Resumen de Educators of Asian Bilingual Students: Pedagogical Techniques, Strategies and Challenges
Christine J. Yeh, Jennifer Chen, Agnes Wong, Lillian Chiang, Yu-Wei Wang, Florence Pu-Folkes
This two-part study explored the challenges and teaching strategies of 133 Asian bilingual educators using a detailed questionnaire developed specifically for the purposes of this investigation. Participants were asked to rate how important specific practices, strategies, and challenges were in their teaching of Asian bilingual students. These teachers were also asked to rate each of ten statements concerning their teaching competency, performance, comfort, preparation, satisfaction, and collaboration. Part two of the survey inquired about: (1) teachers' strengths; (2) areas of improvement: (3) beliefs about activities to facilitate improved teaching. Our findings indicated pedagogical challenges such as lack of culturally relevant materials, varying language proficiency, and working with students with different styles of learning. Teachers who were older reported that they were more prepared to address the social, cultural and psychological needs of their bilingual students than were their younger counterparts. Teachers who self-reported their teacher preparation level as low had received limited teacher education training and had also limited collaborative interactions with parents and the community. Teachers who were not satisfied with their job tended to lack culturally appropriate teaching materials and had limited staff meetings. Implications for teacher education and professional development are addressed.
