We began our Fall, 2011 discussions by taking a closer look at sociocultural theoretical concepts in order to become more grounded in our attempts to practice successful strategies in our work with multilingual learners. Key constructs we addressed included agency, the zone of proximal development and internalization. We examined the definition of “interactional routine”, and emphasized the importance of creating safe and predictable classroom patterns in our efforts to foster second language acquisition. At the same time, we acknowledged the significance of spontaneity in our pedagogy. We explored how the inherent tension between structure and flexibility might be addressed through a variety of small group formats and activities.  We also asked ourselves how pop culture references in our course texts and discussions might impact those students experiencing such references for the first time. We considered strategies for making our cultural references more accessible and relevant to our foreign-born learners, notably by encouraging a critical media literacy stance in our classrooms.

Some Questions for Discussion