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Brent grew up speaking English, but also learned Spanish through home exposure since his mother spoke Spanish. In school, he mainly spoke English and only got to speak Spanish at home with his relatives and family. In elementary school, he was placed into an ESL class because of his parent’s main language despite being fluent in English. His experiences in the program have made him feel separated from the rest of the students not in ESL especially with the negative stigma surrounded with the program.

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Brent was born and raised in Oakland. He considers himself Argentinian/American since his mother and father were both from Argentina. However, he has found it tough since the Argentinian community is small and he doesn’t meet fellow Argentinians other than his family. He describes his household as an Argentine household where traditional Spanish food is made and stories/traditions are told. His mother is also part Italian and takes pride in her identity.

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Beliefs about language, culture, and education

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Beliefs about language, culture, and education

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Brent believes that it is important to learn one's own cultural language (ex. Spanish). If you know the language, you can communicate to your relatives and understand them. Maintaining a good relationship with your family is important and language shouldn't be a barrier.

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Beliefs about language, culture, and education

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Beliefs about language, culture, and education

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After his experiences with his ESL classes, Brent also believes that the best way to learn a language is through application. At his high school, languages were only taught and spoken in a single period. If students were to use the language more frequently and not just for a single period, student's learning would be better and they would become more fluent as well.

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How his cultural background has shaped his identity

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How his cultural background has shaped his identity

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Brent's mother is a major influence on his identity. His mother has taught him to be proud of his identity and heritage, but to also be careful especially in this society. However, he has felt a disconnect with American society. He feels an internal struggle between the Argentinian and American identity. He wanted to maintain his strong Argentinian identity, but had to assimilate. For example, growing up he didn't quite relate to some of his peers in school and felt excluded.

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How his linguistic background has shaped his identity

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How his linguistic background has shaped his identity

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Since Brent can speak Spanish, he feels that he connected with his family and doesn't have to experience that language barrier that many face. Although he primarily speaks English in public (school/work/etc.), he values the use of Spanish in private when talking to his family.

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Another piece of advice for future teachers on providing equitable opportunities for all students would be to not separate classes (ESL vs native classes). As an ESL student, he felt that learning would be better with application (i.e. Dual Immersion). The separation between the two classes creates a disconnect for the students and makes them feel behind. He also recommends that schools actually look into a student's history and proficiency instead of placing students purely on the main parent language.

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This is a picture of Brent in Argentina with his uncle and father!

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Brent believes that many of his teachers have set him aside as a "Spanish" student rather than a native English student. He is treated differently and faces different expectations (often low). Teachers should understand their students and not hold these expectations or standards. They should also go under a diversity, equity, and inclusion training to make them prepared to teach a diverse classroom.