The NHLRC Model of Pre-
program HL Teacher PreparationMaria M. Carreira, PH.D.
Co-Director, National Heritage Language Resource Center, UCLA
STARTALK Fall Conference
October 19-20, 2018
Houston, TX
• A Language Resource Center (1 of 16) funded by the U.S. Department of Education
• Located at UCLA
• Mission: To develop effective pedagogical approaches to teaching HL learners
HL learner: An individual
“raised in a home where
a non-English language is
spoken, who speaks or at
least understands the
language, and who is to
some degree bilingual in
that language and
English”
(Valdés, 2001, p. 38).
OUR TEACHER
TRAINING
PROGRAM
Program goals
• To present the foundational principles and best practices of heritage language (HL) teaching (declarative knowledge – the “what” of teaching);
• Engage teachers in processing and applying those principles (procedural knowledge – the “how” of teaching).
• Participants
– Pre K-16
– All STARTALK languages except Dari and Swahili
• Structure and timeframe
– Three weeks online (NHLRC/STARTALK Modules)
–One week face-to-face
– 70-80 hrs, June
A MONTH (70-80 HOURS)
MAY SEEM LIKE A LOT, BUT…
The program participants present a wide
range of needs and strengths
• All levels of instruction and different program types
• Different language-specific issues to contend with
• Different levels of expertise and experience in HL teaching
The program goals are very ambitious
• Declarative knowledge: The foundational
principles and best practices of HL teaching
• Procedural knowledge: Applying and
adapting those principles and practices
Declarative knowledge
HL-specific instructional topics Grammar
Culture
The four skills
The three modes of communication
Pedagogical Frameworks
Macro-based instruction
The Gradual Release of Responsibility Model
Differentiated teaching (Growth Mindset)
Backward Design
Project-based learning
Procedural knowledge
• How to teach HL-specific grammar and
cultural topics, as well as skills (e.g. reading,
writing)
• How to design instructional units that follow
a macro-based approach and that build on HL
learners’ functional skills
• How to differentiate instruction by learner
needs in HL-only and mixed classes
This is a lot of material
But that’s not the only problem:
�The material feels a bit piecemeal.
We want participants to be able to integrate the
material to provide coherent instruction.
HOW CAN ALL OF THIS POSSIBLY BE
ACCOMPLISHED?
Our journey: Three inflection points
• 1st point: Extending contact hours through an online
component
• 2nd point: Using project-based learning (PBL) to
integrate the concepts and skills
• 3rd point: Framing learning in terms of the acquire-
process-apply-reflect paradigm.
1. Extending contact hours through an
online component
Step 1 Step 2
Claire, I need a picture of
the Modules
Our journey: Three inflection points
• 1st point: Extending contact hours through an online
component
• 2nd point: Using project-based learning (PBL) to
integrate the concepts and skills
• 3rd point: Framing learning in terms of the acquire-
process-apply-reflect paradigm.
2. Using project-based learning (PBL)
to integrate the concepts and skills
What is PBL?
A pedagogical approach in which students apply
problem-solving skills to address a real-life
challenge and where they communicate their
learning through the development of a public
product.
Example: The medical glossary
PBL supports best practices in HL
teaching
Building on skills that HL learners bring
to the classroom
✔
Connecting learning to the real-world ✔
Integrating all skills ✔
Responding to HL learners’ socio-
affective needs and their goals
✔
Facilitating differentiation ✔
Our journey: Three inflection points
• 1st point: Extending contact hours through an online
component
• 2nd point: Using project-based learning (PBL) to
integrate the concepts and skills
• 3rd point: Framing learning in terms of the acquire-
process-apply-reflect paradigm.
3. Framing learning in terms of the
acquire-process-apply-reflect paradigm
• Acquire: Gaining new knowledge and skills
through input;
• Process: Building personal understanding of
new knowledge and skills;
• Apply: Using new knowledge and skills in a
laboratory setting;
• Reflect: Explore way to use new knowledge
and skills.
More strategic use of the blended
formatBefore
– The online component was conceived of as a way to
extend contact hours
– A linear view of the relationship between the online
and face-to-face components
Now
– Online component � Acquire and process (also to
start forming the community of learners)
– Face-to-face component � Apply and reflect
� PBL
Summarizing: Lessons we have learned
Tension:
Depth v. breadth of coverage
Declarative (what) v. procedural (how)
knowledge
Our program’s approach:
Making strategic use of the online and face-to-
face components (acquire-process-apply- reflect);
Using PBL to integrate the “what” and “how” of
HL teaching.
The results
Next on our journey
• Going deeper into differentiation
• This means adding more material and skills
– ACTFL Performance Descriptors
– Can-do Statements
• The approach outlined here is a promising way forward
Thank you!
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