Kylie Hiemstra

4-21-12
Language and Society
Research Proposal: Attitudes toward and Components of Bilingual Education
Introduction
Bilingual education is an important aspect of sociolinguistics and education because of
the increasing need for teachers to differentiate instruction for a diverse population of students.
In addition, some scholars believe that the growing number of dying languages means that we
must retain language diversity, [which] requires intervention: language planning (Baker, 2006,
p. 63). Baker (2006) argues that language planning must take place among todays youth so that
languages can be passed on for social, cultural, and economic reasons. Thus, bilingual education
is important in this planning because diversity is essentiallanguages express
identitylanguages are repositories of history[and] languages contribute to the sum of human
knowledge (Baker, 2006, pp. 45-48). Bilinguals differ in their ability levels and domains of use
of their languages, however, especially in the context of a diglossia (Baker, 2006), and it is
difficult to implement programs that reach all students.
Purpose and Research Questions
The purpose of this research is to provide schools with the information needed to
effectively implement bilingual education programs based on sociolinguistic data. I will
examine the experiences and attitudes of bilingual students, bilingual teachers, and teachers of
bilingual education toward bilingual education programs. I will conduct and transcribe group
conversations and individual interviews in the United States and Finland, because I think it will
be useful to have an international perspective on the situation. With the help of previous
sociolinguistic studies that examine components of successful bilingual education, my research
will be conducted to improve the quality of bilingual education programs based on first-hand

accounts from bilingual students and educators. To achieve these goals, I will focus on two
research questions: What are current bilingual students and teachers attitudes toward bilingual
education? and consequently, What are the components of successful bilingual education?
Literature Review
Research shows that English language learners generally tend to be behind their
monolingual peers in academic performance; one study shows that only 18.7% of bilingual
students achieve state norms for reading in English, and other studies demonstrate that English
language learners are more likely to be placed in lower ability groups and drop out of school
(Baker, 2006). Weak bilingual education programs often produce students who score far
below average in English reading achievement, whereas strong programs were found to be
more influential in higher achievement than student background variables such as socioeconomic
status (Baker, 2006, p. 204). Programs tend to be considered strong if they incorporate the
students native language into instruction, rather than immediately dismissing the native
language and replacing it with the majority language. Such programs include dual language
learning and maintenance of the heritage language, both of which focus on the outcomes of
bilingualism, biliteracy, and biculturalism (Baker, 2006).
Alans and Rodrguez (2008) studied the components of one successful dual language
program at City Elementary School in Texas. Students enrolled in this program are instructed in
both English and Spanish. Through observations, interviews with bilingual teachers and the
principal, and an analysis of standardized test scores in English reading, math, and science,
Alans and Rodrguez (2008) found that the main factors that play a part in the overall success of
the program are pedagogical equity, effective bilingual teachers, active parent participation,
[and] knowledgeable leadership and continuity (p. 312). The students at City Elementary

repeatedly scored higher than other students in the district and state on state-administered
standardized tests, demonstrating that learning in two languages had positive effects on their
learning outcomes.
Unfortunately, foreigners are often taught to think that monolingual native speakers are
the only ones who can achieve a native speakerness level of competence (Pavlenko, 2003, p.
257). This viewpoint can lead to a major problem in education: if children are taught to be more
concerned with perfection in the written and spoken form of the majority language, they will not
focus on meaning and understanding and will most likely fall behind in academic performance.
In addition, their unattainable goal of gaining native speaker competence leads to a lack of
motivation in school. Positive classroom experiences and teaching strategies, however, can rid
students of these negative attitudes and increase self-esteem (Pavlenko, 2003). In order to
reframe identity and group membership, educators must give value to students native languages
and cultures and must emphasize that there is not one right way to speak a language.
I chose to study students and teachers in Finland because their education system is said to
be one of the best in existence, and recently Finnish students have ranked as some of the highest
performing students in the world (Partanen, 2011). Finlands major focus of education is the
idea that every child should have exactly the same opportunity to learn, and thus their main goal
was never excellence. It [is] equity (Partanen, 2011). I plan to expand on this research by
specifically studying the effects of this educational equality on their bilingual education
programs.
Based on this previous research, I would like to examine the attitudes and personal
experiences of students and teachers immersed in these issues. I am interested in the qualitative
aspect of analyzing interview data, rather than the facts and figures about the lack of success of

students in these programs. Some scholars argue that bilingual education, when effectively
implemented, is not the cause of under-achievement; rather it is the cure (Baker, 2006, p. 206),
and thus my purpose is to learn what constitutes such effective bilingual education by examining
the attitudes and opinions of those who have first-hand experience with it.
Theoretical Framework
Based on my understanding of this research and the background of bilingual education in
the United States, implementing strong bilingual education programs is essential for the success
of bilingual students. I am also studying Elementary Education and have been learning recently
about bilingual education in schools, so this research proposal relates to my life from both a
linguistic and an educational perspective. I hope to gain useful insights from my data that I can
apply in order to ensure the success of all of my future students.
One idea that influences my knowledge base on this topic is the problem with the theory
of World English, which suggests uniformity in the processes of globalization; however, this
viewpoint overlooks the crucial differences that such processes display (Blommaert, 2010, p.
139). Making generalizations about this globalization thus leads to incorrect notions that similar
effects are caused by similar processes. This applies to the field of bilingual education because
oftentimes generalizations are made about the ways in which to implement special programs, but
in reality the programs should cater toward the needs and background of the specific student. In
my education classes, we have discussed cases in which bilingual students were placed in special
education classes because they were not learning English quickly enough; we also discussed
cases in which foreign students were enrolled in programs geared toward Spanish speaking
students because those were the only bilingual programs available. The prospected goal of these
diagnoses and programs is the same: to have students learn and understand English so that they

can excel academically. As Blommaert (2010) points out, however, the processes by which to
achieve this goal should not be generalized to every situation, but rather should be implemented
with the idea that differences in these processes are in fact necessary for success. Gathering data
from first-hand experiences of students and teachers involved in these processes will be
beneficial in examining the different kinds of effective bilingual education and the different
situations in which these programs are applicable.
In addition, one of my best friends is from Finland; she is fluent in both English and
Swedish (she lives in the Swedish community of Finland) and knows some Finnish, Danish, and
French. She lived in Finland until she was nine years old, then in Denmark for three years and
the United States for three years, and now lives in Finland again. When she moved to the United
States at age 12, she was already fluent in English, her second language, in addition to Swedish,
her native language. I think it is fascinating that she was able to speak English so well based
solely on her exposure to and instruction in English in a country where it is not even the official
language. Based on what I have learned and observed from her experience, this dual language
learning system proves to be quite effective for proficiency in both languages, and I am
interested to analyze how she and others view the apparent success of the Finnish system.
My previous knowledge and personal experiences influence how I am informed about
bilingual education, and my collection and analysis of data will be based on this understanding.
Methodology
I will collect data from fifteen bilingual American students and fifteen bilingual Finnish
students; fifteen bilingual American teachers and fifteen bilingual Finnish teachers; and fifteen
American teachers and fifteen Finnish teachers who are involved in bilingual programs (some of
these teachers may also belong to the bilingual teachers category). My participants will be

students or teachers of grades 3-12 in their country of origin. All of the American and Finnish
participants must speak English and Swedish as their native languages, respectively; it does not
matter what their other language(s) is. The American participants can be from anywhere in the
United States, and the Finnish participants must be from a Swedish-speaking part of Finland. I
will use a Swedish translator for the interviews with my Finnish participants.
For the first part of my study, I will record and transcribe group conversations among the
participants. They will be divided based on their category, so the American students will be
together, the Finnish students will be together, and so on. I will ask them to discuss their
personal experiences and how these affect their ideas about what strong bilingual education
means. I will analyze these conversations using conversation analysis, which looks in depth at
the organization and structure of conversation. This methodology investigates turn taking and
the different roles that the participants play throughout the conversation (Hutchby & Wooffitt,
1998). I will study how my participants use utterances to accomplish certain things and convey
meaning in conversation, which will allow me to determine how they construct their bilingual
identities and attitudes. I will conduct this part of my study first because conversation analysis is
based on the fact that participants are studied solely through their conversation data, rather than
any preconceived notions about who they are.
Taking these roles and identities in conversation into account, in the second part of my
study I will record and transcribe 30-minute individual interviews with my participants. I will
ask questions about their experiences with bilingual education and about the aspects of these
experiences that seem to help them or their students excel both academically and emotionally.
Similar to Pavlenkos (2003) research, I will analyze this data through discursive positioning by
examining the lexical choices used when participants describe their experiences; this will reveal

their underlying attitudes and help me understand why their bilingual experiences were or were
not successful. I will also look at grammatical positioning, or changes in tense and change-ofstate verbs used when describing changes in their perceived identities. By analyzing their
responses in this way and by taking into account what they say, I will be able to learn about their
opinions on and ideas about bilingual education.
Through these methods, I will be able to determine current students and teachers
attitudes toward bilingual education. Based on their personal experiences, I can establish the
components of bilingual education that make it effective in certain contexts. This will allow me
to deduce the ways in which schools should implement bilingual education programs that
advance academic achievement and help bilingual students excel.
Conclusion
Language diversity and accommodation for all students are important parts of the
discussion on bilingual education, and I want to conduct this research to gain knowledge about
the experiences of students and teachers who play a direct role in this topic. Current bilingual
students can provide insight into what makes them feel most comfortable and helps them thrive
academically, socially, and emotionally; bilingual teachers have the experience of what being
bilingual means and are able to incorporate this experience and knowledge into their classroom
identities; and teachers in bilingual education programs know what seems to help or hurt their
students performances, based on formal assessments and general observations of their wellbeing. Especially in our increasingly international country, everyone must be aware of changing
the negative outlooks that we have on non-native speakers. Research on attitudes towards and
components of bilingual education can help us change our approaches so that we can accept,
accommodate, and promote a wide variety of language and culture.

References
Alans, I., & Rodrguez, M. A. (2008). Sustaining a dual language immersion program: Features
of success. Journal of Latinos and Education, 7(4), 305-319. doi:
10.1080/15348430802143378
Baker, C. (2006). Foundations of bilingual education and bilingualism (4th ed.). Tonawanda,
NY: Multilingual Matters Ltd.
Blommaert, J. (2010). The sociolinguistics of globalization. New York, NY: Cambridge
University Press.
Hutchby, I., & Wooffitt, R. (1998). Conversation analysis. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Partanen, A. (2011, December 29). What Americans keep ignoring about Finlands school
success. The Atlantic. Retrieved from
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/12/what-americans-keep-ignoringabout-finlands-school-success/250564/
Pavlenko, A. (2003). "I never knew I was a bilingual": Reimagining teacher identities in TESOL.
Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, 2(4), 251-268.