Developing Voice: Teacher Research in
Bilingual Classrooms
Aida A. Nevárez-La Torre
Temple University
Abstract
This paper explores the potential contributions that teacher research can make to enhance the practice of teachers who work with linguistically diverse students. The main premise to be discussed in this paper is that teacher research can serve as a tool for empowerment in that it can help teachers voice their knowledge and promote change in linguistically diverse settings. The discussion centers on the experiences of the Bilingual Teachers Research Forum, composed of a group of bilingual teacher-researchers in an urban setting. Six essential elements that have given cohesion to the research experience of Forum members are analyzed, namely: process, voice and dialogue, context, community of collaboration, problem solving and theorizing, and transformation. The author considers how teacher research raised teachers' awareness about the political dimension of their own practices and how these teachers have taken steps to improve their classroom practice and school settings. The author proposes that teacher research in bilingual settings is beneficial and powerful because it can encourage teachers to think and act like "transformative intellectuals" (Giroux, 1988) in their politicized work environments.
S. What I am trying to get people to do is to think about what constitutes data. Data sitting in front of you might be overlooked.
M. But I have my reservation on this . . . but then if I take as data the subjective opinion of a colleague, that is really dangerous because they already may have their own opinion. There is a tendency of labeling students and labeling family situations. And to tell you the truth I can take the conversation with a colleague as a point of information, period; but not as data.
A. Magda, data is information. Data is not necessarily correct information.
M. AHH! AHH! There is a linguistic problem. Data for me is fact, as a journalist I look for facts.
A. Data is only information. Then you have to go back and say does it mean anything? Is it valid for what I am studying? Then we come to the analysis part, what does that mean to us?
T. So, at what time does the information become data?
R. It is all data. Data is a synonym for information.
This exchange illustrates how understanding of research
evolved for a small group of bilingual teachers involved in classroom
research. The background knowledge that they had about research and
research data was contradicted by the new knowledge they acquired.
The insight gained by conducting research opened their minds to a
different way of looking at knowledge and classroom teaching. Discussions
that encouraged critical interaction about teaching immersed this
group of practitioners in a process of inquiry that helped them see
classroom practice from their new standpoint, that of researchers.
The author explores the potential contributions that teacher research
can make to enhance the practice of teachers who work with linguistically
diverse students. The main premise discussed in this paper is that
teacher research can serve as a tool for empowerment by helping teachers
voice their knowledge and promote change in linguistically diverse
settings. The discussion will center on the experiences of a group
of bilingual teacher-researchers in an urban setting. Specifically,
I describe the composition of the Bilingual Teachers Research Forum,
the organization of our work, and the classroom inquiries being conducted
by its members. A definition of teacher research is provided and followed
by a discussion of the need to use this research approach in bilingual
and ESL classrooms. Some of the essential elements of teacher-based
research discovered by the bilingual teacher-researchers are discussed.
In addition, I consider how teacher research raised teachers' awareness
about the political dimension of their own practices and how these
teachers have taken steps to improve their classroom practice and
school settings. I propose that teacher research in bilingual settings
is beneficial and powerful because it can encourage teachers to think
and act like "transformative intellectuals" (Giroux, 1988)
in their politicized work environments.
The Bilingual Teachers Research Forum
The Bilingual Teachers Research Forum (or the Forum)¹ is a collaborative inquiry group of practitioners working in linguistically diverse settings (including teaching English as a second language, ESL, and using two languages for instruction). The purpose of our work is to learn about teaching and learning in bilingual and ESL classrooms by examining our attitudes, beliefs, and practices, as well as the prescribed curriculum and school policies. The information obtained is used as a basis for critical reflection about teaching and learning and as a source to guide the transformation of the bilingual teachers' classrooms and schools.
The Forum consists of five bilingual teachers from an urban school district, and a faculty member and a doctoral student from a university in a Northeast urban center. The group meets regularly to explore our classroom practices and the collaborative process of doing research. The Forum teachers' experience working with linguistically diverse students ranges from 5 to 20 years. These teachers possess expertise in teaching elementary and middle school students English as a second language, special education, and literacy. The group members have varied levels of experience with teacher research, from having conducted and presented teacher research projects to being new to the process. The faculty member and the doctoral student have experience as bilingual classroom teachers, as well as professional knowledge and experience doing research and working with teacher-researchers.
Each member of the Forum is investigating some aspect of teaching and learning in linguistically diverse settings. Miriam² is an elementary school teacher interested in investigating the ways teachers' perceptions of bilingualism and bilingual students influence learning in an elementary school. Teresa teaches second grade where she explores the impact of students' culture on the learning process in bilingual classroom. Magda works with middle school bilingual students and has questions about literacy development in the content area. Dianne, an ESL teacher in a bilingual elementary school, is documenting the literacy development of an intermediate ESL student who is considered transient (the student's family has moved from the city and state numerous times). Nadia is a reading specialist who is investigating the ways in which bilingual children construct literacy through writing in an elementary school. Rosalie, the doctoral student, and I have served in the Forum as both facilitators and researchers. As facilitators we coordinate meetings and participate in group discussions without being the "leaders" who direct the conversation. Our main role as researchers has been that of participant-observers. In this role we respond to teachers' inquiries by providing feedback after classroom visits and collaborate in the analysis of their videotaped lessons. We have constructed our researcher role to be that of supportive colleagues seeking to partner with the teachers as they embarked on their inquiry journey. Our research focus has been to investigate the ways in which the inquiry process helps to transform these teachers' perceptions of their role(s) as practitioners and the ways in which the inquiry process transforms classroom practice.
The data for this paper were gathered over a period of two years. Qualitative methods of data collection were used. The specific methods used included teachers monthly journal entries, taped and transcribed conversations during monthly Forum meetings, and open-ended interviews with teachers. Qualitative research methods are best suited to this research inquiry because they are deliberately open ended, take a developmental view, and allow for the use of multiple data sources (Hitchcock & Hughes, 1989).
Understanding Teacher Research
Teacher research is understood as "teacher-initiated classroom investigation which seeks to increase the teacher's understanding of classroom teaching and learning, and to bring about change in classroom practices" (Gregory, 1988; Kemmis and McTaggart, 1988). Teacher empowerment is seen as the main goal of this research activity; "teachers as researchers gain the skill to interrogate their own practices, question their own assumptions, and to understand contextually their own situations" (Carr & Kemmis, 1986, p. 18).
The growing importance of teacher-based research has emerged, in part, from the fact that this research process values inquiry, collaborative work, and teacher voices. First, teacher research uses inquiry as a vehicle to reflect about, and to improve the teaching and learning processes (Richards & Lockhart, 1996). Practitioners engage in the process of critically examining their practice and classroom reality to transform them in ways that are meaningful to the practitioners' school context. Thus, inquiry evolves from teaching and sustains the learning process of teachers.
Second, collaborative work, as a means for professional growth and as a tool for inquiry, is at the core of teacher research. Learning is a social activity in that it is supported, in part, by a meaningful exchange of ideas. Louis, Marks, and Kruse (1996) explain that sustained professional contact with colleagues can facilitate intellectual work, improve practice, and strengthen practitioners' commitment to the work. Indeed, these researchers contend that the building of a community among teachers contributes to educational change and improvement of schools.
Third, practitioners who engage in teacher-based research further develop their own voices by articulating their understanding of classroom practice and by identifying necessary changes in the teaching and learning processes. This type of research is seen as an effective means of including teachers' voices in the research community that produces knowledge about effective classroom practices. The movement of teacher as researcher is an attempt to hear from teachers and to support them in the development of their own voices (Harste, 1990, p. vii). Proponents of teacher research assume that the voices of teachers will reshape the understanding of teaching and learning in meaningful ways and contribute to the creation of new knowledge about schooling in particular contexts. Therefore, one can speculate that a forum that encourages teachers to think, question, create, and work together inside and outside their own classrooms holds much promise for improving the education of linguistically diverse students.
The teachers who participate in the Forum are involved in teacher research projects to encourage the development of reflective and investigative skills as a strategy for improving classroom practice. Inquiry, collaborative work, and the emergence of voice shaped the learning experiences in the Forum. Specifically, for the past two years teachers read articles on teacher-based classroom research, learned the process of research through discussions and interactive activities, became observers of their own practice as well as that of others and conducted their own research projects. Teacher reflection emerged from regular focus group discussions that centered on the investigative process and their role as teachers. Ongoing discussions allowed participants to share the challenges of conducting classroom research and to consider the transformative effect on classroom practice in linguistically diverse settings.
The Need for Teacher Research in Linguistically Diverse Settings
Teacher research is growing in popularity as an effective means of creating a body of knowledge that emerges from practice and that it is voiced by practitioners in all-English classrooms (Wagner, 1997). Erickson (1986) contends that an essential characteristic of master teachers should be the ability to reflect critically on one's classroom practice and to communicate to others the learning from that reflection process. Cochran-Smith and Lytle (1993) assert that a major objective of teacher education should be to encourage teachers to be engaged in inquiry and that schools ought to be used as research sites that can produce knowledge.
Despite the benefits of conducting teacher research, there is currently a dearth of such research carried out by practitioners working with linguistically diverse populations and which is published in professional journals. My work in bilingual and ESL classrooms suggests several possible reasons for the apparent lack of attention to teacher research in these settings. (For a discussion on obstacles to teacher research in all-English classrooms see Cochran-Smith and Lytle, 1993.) Lack of professional validation may be one of the factors hindering participation by bilingual teachers in research activity. For example, Flor Ada (1986) uncovers this limited validation when she explains that bilingual teachers often lack support and face a great deal of criticism:
Bilingual teachers, caught between the accepted practices they are required to follow and the sound theories and research that contradict those practices, are especially vulnerable to attack. Most bilingual teachers were not educated in bilingual programs, nor did they have the experience of teaching in bilingual schools that receive full societal support. In many instances they themselves have been victims of language oppression and racism; thus, in order to empower their students to overcome conditions of domination and oppression, they must first be empowered themselves. (Flor Ada, 1986, p. 386)
Recent movements like English Only and California's Proposition 227 suggest that bilingual teachers today experience a similar adverse professional atmosphere. Other possible reasons for lack of participation in research suggested by my work with bilingual practitioners include job insecurity and lack of awareness of teacher research. Job insecurity refers to the vulnerability of bilingual programs to attacks from sectors that want to substantially reduce funding for, or completely eliminate bilingual education programs. The constant threats against bilingual education programs burden bilingual teachers with added responsibilities of support and advocacy. Bilingual teachers may have to serve as advocates in their schools and communities, representatives of bilingual programs in multiple committees and functions, and defenders of this educational approach in public and professional forums. Additionally, job insecurity refers to the fact that many bilingual teachers lack teaching certification. Due to a nation-wide shortage of bilingual teachers, school districts need to hire bilingual individuals who will work as full-time teachers while they are also enrolled in certification programs (Garcia, 1990; Griego-Jones, 1995). These multiple responsibilities limit the time and capacity that bilingual practitioners have to pursue different forms of professional growth including teacher research.
Finally, the lack of awareness bilingual teachers have about teacher research might be due to the limited amount of teacher research that is discussed at professional meetings and is published in scholarly journals (Cochran-Smith and Lytle, 1993; Wagner, 1997). The need for teacher research in linguistically diverse settings is especially poignant given the changing population trends in urban centers, such as the growing number of linguistically diverse students (Archer, 1996; Weiser Ramirez and Linde, 1994). These trends demand comprehensive and innovative educational approaches that will promote knowledge produced by teachers to facilitate academic success for all students and build the understanding about effective practice in bilingual education settings. The involvement in teacher research by practitioners who work with linguistically diverse students is one way to respond to the demands brought forth by such changing trends.
The Experience of the Forum
Despite the obstacles mentioned above, the Forum members have been actively investigating their own practice and supporting one another in the process. We have identified some essential elements that have provided cohesion to teacher-based research done by the Forum's teachers in linguistically diverse settings. These elements are process, voice and dialogue, context, community of collaboration, problem solving and theorizing, and transformation. In this section I discuss the experience of conducting classroom research with the Forum members by examining each element.
1. Process: The Forum experience has revealed that teacher research is a process of inquiry that takes time to develop and evolves in a cyclical manner. It is not linear, since the nature of this research approach calls for recurring phases, that is, observation, reflection, planning, action, further observation, reflection, planning, etc. (Wood, 1988; Richards & Lockhart, 1996). It is a process that promotes constant change and reflection. Our work has revealed that teacher research is not so much about a finished product as it is about a process and that, furthermore, a lot of the learning and growing seems to occur through the process and through conversations about the process.
Dianne's participation in the Forum's sessions serves to illustrate the idea of process. In one of our earlier Forum meetings she described her role as an ESL teacher:
My role is to provide a lot of assistance to my students so that they can become independent learners. Like Jazmine, my student, I want her to be an independent writer, but she still needs me to write down the sentences for her.
Open dialogue among the teacher-researchers in the Forum sessions and inquiry in her classroom helped Dianne to realize the contradictions embedded in this statement. Forum members questioned Dianne about what she meant by "provide a lot of assistance to my students." They asked her to identify students' behaviors that showed "dependency and independence," and they challenged her to analyze how her pedagogy promoted these behaviors. This honest interaction motivated Dianne to reflect about the teaching and learning process in her ESL classroom. To further this analysis, a colleague from the Forum volunteered to video tape one teaching session in Dianne's classroom. Dianne watched this video several times and took notes of everything she observed about her own teaching. After several weeks she asked the colleague to watch the video and discuss her observations with Dianne. Later, at one of the Forum's meetings Dianne finally expressed her concern about encouraging teacher dependency through her teaching. She was able to talk about specific ways that her teaching promoted dependency, such as finishing sentences in English for the ESL students, giving the correct spelling every time her students asked, or taking a child's pencil away from her in order to write down a word that she needed spelled. Seeing how these behaviors went against her goal of creating independent learners was a turning point for Dianne. Further conversations among the Forum members and journal readings focused on how to promote student independence in the teaching of writing. Dianne reflected on what she learned through her inquiry process:
We talked about the writing process. Jazmine did need a lot of support. However, [my colleagues] challenged me to find other avenues of support for Jazmine. I read some recommended readings and started to focus more on what I did in the classroom. I slowly began to use some different strategies like allowing Jazmine to use invented spelling, welcoming the use of Spanish when she did not know a word in English, or drawing a picture to get her thought across.
Initially Dianne believed that her role as an ESL teacher was to instruct children in the information specified in the prescribed curriculum. She saw herself as solely responsible for the learning of her students, whom she saw as passive learners (similar to Freire's banking concept of education, 1970). After many discussions with Forum members and ongoing reflection about what went on in her classroom, Dianne gradually expanded her understanding of research and her role in the classroom. Currently, she acknowledges that much of the learning that happens in the classroom needs to be directed by the students, even those who are learning English. According to Dianne, "allowing students, in particular those learning English, time to think and express their thoughts in different forms promotes their independence in the learning process." We expect that the evolution of our roles from teachers to teacher-researchers will continue as we conduct further research and reflection.
As discussed by Avery (1990), becoming a teacher-researcher is a process that influences the thinking and behavior of teachers and, thus, needs to be gradual, systematic, and continuous.
2. Voice and Dialogue: In the educational literature we find descriptions of an absence of spaces where teachers' knowledge, ideas, questions, concerns, and insights are validated and used in meaningful ways (see, for example, Flor Ada, 1986; Anderson & Herr, 1999). Thus, voicing the teachers' knowledge became an important concept to include in our work. Voicing refers to the act of validating and communicating the knowledge that teachers construct from their inquiries. Also, implied in the issue of voice is who communicates what is being discovered.
In the traditional view of research, knowledge is extracted by the researcher (usually a university professor or an "expert" from outside the school) from those being studied—teachers for example (Wagner, 1997). In other words, researchers have "voice" because they are the ones who make sense of what teachers say and the ones who communicate findings. Early meetings of the Forum revealed that teachers approached research from this traditional view:
At first the idea that I could generate my own research was not something I believed. I thought that teachers teach, and researchers observe teachers and write about it. (Magda)
When these teachers thought of research, they concluded it was a complicated activity done by experts. These teachers thought of themselves as teachers, not researchers. In addition, they only connected their ideas about the research methodology to traditional approaches (e.g., quantitative, positivistic, and done by university experts). As one teacher explained,
What I need is to get some good sources, do a search in the library you know. Then I need to think, do a questionnaire for teachers. So that I can measure it in some way. (Miriam)
The teacher research tradition, on the other hand, questions the role of the researcher as the only expert (Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1993). Kincheloe (1991) argues that "the notion that teachers as well as research professors and other `experts' should engage in critically grounded social inquiry rests on a democratic social theory that assumes that social research is not the province of a small elite minority" (p. 3). Teacher research pursues a position that knowledge is not extracted but created by the critical dialogue among teacher-researchers and between the teacher-researcher and researcher. Dialogue in teacher research signifies that both parties are genuinely interested in the conversation and able to contribute to the creation of new knowledge. Ulichny and Schoener (1996) suggest that in teacher research both the teacher-researcher and researcher see the discourse as important and have a say in determining its course. According to these authors dialogue also enables the participants to understand the topic being discussed (the objective of conversation is not to convince or win). Finally, dialogue requires that both make any prejudgments apparent and that each is critically challenged through the conversation. The work of this researcher and teacher-researcher revealed that true dialogue, in a research sense, must serve to legitimize and give voice to all who are investing in the search for knowledge (Ulichny & Schoener, 1996).
The emergence of teachers' voices in the Forum occurred gradually as they expanded their understanding of research and their role in this activity. The initial Forum sessions revealed that some participants were ambivalent about calling themselves researchers, investigators, or experts. Two teachers commented,
And just the idea that what we have is valuable, lots of time I think, other than for my own self, we don't think that what we have to say or what we have to share is so important or so valuable. (Nadia)
The fact that we are teacher-researchers . . . not that we are experts but just our experiences in the classroom. (Teresa)
Early on it was also clear to me that in order to support the development of teachers' voices I had to break away from the traditional hierarchical relationship between researcher and teacher. Rosalie and I needed to recognize the implied dichotomy in the relationship with the teachers and identify ways to move beyond it. Honest and intentional self-reflection helped us to create activities that invited teachers to become more active, vocal, and in control of their own inquiry process as well as to serve as co-facilitators of the Forum sessions. Some ways in which we achieved this were sharing the responsibility of organizing and leading the Forum meetings, having teachers identify some of the research literature to be read by the group, encouraging teachers to analyze each others' videotape sessions and offer feedback, and promoting participatory and group decision-making processes.
Ongoing reflection with other teacher-researchers as well as analysis of journal articles written by other teachers have also helped Forum members discover the power of what they know and find ways of communicating their knowledge. Our experience has revealed that implied in the dialogue among Forum participants is the fact that teacher-based research provides opportunities for teachers to voice what they know. For example, all Forum members have presented their classroom-based research at local conferences and national professional meetings such as NABE and AERA. The rewards of these experiences are best explained by two Forum members:
Engaging in teacher-based research helped me develop my own voice to analyze and understand my classroom practice, and to make change in purposeful ways. (Magda)
I guess knowing that there is a bigger audience out there. That it is not just my classroom. The fact that I went out and presented in a state conference to a bigger group of people. It is sharing what we are doing in the [Forum] group to an outside audience. I think it has opened up my eyes to what I am doing in the classroom that not only affects the children but other bilingual programs elsewhere. (Teresa)
In addition to the presentations mentioned above, the Forum members developed a Web page and are currently writing their own manuscripts to publish their classroom-based inquiry in professional journals.
Another powerful opportunity for voicing their knowledge has occurred in the schools where they work. The Forum members acknowledge that at times sharing the knowledge acquired from their own inquiry with colleagues is more difficult than to speak to an audience of complete strangers. Nadia wrote about the experience of voicing her insights about bilingual learners with teachers at the school in which she works:
I wanted to do research in my own classroom to investigate the ways in which bilingual children construct literacy through writing. The students and I worked together for a year. In addition to Writing Workshop, which included conferencing with, and responding to students' writing on a regular basis, I brought in additional ways of supporting and extending their literacy growth. As we worked together, I was continually gathering, observing and interpreting their writing for evidence of growth behaviors.
Through teacher research, I experienced change on three levels. The first was on a personal level as I began to research and answer my own questions. The second occurred at the classroom level when I began to change my teaching as a result of what I learned through my research. The teacher from whose classroom [regular all-English classroom] I pulled [ESL] students out for my lessons told me that she began to notice changes in their learning as well. She invited me into her classroom to teach the entire class once a week using the same Writing Workshop format so that she could learn to do it herself. The third change that occurred is taking place right now at the school level as I am now sharing what I learned, and the changes I have made and continue to make with the other teachers in my school.
I work in a school where most teachers are nearing thirty years of service. For the most part they all maintain traditional classrooms with predetermined instructional objectives and narrow outcomes. The population of the school became increasingly diverse during their time of service and they still talk about the good old days when students sat in straight rows and copied work neatly from the blackboard.
I started a weekly study group that meets on Friday afternoons. At first, I didn't think anyone would come, but they did come and they continue to come. Together, we are reflecting on our practice and slowly making real changes, changes like looking at [bilingual and ESL] children in a different way now. (unpublished manuscript)
The experience of conducting research as part of a collaborative bilingual teacher research group has empowered these practitioners to identify ways to promote and voice their own learning. The teachers are now establishing a dialogue within a community of bilingual practitioners and are engaged in ongoing reflection that moves them to action.
3. Context: Teacher research is very specific to the place teachers work. The bilingual teachers I am working with value this research approach because it recognizes a diversity of contexts where teaching and learning can occur. The inquiry is guided by the teachers working with linguistically diverse students. The analysis of the continuities and discontinuities embedded in their specific classrooms is integral to their inquiry. The importance of acknowledging the context in which they work is described in the following quote:
I realized that the five-day lesson plan in the teacher's guide given to me by my principal, did not work for my ESL and bilingual students. The series assigned to be used with first graders failed my students since they were not able to improve their literacy skills in English. So I set out to do my own research to answer my own questions about literacy development for my bilingual students. (Nadia)
This quote highlights the classroom reality as an important influence in shaping the teachers' research. That reality encompasses issues of culture and power hidden within the prescribed curriculum and pedagogy in their school settings. The lens used to analyze the context of the Forum members' inquiry is broad and flexible. Their analysis includes factors commonly found in traditional research, such as students' age, academic performance level, and socio-economic level. However, it also considers rarely used factors such as students' language fluency and culture, transience, overcrowded classrooms, lack of resources, low teacher expectations, misconceptions about learning in two languages, and entrenched teaching practices. The value of understanding and integrating the context into teachers' inquiry is reflected in the following excerpts of a presentation Magda did at a professional conference:
I work in the largest middle school in the city, with a 66% of Latino students. When I first came to this school there was an Early Exit Transitional English as a Second Language Program. All content knowledge was taught in Spanish, students were pulled out for 45 minutes to receive ESL instruction with an emphasis on oral communicative skills. Students read below grade level in both languages [Spanish and English]. Teachers were not trained in second-language development nor in bilingual teaching methodology. As a result literacy in the first language was not being developed, communicative competence in English was misunderstood as English proficiency and academic language in English was not being introduced. Students were homogeneously grouped according to language proficiency and were not fully integrated into school-wide activities. There was high student absenteeism and low parental involvement. Only about 100 parents of a school of 1,500 students attended school activities. Parents were not well informed about the implications of the academic program at the school.
Confronted with such a complex school setting, I focused my inquiry on parental involvement. I decided to learn about the factors that affected parental involvement and what I could do to improve it in the school. I interviewed parents, students, and teachers. I learned that in order for parental involvement to improve the school, staff and administration needed to change certain practices. Specifically, the school needed to show respect for the family's language and culture, a language policy that was inclusive of bilingual and biliteracy development needed to be developed and implemented by the entire school, and English-only teachers needed to find effective ways of communicating with Spanish-only parents.
I shared my findings with parents, teachers and the school council. As a result the school council decided to open a critical review of the bilingual program at the school. Parents, teachers, and administrators worked together in creating meaningful policy changes in the school. Currently, there is a new 50-50 Maintenance Developmental Bilingual Program being implemented. All school personnel are participating in staff development about bilingual education and language development. A bilingual language policy was adopted for all school activities and GED, ESOL, and computer classes were organized for parents. During this long and difficult process I was listened to by parents and colleagues not only as a bilingual teacher but also as a teacher that, having done research, knew what she was talking about.
The struggle for Forum teachers has been to uncover the contradictions and ambiguities present in their context and develop a plan of action to transform it (Delgado-Gaitan, 1993). The questions they explored and sources of data used emerged from the educational reality that surrounds them. Thus, the analysis of the context in which these teachers work brings out the uniqueness of their inquiry and reveals the limitations and obstacles they confront.
4. Community of Collaboration: Isolation is a descriptor often used by teachers talking about their work context (Goodlad, 1984; Lieberman &Miller, 1984; Flor Ada, 1986; Lytle & Fecho, 1991). The lack of collaboration among practitioners is illustrated by Kincheloe (1991), "Teachers . . . rarely exchange ideas about successful practices. The idea of sitting down together and seriously discussing educational purpose and how it might be achieved is not typically found in the teachers' lounge" (p. 5). My own practice as an elementary school bilingual teacher in the 1980s and current observations of bilingual schools suggest a double isolation of teachers. Within bilingual schools, often times, bilingual and ESL teachers do not communicate among themselves nor does a meaningful dialogue occur with teachers from all-English classrooms. Opposing this reality, the Forum members recognize the importance of colleague support in the learning process and the great influence that meaningful dialogue among participants has on improving their teaching and their professional roles within the schools. Sharing ideas to build a community of reflective practitioners is at the core of the work done by Forum members. Remarks by one of the teachers describe this supportive approach:
Doing research as part of the Forum has helped me to view my students through a new lens and to question what happens in my classroom as a result of these observations. I have also learned to assess my classroom practice in terms of the teaching and learning theories I know related to linguistically diverse students. The Bilingual Teachers Research Forum gave me the camaraderie and support I needed to do this. The structure of the group provided the discipline for me to work these issues out, and to follow through with my research. (Magda)
The questioning, sharing, and discussion of findings occur very naturally in the Forum meetings. Furthermore, the teacher-researchers assist each other in using new understandings that emerge from the discussions to expand their research and improve and transform their classrooms and schools. The opportunity to reflect has helped us to step back and consider what we have done to grow as a group using our research skills.
5. Problem Solving and Theorizing: Questioning and reflection are fundamental to thinking critically about classrooms and schools. First, the idea of bilingual and ESL teachers as critical thinkers refers to questioning practice in their classrooms and creating opportunities to alter any ineffective and oppressive conditions. The interaction among Forum members provided opportunity to problematize their classrooms. Forum sessions offered opportunities for ongoing questioning that provoked teachers to reimagine their classroom practice. They explained that,
The Bilingual Teachers Research Forum members assisted my inquiry about effective teaching by asking me critical questions about my perspectives about teaching and learning in linguistically diverse settings. The asked questions such as, "What do you mean by `academically behind'? What do you mean that child does not know much? What do you want to see changed? How can you go about bringing change?" These questions helped me to start looking at my practice more critically and helped me shape my classroom inquiry. (Dianne)
When I began using reflective questioning, my eyes went beyond the rights and wrongs of a finished product to see the how and why of the process that was used to achieve that product. (Magda)
Doing research as part of the Forum has helped me to stand back from the students and record what I saw happening, to question what I saw happening and to assess my classroom practice in terms of theories I know. And lastly to make change as a result. (Nadia)
Involvement in teacher research can encourage ESL and bilingual practitioners to question and can give them the tools to problematize their classroom reality and to reconfigure their practice to serve their students more effectively. It can "encourage a new paradigm in which theory and practice are interdependent and are closely linked to the everyday reality of teachers. The ongoing and interconnected process of observation and reflection helps these teachers examine theory in light of their particular teaching context" (Nevárez-La Torre & Rolón-Dow, 2000, p. 15).
Second, thinking critically about schools moves the teachers to question structures that limit the potential of the school community, such as irrelevant curriculum and oppressive policies. Initial conversations among Forum members revealed that the majority were unaware of the political dimension of education. As such, they did not analyze and interpret their schools from that perspective. For instance, they did not question that the culture of schools sometimes perpetuates certain voices being heard and certain voices being silenced. In a discussion with Forum members Miriam commented:
To me this is difficult. At first when I would hear a teacher in the school put down one of the ESL students I sort of did not pay attention. Then, I heard things like `They never pay attention. Those ESL kids are really trouble, they do not know how to behave. I do not know if they are able to learn and they always score low.' This got me mad but I did not know exactly why. I knew that I did not like what I heard but I did not know why or if I should respond. For a long while I just ignored it or at least I tried. I never really responded to any of the comments.
Gradually the Forum members have come to realize the importance of recognizing behaviors, interactions, policies, and curricular practices that devalue students and prevent them from reaching their true potential. Also, they learned to identify how school practices can isolate teachers from each other and can restrict their creativity and talents. A conversation between Rosalie and Nadia illustrates this new awareness.
R: Nadia could you be more explicit. How is it that you think that curriculum can be oppressive?
N: Well, the politics of teaching imply that a teacher is to follow a teacher's guide. Textbook publishers invest huge amounts of money to show the teacher all she needs to know and do. University professors are always mentioned as co-authors and developers of these instructional programs to reassure teachers of their effectiveness. In some states, laws legislate what is to be taught, how it is to be taught, and even what approved textbook is to be used in classrooms. I have come to understand that these and other top-down initiatives have contributed to the deskilling of teachers.
R: But how is it especially relevant for teachers who work with [bilingual and ESL] students? Is it that the curriculum assumes a kind of homogeneity in the student population?
N: The curricular program at my school is written to serve mainstream children. And here I am working with children who are Spanish dominant. In reality this promotes inequality at my school. Like the article by Anyon—Jean Anyon I think—that I read, where the lowest class kids weren't given choices. Similarly, the prescribed curriculum in my school limits the choices of teachers, of all teachers.
Teacher research has led these teachers to a new awareness that school practices and policies need to be questioned and altered to better serve all school children, including those from linguistically diverse backgrounds. These teachers have just uncovered the power of inquiry. Through continuous reflection and questioning they can access a level of understanding to transform school structures so that they provide equal and excellent education for all children.
6. Transformation: The critical stance of conducting research is one that has, at times, been neglected in the discourse about teacher-based research (Shannon, 1990). However, educators who work with linguistically diverse students often need to assume a critical stance in order to improve the teaching and learning conditions in their particular contexts and transform those conditions by inducing liberatory practice. As mentioned above, bilingual and ESL teachers frequently will have to conduct their research in a context surrounded by contradictions and ambiguity and in which their work is constantly contested. One of the great strengths of teacher research is that the researcher is researching her/his own practice, asking her/his own questions about what s/he does, and finding her/his own answers or developing further questions. Thus, teacher research can help create a setting in which the political and contextual factors of teaching linguistically diverse students are addressed.
Teacher research can be a very powerful process that disrupts the traditional top-down hierarchy of control. Some researchers contend that, in this sense, action research (and teacher research as part of it) should serve to acknowledge the injustices in education and recognize that improving human life is a goal for educators (Noffke, 1995; Giroux, 1988). Magda's experiences in the Forum allowed her to discover the potential of teacher research to transform school policies. She explained how she is actively using research as a tool for advocacy on behalf of bilingual education in her school. She stated:
[Research] is finding a way or ways to solve a given problem. The research must be a guide for action. [Then] the research done by teachers in their classroom is with the objective of changing and improving classroom practice. The question of bilingual education is a highly political question for which I feel passionately about. When we are arguing [defending bilingual education] we need to take hold of the data. We need to argue with the research in our hands. We need to say, `because research demonstrates, because it has been found . . . ' To me, teacher research means the necessary constraints to all this passion . . . because it means I have to have discipline in the analysis. It is no longer enough to say, `this is the way because I feel it is.' [Instead] this is the way to help this child because I have research to back this up. I have data on which I can fall back and say, `it is not because I say so or because I feel so strongly for our children but because I have these data.'
The knowledge gained from the Forum activities has allowed Magda to integrate the role of researcher into her classroom practice, as well as into the political dynamics of her school. As explained earlier, her research served to question disempowering policies at her school and transform them. She is uncovering the significance of the researcher as an agent of change within a linguistically diverse setting.
In this paper I have argued that teacher research provides an alternative view of teachers' work and thus can be a precondition for teachers to gain a collective voice that will be attended to in the current debates about education in a diverse society. The Forum experience suggests that teacher research can be a tool for producing knowledge and generating theory. It promoted the role of a group of bilingual and ESL teachers as generators of knowledge. Teacher research questions things that are taken for granted. It asks why. It attempts to include diverse sources of knowledge—from the teacher, from the literature, from students, etc. Bilingual teachers used inquiry as a vehicle to reflect about, and to improve the teaching and learning process. These practitioners engaged in the process of critically examining their practice and classroom reality to transform it in ways that were meaningful in their school context. It was also used to examine schools' structures that reproduce failure among students and devalue teachers' knowledge and creativity.
Teacher research offers potential contributions in two other areas: interaction with practitioners outside bilingual classrooms and as a tool for professional development. Teacher-based research in linguistically diverse settings may be used to address the double isolation many practitioners feel. It may be used as a strategy to develop dialogue among ESL, bilingual teachers and teachers who work with linguistically diverse students in all-English classrooms. The experience of the Forum teachers offered an opportunity to establish a reflective dialogue with other bilingual and ESL practitioners. This experience also served to expand the conversation by including practitioners of other settings, such as all-English classrooms. Specifically, the Forum had meetings with members of another teacher research group in the same city. The other teacher research group had interest in issues of literacy and gender, and its members were all teachers of high school students. Although none worked in bilingual or ESL classrooms, some had linguistically diverse students in their classrooms. The conversations that ensued served to share research experiences and identify similarities as well as the uniqueness of the investigative process imposed by different school settings. Further, the conversation served to highlight aspects of who these practitioners are, what they care about, and conceptions and misconceptions about teaching and learning.
As I have described, teacher research has served as a strategy for change and growth for the Forum participants. As such it should be seen as a professional development tool. According to Richards and Lockhart (1996) teacher-based research,
can help achieve a better understanding of one's own assumptions about teaching as well as one's own teaching practices; it can lead to a richer conceptualization of teaching and a better understanding of teaching and learning processes; and it can serve as a basis for self-evaluation and is therefore an important component of professional development. (p. 2)
Experience in doing teacher-based research should be part of the preparation of pre-service teachers, as well as the staff development for in-service teachers, in particular those being prepared to work in linguistically diverse settings. Currently, this type of professional growth activity is absent from teacher education programs in universities and school districts (Kincheloe, 1991; Fueyo & Koorland, 1997). The importance of this issue is heightened by the fact that "evidence seems to indicate that if students are not introduced to the power of practitioner research during initial teacher training, chances are they will never be involved in it" (Kincheloe, 1991, p. 15). In recent years more calls have been made that the training of teachers as researchers be included into both pre-service and in-service teacher education (see Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1993; Journal of Teacher Education, 1998).
The teachers in the Bilingual Research Forum have added the dimension of researchers to their role as teachers, and through this new dimension they are transforming their role as professionals. Our work has revealed that teacher research in linguistically diverse settings facilitates awareness of what it means to be a teacher-researcher, leads teachers to critique traditional professional development tools, and guides them to assume more control over their growth as professionals. We have discovered that through observation, reflection, and theorizing, teacher research leads practitioners to make meaningful changes that are responsive to the demands of their practice in linguistically diverse settings. The participation of these teachers in our collaborative inquiry group is leading them, gradually, to an understanding that can empower them to be advocates for change.
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1 The Bilingual Teacher Research Forum is supported in part by a grant from the Spencer Foundation Practitioner Research, Mentoring and Communication Program. The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agency. Some sections of this paper have been extracted from a previously published article, see Nevárez-La Torre and Rolón-Dow (2000).
2 To acknowledge the work and contributions of the teacher-researchers I decided to use their real first names in this article. This decision represents the familial style of our work together and the fact that we refer to one another on a first-name basis.
3 Several terms are used in the professional literature that refers to this research approach, such as, teacher research, action research, teacher-based research, teacher-based inquiry, and practitioners' inquiry. In this manuscript I differentiate between action research and teacher research. Action research is seen as "comparative research on the conditions and effects of various forms of social action, and research leading to social action" (Lewin, 1948). Action research encompasses many forms of collaborative research (that is, collaboration between researchers and participants) in different fields within the social science, including education (Wagner, 1997). Teacher research as a form of action research refers to "practitioner-initiated investigation" (Wagner, 1997). In this article I use the terms teacher-researcher and teacher-based research interchangeably.