Understanding the Cognitive Neuroscience of Learning in Bilingual Learners
Gigi Luk, McGill University