According to UNESCO, learning a second language is human right but too often special education students are left out of world language classrooms. In part one of this two part series, Danja Mahoney explains why special education students need to be in world language classrooms and how to advocate to get them there and how proficiency-based instruction is opening new doors for all students.
Bio
Dr. Danja Mahoney is a language educator with more than 25 years experience teaching in public and independent schools. Her experience teaching Latin, French, Spanish, English, and ESL informs her understanding of diverse pedagogies and supporting all learners in language acquisition. Her doctoral research focused on the intersection of second language learning and learning disabilities, with particular attention to the attitudes and needs of educators in supporting all learners in the classroom. She has presented at numerous conferences, including MAFLA, ACTFL, CAM, CANE, and Learning Disabilities Worldwide. She is a member of the MAFLA Board of Directors and currently serves as the Board Clerk. She is the World Language Department Chair at Reading Memorial High School in Reading, Massachusetts.
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Mentions
Common Ground: Second Language Acquisition Theory Goes to the Classroom by Florencia Henshaw and Maris D. Hawkins
Language Acquisition in a Nutshell by Bill VanPatten and Russell Simonsen
Differentiation and the Brain by David A Sousa and Carol Ann Tomlinson
Understanding by Design by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe
MAFLA Massachusetts Foreign Language Association
ACTFL American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages
NECTFL Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages
Delaware's document: https://www.doe.k12.de.us/cms/lib/DE01922744/Centricity/Domain/139/WL_Learning_All_Delaware_Students.pdf
Virginia (2017):
https://www.doe.virginia.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/32907/638047361553670000
Virginia - Teacher Toolkit (2020)
https://www.doe.virginia.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/32905/638047361548070000
Ohio - Basics of UDL for WL teachers
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_U-XevDBaz-kcLjGJzgf9xSBgjQSIdeLSWeU8Lh1OAQ/edit
This is a document I shared with my workshop at the MAFLA conference this year:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iqnMwYewFW0rCKn-xioQluN-JtwieLvuHkkI7--9m7g/edit?usp=sharing
