Preparing Educators for Emergent Bilingual Learners in Initial Teacher Education

Abstract

As classrooms continue to diversify, teachers require preparation to serve emergent bilingual learners (EBLs). This requires a shift in traditional approaches to teacher education, embracing collaboration among faculty, candidates, educators, and students to design and implement programs that integrate this lens across licensure areas. Drawing from a longitudinal study conducted in one field-based program that integrates EBL content, this chapter explores one collaborative model of teacher education seeking to develop candidates' expertise through strategically designed curricula and field experiences. Drawing from artifacts of 29 candidates completing the four-year program, followed by surveys and interviews with focal cases one year after program completion, findings detail learning during the program and into the first year of teaching with attention to the efficacy of specific collaborative features. Implications inform collaborative efforts to prepare teachers for EBLs.