Using writing to develop student agency in a multilingual American Government classroom

Kaitlin Moran, Calderwood Teacher Fellow, 2018, will present the results of a study she conducted with her English L2 multi-ethnic, multi-lingual learners with students from four continents in her history high school classroom. Her research question is, "How does an instructional focus on writing in the Structured English Immersion (SEI) American Government classroom impact SEI students' sense of agency?". She will present her data collection methodology and findings of this descriptive, mixed methods study conducted in a large urban high school in the Boston Public Schools.

A pivotal aspect of her work is broadening the audience for her English L2 learners' writing. Her students, who are predominantly documented and undocumented immigrants, wrote letters to Boston's mayor about their priorities for the city during the Fall 2017 mayoral race. She will share her students' writing samples for audience engagement and discussion.  Moran believes that her findings may be applicable in L2 classroom contexts around the world.