Week 7 and 8 545 Readings - Respond to as many as you want, no required number by Abbott

abbophin — 2025-05-13 01:08:59 UTC

What is the job of a teacher around language and what does that look like?

(Respond with a comment below)

abbophin — 2025-05-13 01:11:22 UTC

What are the benefits of explicitly teaching Academic Language vs the harms caused by it?

It provides students with access to dominant discourses that govern success in school, work, and civic life (e.g., writing essays, understanding scientific texts).
It equips students with linguistic flexibility, allowing them to add to their repertoires, not replace them./It often reinforces linguistic racism, treating non-standard varieties or bilingual practices as "incorrect" or "broken.".It leads to deficit-based assessments, where students are judged by what they lack rather than what they bring.
It may silence rich, emotionally resonant language in favor of sterile, “formal” discourse, limiting authentic expression.

abbophin — 2025-05-13 01:14:39 UTC

What can teachers do to make sure we’re viewing our students’ assets and not deficits? What can standards do to remain asset based?

(Respond with a comment below) The job of a teacher around language—especially for multilingual or emergent bilingual students—is not to “correct” students’ language into a standardized ideal, but to nurture, expand, and validate their full linguistic repertoires.