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0 Rhode Island College FSEHD – Instruction to Classroom Research FNED 547-01 Instructor: Dr. Janet Johnson Final Research Project Francisca Silvia Lima May 2011
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Rhode Island College FSEHD – Instruction to Classroom Research FNED 547-01 Instructor: Dr. Janet Johnson

Final Research Project

Francisca Silvia Lima

May 2011

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INTRODUCTION: “ Fala português! Essa semana é do Português!” (Speak in Portuguese! This is Portuguese week!) “Speak in Portuguese! This is Portuguese week! You must speak in

Portuguese!” These were my words to my 2nd and 3rd grade students when I

heard them speaking in English during Portuguese week. They are enrolled in a

dual language program with a 50/50 model, which means that 50% of the time

they have to speak in English and 50% in Portuguese. In my setting, we divide

this time weekly. In one week they learn everything in Portuguese and in the

following week they go to the English class to learn in English. The main goal of

a dual language program is to promote bilingualism and biliteracy. Hence, it is

required that teachers maintain the target language a hundred percent of the

time while they are giving instructions or socializing with students.

As the Portuguese teacher, I started to question how I could make my

students more aware of the importance of speaking Portuguese with me and with

their peers. I realized that just asking them to speak in Portuguese was not

working. Most of my students learn Portuguese as a heritage language. It means

that Portuguese is not their first language. They are learning it because their

parents want. So the majority of them speak English as their first language.

Facing this obstacle, I felt the pressure to investigate what teaching strategies

and techniques would enhance my students’ Portuguese speaking skills.

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Therefore, in this paper I argue that the level of Portuguese speaking in a

dual language Portuguese/English classroom will increase if the teacher

differentiates activities and integrates reading, writing, and listening with

speaking. Another effective way to promote Portuguese speaking in the same

setting is to group students into cooperative learning groups, according to their

levels of proficiency in Portuguese as well as gender.

“Hello, Hola, Olá” (English, Spanish, and Portuguese)

I have been teaching at the same school for about 7 years. It is a

multicultural, urban, and dual language school. It currently enrolls grades

Kindergarten through 5th grade. It has a student teacher ratio of 18-1, with

teacher assistants in all Kindergarten and 1st grade classes. It uses a dual

language bilingual education model, in which all students learn 50% of the time in

English and 50% of the time in either Spanish or Portuguese, depending on the

program strand of choice. For this reason, students need to develop all language

skills in two languages. They basically learn content through the language of

instruction. Therefore, they need to listen, speak, read, and write in two

languages. All the language teachers (Portuguese/Spanish) are bilingual, but the

majority of English teachers are monolingual.

There are about 306 students enrolled at this school. One third of these

students are enrolled in the Portuguese strand. There are three classrooms for

each grade level, two in Spanish and one in Portuguese. This school has 47 staff

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members, including classroom teachers, teacher assistants, two special

education resource teachers, a reading support teacher, a nurse, a librarian, a

behavior specialist, a speech therapist, a social worker, the principal’s assistant,

and the principal.

“Nós falamos Portguês!” (We speak Portuguese!)

I am currently teaching Portuguese to 2nd and 3rd grade students. My 2nd

grade class has 17 students. There are six boys and eleven girls. Seven of them

come from Cape Verdean families, five from Portuguese families, three from

American families, and two from Brazilian families. My 3rd grade group has 18

students. There are 13 boys and only 5 girls. Twelve of the students come from

Cape Verdean background. There are three students whose parents are

Brazilian and three whose parents are Portuguese.

As I have mentioned before, I teach in dual language setting. Hence, I

have to teach all the content areas, Science, Math, Reading, Writing, and Social

Studies in Portuguese. My students are required to speak, listen, read, and write

in Portuguese, during the week they come to my classroom. I teach them every

other week. One week they go to the English class and the following week they

come to my Portuguese classroom.

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I do not have any teacher assistant or reading support for Portuguese.

The curriculum is the same for both languages, but as I teach in Portuguese, I

have to translate, create, or adapt the curriculum according to my students’

needs and levels of proficiency.

For this reason, working at this environment has been challenging, but at

the same time rewarding. Facing these challenges helped me to be more

determined to research ways to make my students to succeed as bilingual

Portuguese/English speakers. From these thoughts, my research question arose.

I decided to investigate “What teaching strategies and techniques will enhance

my 2nd/3rd grade bilingual students’ Portuguese speaking skills?” This paper

outlines the strategies I used to support my students’ speaking of Portuguese in

social and learning situations.”

METHODS:

“Como se diz “Oh my God” em Português?” (How do you say “Oh my God” in Portuguese?)- A 2nd grade boy asks a girl in his group.

After deciding what I wanted to investigate, I started to gather data. I

collected data from both groups, during a period of twenty days, ten days for

each group. Within these days my research went farther than my expectations.

What I envisioned began to appear like pieces of a puzzle that you put together

to see the whole picture. Gathering different kinds of data helped me to keep

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track of how much Portuguese my students were speaking and when they were

speaking.

At the beginning of my research, I started to take notes of different

moments of my teaching. I used a Teaching Journal to collect this data.

Everyday, after school, I took notes and observations of when my students were

speaking in the target language, with whom they were speaking, and what kind of

strategies facilitated them to speak in Portuguese. Throughout the day, I wrote

bullets in post-its, so I could remember what to write after school.

I first started with the 2nd grade group, without any specific moment. I

focused more on when they were speaking Portuguese and what I thought was

helping them to succeed. During the first week of observation, I realized that it

would be more effective to focus on the main blocks of my teaching, such as

Morning Meeting, Reading, Writing/Social Studies, and Math. So, from the

second week on I tried to write specifically about those moments. I also decided

to observe my students interacting socially with me, or their peers. I have

observed them during recess, snack time, lunch, or quiet time, when I was not

giving instructions to them. During those moments, I wanted to find out if they

would speak Portuguese socially with me, or with their peers.

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Writing about my daily routine in my Teaching Journal was very useful to

reflect about my own practice. It also helped me to identify patterns that I was not

aware of before.

My second way to collect data was an Observation Checklist. After

going through my Teaching Journal notes, I decided to pay closer attention to the

students who were speaking in Portuguese and when they were speaking. It was

also a good way to identify their level of proficiency in speaking. My Observation

Checklist had the following categories: who speaks P (Portuguese) with the

teacher; who speaks P with their peers; who speaks P during instructions (Math,

reading, etc); who speaks P in social interactions (recess/snack/lunch/quiet time);

and their level of Portuguese. With this other tool, I was able to identify and

quantify the students who were speaking more Portuguese, the ones who were

speaking with me and their peers as well as to identify their level proficiency

which I categorized as very low, low, medium, good, or excellent. I have collected

it during a period of five days in each group. I used one consecutive week, five

days, for 3rd grade, while for my 2nd grade group I collected two days in one week

and three days on the following week.

My Observation Checklist also allowed me to use another means to collect

data. As it was extremely hard to have the checklist in my hands and keep track

of all students throughout my daily routine, so I decided to videotape my

students interacting in the classroom. For each group, I made the decision to

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videotape them during two specific times in the classroom: working in

cooperative learning groups during reading workshops, and sharing a piece of

work after that they had written about it. My goal with this new tool was to

observe if working in cooperative learning groups and writing before speaking

would help them to sustain their speaking in Portuguese.

As my research progressed, revealing new thoughts, I finally decided to

take a closer look at other relevant aspects for my findings. Therefore, I decided

to survey my students. My intention was to confirm if the results of my previous

data were accurate. This survey had about eight multiple questions and two open

ended questions. As I said before, it was a way to complement the data I had

collected before. I asked questions such as: Do you speak Portuguese at home?

Which language do you speak mostly at home? Do you like to learn Portuguese?

With whom is easier/more difficult to speak in Portuguese? Name three friends

who help you to speak Portuguese at school. When is it easier to speak in

Portuguese in the classroom? Why is it important to learn Portuguese? What is

the easiest for you, speak, read, understand, or write in Portuguese? This survey

was done in Portuguese. I wanted to ensure that their answers were honest, so I

read aloud and translated it to English, especially when they couldn’t understand

the meaning of words. The results of this survey allowed me to validate some of

my previous results and to prove that I was going on the right track.

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All four types of data were useful to conduct this research. Reviewing and

comparing each one of them was essential to find patterns as well as the

answers for my research question. The themes emerged from this research are

supported by the data I have collected throughout this investigation. I haven’t

found anything surprisingly new, but I have confirmed what literature proves to be

true.

LITERATURE:

“Posso ir para nurse? Eu tenho uma stomachache!” (Can I go to the nurse? I have a stomachache.)

I have been teaching languages for more than ten years. Since I started

my teaching career, I have heard from different authors and linguists that in order

to teach a second language, teachers need to focus on the teaching of the four

skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. They also need to speak the

target language all the time, avoid translation, and try to expose students to that

language’s culture as much as possible, using authentic language resources.

This recipe seems to be easy, but when it is time to put the ingredients together,

there is always something missing! With this research I am making an effort to

develop strategies and techniques that will allow my students to speak in the

target language.

Second language learners usually learn the “input” better than the “output”.

Hence, L2 students will have more difficulties in speaking the target language

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fluently than reading or understanding it, for example. Even having years of

experience in a dual language Portuguese/English setting, I have always been

concerned that my students are not speaking enough Portuguese, especially

when they are speaking with their peers. They are either speaking in English or

mixing the two languages. Cloud, Genesee, & Hamayan (2000) state that, “it is

natural for EE (Enriched Education) students to sometimes mix aspects of the

two languages they are learning” (p. 61). Students do this for different reasons.

First, the native language is stronger and controls the second language.

Secondly, the students might mix the language when they do not know the

vocabulary they need to speak the target language. The same authors also wrote

that, “even later, when proficiency has been attained in both languages, students

may mix the two languages purposefully for social reason; this is referred to as

code switching” (p.63).

Although I have noticed all the aspects, described above, in my

classroom, I truly believe that I need to emphasize the use of Portuguese solely

as much as possible with my students. That will help them to become more

proficient in the target language. On the other hand, being bilingual, I catch

myself code switching sometimes in different kinds of situations. Teachers may

code-switch in order to negotiate lesson content, encourage participation, give

praise and enforce discipline (Willans, 2011). Furthermore, code-alteration, i.e.

switching languages (or codes) in the same conversation, is an extremely

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common practice among bilinguals, although code-alternation patterns may vary

considerably even in the case of one individual (Musk, 2010).

But, even though I understand that code switching is normal, I believe that

my students need to gain fluency in both languages without mixing them up at

first. After acquiring oral fluency in both languages, they will be able to code-

switch responsibly, the way true bilinguals do. The literature indicates that code

switching should be avoided in dual language setting as much as possible. As

Cloud, Genesee, & Hamayan defend, the first reason for avoiding code switching

in the classroom is the fact that “it will be easier for students in the long term if

the two languages they are learning are kept as separate as possible so they

have clear expectations of when and where the use of each language is

appropriate” (p.65). The second reason for not allowing code-switching is

because at a 2nd/3rd grade level, students’ language is still developing. “They are

code switching because it is easier, and not because they are controlling the two

languages for social reasons and in a skilled way” (Cloud, Genesee, & Hamayan,

2000, p.65).

Taking this into consideration, over the last seven years, I have tried to

use strategies to develop more oral language skills in Portuguese with my

students. However, I truly believe that I need to be more consistent and use the

ones that have proven to be more effective. Researchers have found that

“students will benefit more from cooperative learning if they understand that

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communicating and sharing with peers is a language learning strategy that they

can apply outside a class setting” (Gömleksik (2007). Other authors believe that

teachers should “provide an optimal language learning environment” to their L2

students (Cheng, 1996). The same author also suggests that teachers should

“create opportunities for confidence-building social interactions, such as

practicing show-and-tells, in which students can share culturally familiar objects

and skills”. For this reason I have tried to incorporate this strategy during my

Morning Meeting everyday.

I also feel that I have a significant responsibility for teaching my students

all language skills, reading, writing, listening, and speaking. I believe that 2nd and

3rd grades are important years for my students’ development as second language

learners. If they do not acquire the foundation of the language during these

years, by the time they go to 4th grade, it would be harder for them to keep

progressing in their Portuguese learning.

The literature also indicates that two-way immersion bilingual programs

are known for their separation of languages deliberately and systematically, by

the time of the day, or day of the week, or subject area, or teacher (Palmer,

2009). In my situation, I teach week-to-week, only in Portuguese, all subject

areas. It is very intensive and overwhelming sometimes. I feel like I am always

battling with my students to choose Portuguese over the powerful dominance of

English. Palmer (2009) states that students in two-way classrooms are all

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expected to develop bilingualism and biliteracy, and given the extent to which

English serves as the language of power in the U.S., it does seem that teachers’

options are limited in terms of encouraging their students to maintain and deepen

their hold on the minority language. But, even though, I believe that teachers can

make a difference if they are really committed to research and use their findings

to better support their choices in their classrooms.

In order to inspire myself to continue this research, I have decided to

observe my students’ speaking skill in Portuguese and try to find teaching

strategies and techniques that will enhance this skill. Musk (2010) found, in his

research about code-switching and code-mixing in Welsh bilinguals’ talk, three

different groups of students: Welsh-dominant, “Floaters”, and English-dominant. I

will apply his findings to my classroom because I believe I have the same

pattern. I consider some of my students to be Portuguese-dominant. At first

glance, I believe this group of students usually shows confidence in speaking

Portuguese because they either speak it at home or because they have

Portuguese as their first language. The second group, the “Floaters”, mix both

languages when trying to maintain a conversation in Portuguese, either with me,

or with their peers. A third group, the “English-dominant”, is the one who speaks

more in English than in Portuguese. Therefore, after identifying these groups in

my classroom, I think my goal with this research is to try to find strategies that will

guide all of them to speak in the target language during the time they are

required to.

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How am I going to accomplish this goal? I believe my role, as the

instructor and also as a bilingual model for my students, is extremely important.

Developing strategies, techniques, scaffolding, and differentiating are some of

the ways I have found to accomplish my mission. On the other hand, I will

continue to use English during the moments that I think it will be necessary,

especially to breakdowns in communication or for clarification during discussions,

or with individual students who require more explanation. Willans (2011) states

that teachers alternate between languages in order to enhance understanding or

to relate topics to experiences outside class, thus accommodating students’

needs. This same author also found in his research that the teacher’s presence

influences the use of the target language. She found that interactions in which

the teacher is involved are carried out entirely in the target language, while those

in which only students participate are carried out entirely in their native language

or in a mixed code of the two languages. I need to be aware of this fact and try to

find ways to socialize more with my students or to promote more group

discussions with them.

In addition to socializing and having discussions in groups, I will also try to

increase the moments of storybook reading in Portuguese everyday. Research

shows that storybook reading benefits oral language development by exposing

children to storybook discourse patterns and by structuring conversational

exchanges to meet the needs of young children (Kabuto, 2010). Knowing that

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storybook reading can benefit my students’ oral performance will help me to think

about ways to connect reading to speaking during the reading workshops.

Sharing about books they read, making comments or suggestions about the

stories, having discussions about books or texts read previously, suggesting

books, etc. are some of the strategies I will try to incorporate in my classes on a

daily basis.

Furthermore, I will also emphasize more the practice of cooperative

learning groups in my classroom, as a way to promote successful oral language

practice in Portuguese. Research demonstrates that collaborative quality in

social learning redefines learning through guided practice, which provides a

perspective to help up focus on the varied ways that children learn as they

participate in and are guided by the values and practices of their cultural

communities (Kabuto, 2010). Social Studies and Science are great areas to try to

use more cooperative learning groups. I will organize groups based on language

level proficiency, mixing up students with different levels of speaking. Interacting

and making conclusions about the content learned could help my students to

sustain the use of the target language.

Finally, I will also try to mix genders when I group my students. Many

studies have proven that female students use more language learning strategies

than male (Ghee, Ismail & Kabilan, 2010). Other studies also show differences in

language acquisition according to gender. Xiong (2008) wrote in her article about

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gender differences in language acquisition that girls develop their pronunciation

organ earlier than boys. For this reason they are better in listening and

expressing than boys (p. 09). For this reason, I will make sure the girls in my

classroom are able to work with the boys as partners, or teams.

As my 3rd grade group has more boys than girls, I will try to form groups

with, at least, one girl in order to encourage boys to speak more. I will try to do

the same with my 2nd grade group. Differently from the 3rd grade, 2nd grade has

more girls than boys, so I will try to put at least one boy in each group, during my

grouping activities in general.

ANALYSIS:

This research has helped me to find important information concerning my

Portuguese students ability to speak Portuguese on a daily basis. In order to

support the claims that I made, I had analyzed my data, which allowed me to

identify possible themes or patterns that guided me towards my claims. These

claims are also supported by literature that supports and gives more information

linked to my findings in this research.

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“Hoje eu li um conto de fadas. O título do livro é…” (Today I read a Fairy Tale. The title of my book is…) - A student sharing about a book he/she read during reading workshop.

My first claim is that differentiating activities and integrating reading,

writing, and listening skills improve speaking fluency. By analyzing my data, I

have realized that students in both groups spoke more Portuguese when they

had different kinds of resources and texts to support them. Examples of these

resources are journal entries, graphic organizers, word wall vocabulary, posters,

pictures, dictionaries, videos, Total Physical Responses activities, etc.

Analyzing my teaching journal notes, I have observed that most of my

students were able to speak in Portuguese during my Read-aloud lessons. When

I read a book aloud, students were able to use pictures or text as a resource to

understand better the story. I usually write on the board important information

about the book, such as title, author, main characters, plot, etc. So, I think this

written information associated with visuals, give support for oral production,

facilitating their speaking.

“O Gato de Botas” (Puss'in'Boots) A good example that illustrates how differentiation and integration of other

skills work to improve speaking was observed on my Teaching Journal notes of

March 3rd, 2011 during my 2nd grade week. I read aloud the book “O Gato de

Botas”. That week I was teaching about Fairy Tales and my 2nd graders were

very engaged in the lessons. ES, who usually has problems to focus and sit still,

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was “focused and listened to the story”. After I read, I asked partners to talk

about some parts of the story in pairs. After that, I asked some volunteers to

share to the whole class. A total of seven students out of 17, volunteered to retell

the story. I asked comprehension questions to the rest of the class and they were

able to answer my questions in Portuguese. I had differentiated the questions to

the ones who are low. Instead of a wh-question, I asked them a yes/no question.

Observing the videos, I also noticed that my students were able to speak

in Portuguese more often, if they had a written support in their hands or on the

walls to look at. It was easier for them to share during morning meeting, or to

share about a book they read, or a project in Social Studies, if they had written

before about the subject they were supposed to talk about. Writing before the

moment of speaking, helps them to organize better their thoughts.

“Eu gosto muito disso!” (I like this so much!) – A 2nd grade boy referring to the Portuguese pastries in his Socia Studies project.

During the presentation of a Social Studies Project, my 2nd graders were

enthusiastically speaking in Portuguese about a country they chose to share.

Each student had a poster with pictures and labels describing the pictures to

share with a partner. A lot of them knew exactly what to say and used a lot of

vocabulary that they had learned previously at home when they writing the

posters with their families. SV wrote about Cape Verde. Her poster had beautiful

pictures and she was able to point to the pictures and tell us specific information

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about each picture. She described each picture with details and she was very

excited about her presentation. EL dressed up in a Chinese costume and

presented her poster about China in details. She had worked very hard with her

Portuguese, but she was not only reading the poster, in fact, she was explaining

details about the Chinese culture and people. Another student who surprised me

was DF. He wrote about Spain and he was able to read all the labels in his

pictures and also answer simple questions about it. DF is a new student who

speaks very low Portuguese. Each student was able to present their posters

according to their level of Portuguese, which allowed me to differentiate

instruction and integrate skills in order to improve their Portuguese speaking.

“Eu acho que eu tenho um 3 porque eu não falei em Português o tempo todo.” (I think I have a 3 because I did not speak in Portuguese most of the time.) - A 3rd grade student evaluating himself at the end of an activity in cooperative learning group.

Another data that supports this claim is my checklist observation. I have

observed in both groups that when my students are working in cooperative

learning groups, they are able to speak more Portuguese. I usually set up

expectations to my cooperative groups before grouping them to work in groups.

One student is the one responsible to sustain the target language. I call this

student “polícia” because he/she has to remind the other students to speak in

Portuguese. They also have to help each other with the right answer to the task

they are doing together. They also have to do an evaluation at the end of their

work. In this kind of group activity, the students who are better speakers or better

academically are able to help the less fluent speakers or the students with less

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academic skills. It is a good opportunity to group students according to their level

of proficiency in Portuguese, academic strengths, social skills, and gender.

I have observed four cooperative learning activities from each group. Most

of them were during reading, social studies, or playing a vocabulary game. The

table below shows the number of students who spoke Portuguese during the four

times that I observed them in cooperative learning groups.

Language 2nd grade students 3rd grade students

Spoke only in Portuguese 06 0

Spoke mostly in

Portuguese

02 05

Mixed Portuguese and

English

07 11

Spoke mostly in English 02 02

TOTAL 17 18

As the results of the table above show, the majority of the students are

able to speak Portuguese at a certain level during this kind of activity. Only two

students from each grade spoke in English the entire time.

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“Sra S., tu podes me ajudar por favor?”

(Ms. S., can you help me, please?) – A 2nd grade girl asking for help during Math

class.

My second claim is in regards to the correlation between gender and

speaking Portuguese. By analyzing different kinds of data, I have observed that

in both groups girls are speaking more Portuguese than boys. My second grade

group has 11 girls and 6 boys. In contrast, my third grade group has 13 boys and

only 5 girls. Through the analysis of my teaching journal notes, I was able to

observe that my 2nd grade group is speaking Portuguese more fluently than the

3rd grade group. I took notes of the students who were speaking more

Portuguese in both groups with me or with their peers. The table below shows

the number of students, by gender and grade, who had four or more entries for

speaking Portuguese in my Teaching Journal.

Number of students who spoke only in Portuguese with the teacher

2nd grade  3rd grade 

Boys 

Girls 

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Another source that supports this claim is my survey. One of the questions

in my survey asked who they considered to be a good Portuguese helper in the

classroom. There were four girls with the highest number of votes in the 2nd

grade group and 3 girls and a boy in the third grade group.

By videotaping their social interactions in the classroom, I have also found

that it was easier for the girls to maintain a conversation in Portuguese. The boys

seemed to be more resistant to speak Portuguese among themselves or even

when they were talking to the girls. In a video taken on March 28th regarding a

poster project, 9 girls were talking enthusiastically about their project in

Portuguese. In contrast, there was only one boy who brought his project to share

that day, but he was not able to sustain his presentation in Portuguese.

My checklist observation also shows evidence of girls speaking

Portuguese more than boys in my classroom. I have observed for four days in

the second grade group and five days in the 3rd grade group who was speaking

in Portuguese with me. The table below shows the number of students by

gender, which spoke only in Portuguese with me during different times of my

observation.

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Number of students who speak Portuguese with the teacher

Although the table above shows the same number of students for 3rd

grade, it is important to note that there are 13 boys in that group and only 5 girls.

“Quem vai ser a polícia do português hoje?” (Who is going to be the “Portuguese police” today?)

My third claim is that more fluent speakers are able to help less fluent

speakers to improve their speaking skills in Portuguese. Besides me, as the

Portuguese teacher, there are two other Portuguese teachers who usually come

to my classroom. One is the social worker and the second one is a substitute

teacher who comes once in a while to assist me. I also consider some students

to be fluent, especially the ones who speak Portuguese at home with their

parents.

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 

2nd grade  3rd grade 

Boys 

Girls 

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Within my data collection, I was able to identify similarities in my findings.

My observation checklist, for example, shows that on March 15, a total of 10

students, out of 17 2nd graders spoke a 100% in Portuguese either with me or

with the students who were sharing during Morning Meeting. I have also

observed that on March 25th, a number of 11 students out of 18 in the 3rd grade

group maintained their conversations in Portuguese during the time three

students were sharing during Morning Meeting as well. Morning Meetings offer a

good opportunity for students to share something that has happened to them

outside school. It is also a moment that students can ask questions or make

comments about what they have heard.

Through the analysis of my teaching journal notes, I realized that most of

my students spoke Portuguese with me during recess, snack or lunch, periods

that I usually interact socially with them. An illustration of this observation was

made on March 1st when I wrote the following quotation in my journal about the

2nd grade group: “During snack time I shared about my trip. They seemed to be

interested…and asked me questions. A couple of students came to me to share

something about their families. They both spoke in Portuguese.” This pattern was

observed during seven days out of ten days of observation in the 2nd grade and

four days in the 3rd grade group, out of ten days of observation. I believe, as I

am the model and as I speak Portuguese with them all the time, it seems to be

easier for them to speak in Portuguese with me.

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The survey is another data that supports this claim. When students were

asked with whom they think it is easier to speak in Portuguese, myself and the

teacher assistant got the highest number of votes. A total of 13 students from 2nd

grade, out of 15 who answered the survey, thought it is easier to speak

Portuguese with me. Five of these students also said it is easier to speak with the

teacher assistant and five thought it is easier to speak with their friends. When I

asked the same question to the 3rd grade group, 16 students answered that it is

easier to speak with me. These same students also voted for the teacher

assistant and the social worker. The three of us are fluent speakers of

Portuguese. The social worker usually comes once a week to my classroom to

work with them and she speaks Portuguese fluently.

Through my observation checklist, I have also noticed that the most fluent

students were the ones who spoke more Portuguese during the cooperative

learning groups. In both grades, I have mixed students with different levels of

Portuguese to encourage the low-level students to speak more. The videotapes

of their interactions show the ones who are more fluent encouraging the ones

who are less fluent to speak in Portuguese. On March 24th, for example, I have

observed that 7 of 11 students in the 3rd grade were able to sustain the use of

Portuguese during a Social Studies activity in groups. A number of four students

mixed the two languages and number of 6 students chose to work individually. I

had grouped them by taking into consideration their level of Portuguese.

Additionally to this example, I have also noticed that on March 15th, a total of 11

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students from my 2nd grade group spoke Portuguese with the social worker who

came to my room to teach them how to show respect to each other. She usually

asks them to role-play situations. These students were able to use Portuguese

during her class and to interact with each other speaking Portuguese.

Conclusion:

“Estou pronto para perguntas e comentários!” (I am ready for questions and comments!) – Sentence prompt students use during morning meeting after they share about something. Trying to develop speaking skills in Portuguese in my classroom has

definitely been a challenge. At the beginning of my research I wanted to find out

strategies and techniques that would enhance this skill with my 2nd and 3rd grade

students in a Portuguese bilingual setting. For this reason, I started collecting

data to support my investigation. Through the analysis of this data, I found

patterns that helped to me to understand better my role as a teacher in order to

promote Portuguese fluency in my classroom. Reflecting and researching about

this subject has also increased my learning as a second language teacher and

researcher. I believe this research has also collaborated for my students’ growth

in Portuguese speaking.

Throughout this process, my investigation also led me to look for literature

to support the claims that I found. Other researchers’ views have provided new

thoughts about my second language teaching practice as well. Whether I am

promoting Portuguese to engage my students or leading them, as a fluent

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Portuguese speaker, I understand that is my responsibility to find strategies and

techniques to enhance their Portuguese oral competence.

Through the analysis of different kinds of data, I came out to the conclusion

that, as a fluent Portuguese speaker, I had a huge impact in their Portuguese

speaking performance as well as other fluent speakers of Portuguese who

interact with my students everyday. I realized that differentiating activities on a

daily basis and integrating reading, writing, and listening to speaking will enhance

their oral performance as well. And I finally became aware that there is a

correlation of speaking Portuguese with gender, so grouping my students

according to their Portuguese language performance and gender is also another

to way to successfully promote Portuguese speaking in my classroom.

As my investigation on this particular issue comes to the end, it is my

intention to continue my research practice in this area in order to improve my

students’ Portuguese speaking and my own language teaching skills. For

example, I wish to further investigate in which ways my students’ families are

supporting their children’s oral language at home. I understand that the

development of bilingualism presupposes the conscious effort by parents to use

the target language at home. I also want to investigate what skills and strategies

have worked for my colleagues at different grade levels. As we teach in the same

school and the same language, I believe we all should have similar expectations

and work on the same page.

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This research project has finally taught me that reflecting about my

language teaching practice and paying a closer attention to my students’ needs

are essential for my growth as a language instructor. Going through the process

of collecting data, analyzing, and finding relevant information about my students

has definitely opened my eyes for a different way to innovate my second

language teaching practice.

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Cheng, Li-Rong L. (1996). Enhancing Communication: Toward Optimal

Language Learning for Limited English Proficient Students, pp. 349-352.

Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools. Vol. 27. San Diego

State University, CA.

Cloud, N., Genesee, F., & Hamayan, E. (2000). Dual language instruction: A

handbook for enriched education, pp. 63-67. Boston: Heinle & Heinle.

Ghee, T., Ismail, H., & Kabilan, M. (2010). Language Learning Strategies by MFL

students based on genders and achievement groups. US – China

Foreign Language, ISSN 1539-8080, USA. Vol. 08, No. 1 (Serial No. 76).

Gömleksiz, M. N. (2007).Effectiveness of cooperative learning (jigsaw II) method

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in teaching English as a foreign language to engineering students (Case

of Firat University, Turkey). University of Firat, Faculty of Education, 23119,

Elazig, Turkey.

Kabuto, B. (2010). Code-switching during parent-child reading interactions:

Taking multiple theoretical perspectives. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy.

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Musk, N. (2010). Code-switching and code-mixing in Welsh bilinguals’ talk:

confirming or refuting the maintenance of language boundaries?

Department of Culture and Communication (IKK), Linko¨ ping University,

Linko¨ ping SE-581 83, Sweden.

Palmer, Deborah K. (2009). 'Code-Switching and Symbolic Power in a Second-Grade

Two-Way Classroom: A Teacher's Motivation System Gone Awry', Bilingual

Research Journal, 32: 1, 42 — 59.

Willans, F. (2011). Classroom code-switching in a Vanuatu secondary school

conflict between policy and practice. International Journal of Bilingual

Education & Bilingualism, 14(1), 23-38. doi:10.1080/13670050903576038.

 

Xiong, X. (2008). On Gender Differences in Language Acquisition. Sino-US

English Teaching. ISSN1539-8072, Volume 5, No. 11, USA.

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