Many observers have argued that minority language speakers often have difficulty with school-based literacy and that the poorer school achievement of such learners occurs at least partly as a result of these difficulties. At the same time, many have argued for a recognition of the multiple literacies required for citizens in a 21st century world.…

This article discusses ethnographic research and its uses in English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) teacher preparation programs. It reviews various sociolinguistically orientated studies, as well as studies informed by a concern for power, politics, and elements of poststructuralism. (32 references) (MDM)

Comments on an article on the socialization process of Grade 1 English-as-a-Second-Language students in a Canadian public school. The author of that article responds to these comments. (Author/VWL)

Describes a longitudinal ethnographic research in a grade one classroom with second-language (L2) learners and Anglophones. Using a community-of-practice perspective, three classroom practices are delineated that served to differentiate participants and contribute to community stratification in which some learners were defined as deficient. The…

Analyzes an ethnographic study of child second language (L2) learning, focusing on the disputes that two of the children engaged in. Data reveal how these language events both reflected and helped shape the identities of the children in ways that influenced their opportunities for L2 learning. (Author/VWL)

Discusses an updated perspective of good language learners that takes into account sociocultural and poststructural views of second language acquisition. Suggests the study of successful language learning should include the ways in which learners' participation is received and acted upon within the communities in which they use their second…