Seventh International Conference on Immersion and Dual Language Education

Strand I: Pedagogy & Assessment

Spanish

Integration of content and language is a persistent challenge in dual language and immersion (DLI) classrooms. Although previous scholarship has explored a variety of factors that affect DLI teachers’ abilities to integrate content and language in their pedagogy, none of this work has focused on the potential affordances and constraints of the classroom materials these teachers use. This presentation will share findings from two sequential studies that examined how materials were used in secondary Spanish immersion classrooms in the US. Drawing on a classroom ecology perspective (van Lier, 2004) and sociocultural theory (Vygotsky, 1978), these qualitative case studies involved analysis of audio and video-recorded classroom observations, interviews with teachers, and examples of materials and student work. Findings show that in both classes the nature and positioning of the materials constrained opportunities for integration. Implications for future DLI materials design are discussed.