Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study

Abstract This QuantCrit case study examines how adult emergent multilingual language learners (EMLLs) attending English language skills classes at a public school district in the US construct their linguistic identities in response to English-only ideologies. The small sample size was limited to adu...

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Main Author: Lindsay McHolme
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: SpringerOpen 2024-10-01
Series:Zeitschrift für Weiterbildungsforschung - Report
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1007/s40955-024-00289-7
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author Lindsay McHolme
author_facet Lindsay McHolme
author_sort Lindsay McHolme
collection DOAJ
description Abstract This QuantCrit case study examines how adult emergent multilingual language learners (EMLLs) attending English language skills classes at a public school district in the US construct their linguistic identities in response to English-only ideologies. The small sample size was limited to adults enrolled in the program (n = 19), as this study is intended to be duplicated in different spaces to account for multilingual and cultural diversity. The study asks the question, how do adult EMLLs attending an English class position themselves and their perceived English fluency? To answer this question, participants completed a mixed-methods survey that addresses demographics, languages, perception of one’s own language ability, and perception of what others think about one’s language abilities. The findings were analyzed through the lens of Darvin and Norton’s (2015) Model of Identity Investment that considers identity, ideology, and capital and the raciolinguistics perspective (Flores and Rosa 2015). The results indicate that there is a significant relationship between English-only ideologies and participants’ constructed linguistic identities and reveal a troubled relationship between the way participants position themselves against the deficit-oriented perceptions of English-only speaking Americans. Overall, the results emphasize the importance of centering adult EMLLs’ linguistic and cultural transnational assets in designing curricula, policy, and research.
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spelling doaj-art-d1315686fe864fdc9cf767534d62aa092025-08-20T02:49:56ZdeuSpringerOpenZeitschrift für Weiterbildungsforschung - Report2364-00142364-00222024-10-0147236338310.1007/s40955-024-00289-7Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case studyLindsay McHolme0Georgia State UniversityAbstract This QuantCrit case study examines how adult emergent multilingual language learners (EMLLs) attending English language skills classes at a public school district in the US construct their linguistic identities in response to English-only ideologies. The small sample size was limited to adults enrolled in the program (n = 19), as this study is intended to be duplicated in different spaces to account for multilingual and cultural diversity. The study asks the question, how do adult EMLLs attending an English class position themselves and their perceived English fluency? To answer this question, participants completed a mixed-methods survey that addresses demographics, languages, perception of one’s own language ability, and perception of what others think about one’s language abilities. The findings were analyzed through the lens of Darvin and Norton’s (2015) Model of Identity Investment that considers identity, ideology, and capital and the raciolinguistics perspective (Flores and Rosa 2015). The results indicate that there is a significant relationship between English-only ideologies and participants’ constructed linguistic identities and reveal a troubled relationship between the way participants position themselves against the deficit-oriented perceptions of English-only speaking Americans. Overall, the results emphasize the importance of centering adult EMLLs’ linguistic and cultural transnational assets in designing curricula, policy, and research.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40955-024-00289-7Multilingual language learnersAdult educationIdentityLiteracyCounterstoriesQuantcrit
spellingShingle Lindsay McHolme
Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study
Zeitschrift für Weiterbildungsforschung - Report
Multilingual language learners
Adult education
Identity
Literacy
Counterstories
Quantcrit
title Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study
title_full Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study
title_fullStr Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study
title_full_unstemmed Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study
title_short Adult immigrant students’ identity positioning and english-only ideologies in the US: a quantCrit case study
title_sort adult immigrant students identity positioning and english only ideologies in the us a quantcrit case study
topic Multilingual language learners
Adult education
Identity
Literacy
Counterstories
Quantcrit
url https://doi.org/10.1007/s40955-024-00289-7
work_keys_str_mv AT lindsaymcholme adultimmigrantstudentsidentitypositioningandenglishonlyideologiesintheusaquantcritcasestudy