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Colloquium series to discuss pros and cons of U S education programs

Author: Communications

Posted on Dec 3, 2012

Category: UNB Fredericton

On Thursday Dec. 6, UNB's faculty of education will present a Colloquium Series with Katy Arnett at 7 p.m. In Room 356 of Marshall d'Avray Hall, UNB Fredericton.

Dr. Arnett will present English learners in U.S. Schools: The successes and pitfalls of federal education policies and programs.

Though one of the core principles of the U.S. is linked to one's freedom of speech, the language rights of newcomers to the U.S. are often compromised by a confluence of de facto and official language policies about the use of English in American society. 

Using the lens of critical theory, this presentation will explore the current state of the Official English and English-Only movements, connecting them to the historical patterns of immigration in the U.S, beliefs about the role of the U.S .public school system, and the current social discussions about modern immigration in the U.S.

Katy Arnett is an Associate Professor of Educational Studies at St. Mary's College of Maryland, and 2012-2013 Fulbright Scholar at UNB.  While she has been based at UNB this fall, she has been pursuing research strands which consider inclusion in the French Second Language (FSL) classroom and the politics and practices that impact newcomer students in New Brunswick.

Her previous research has appeared in the Canadian Modern Language Review, the Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, Exceptionality Education International, as well as in numerous publications destined to classroom teachers. In the U.S., she works regularly with school boards to help teachers better understand the needs of the rising English learner population, and in Canada, she has presented in 11 of the 13 provinces/territories on ways in which students with disabilities can be supported in the FSL classroom and/or in how classroom teachers can support newcomer students.  

This fall, Pearson Canada published her first book: Languages for all: How to support and challenge students in a second language classroom. With her collaborator, Callie Mady of Nipissing University, she is currently at work on an edited volume for Multilingual Matters on the educational experience of   minority populations in Canadian second language classrooms.

The lecture is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact José Domene or Katy Arnett.

For media interview requests, contact Natasha Ashfield.

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