12 TESOL Journal

Ma i n s t ream Peers Try on En g l i s hLanguage Learn e r s’ Shoes: AShock Language Ex p e ri e n c eRyuko Kubota, Kirsten Gardner, Mary Patten, Cynthia Thatcher-Fettig, and Michiko Yoshida

A FOURTH-GRADE STUDENT w h orecently arrived from China is playing on theplayground during recess. Two boys, who arefrom the United States, start to push himaround and take the ball he is playing with.The Chinese student, unable to communicatehis feelings and needs in English to the twoboys, pushes them back. Within a few sec-onds, a fight starts. As it turns out, theChinese student has been picked on by theseboys since his first day at this U.S. elementaryschool. From the perspective of his two class-mates, his face looks different, he behavessomewhat differently, he does not speak aword of English, and he speaks a weird lan-guage. Because of these perceived differ-ences, he becomes a target of ridicule insteadof a new friend who can open his classmates’eyes to a new culture in the world.

This episode probably sounds quite famil-iar to school teachers who work with Englishlanguage learners (ELLs).1 In fact, this inci-dent happened recently in our school district,which enrolls a fairly large number of stu-dents from culturally and linguisticallydiverse backgrounds. To serve the needs ofevery child at school and to prevent futureincidents like this, the faculty and staff mustwork together as a team. In consideration ofthe needs of the ELLs in our school, how-ever, this team perspective leaves out a prin-cipal group: the mainstream peers.2 Yetmainstream peers can have more effect onELLs than any teacher. Who influences usmore than our own peer group? Encouragingus, chiding us, pressuring us, monitoring us,our peers play a major role in sculpting whowe are and how we see ourselves. With thisin mind, we broadened our team to includethe mainstream peers and communicated the

needs of our ELLs to them by creating a con-text for developing empathy. To effectivelyunderstand another person’s perspective,however, one must try on another’s shoes.

This article presents a shock languageactivity that we—a university researcher,three elementary school ESOL teachers, anda Japanese language specialist—collabora-tively conducted in our school district. Theactivity aims to raise mainstream peers’awareness of the linguistic, cultural, and aca-demic challenges that ELLs experience andto promote peer collaboration with ELLs.Although the particular activity discussedhere was conducted in an elementary school,the method can be adapted for other settings.This article presents rationales for this activ-ity as well as the procedures, participantresponses, and concluding thoughts.

Rationale for ShockLanguage Activity

What is shock language? Shock languageprovides participants with a firsthand simu-lated experience of being in a classroomwhere the language of instruction is not com-prehensible. It is often used for second lan-guage teacher training in which teachers learnissues of language acquisition, anxiety, andeffective teaching from the learner’s perspec-tive. Shock language can also target audiencesother than teachers. The activity presentedhere is geared to mainstream students who areELLs’ peers. In the activity, a mainstreamclass is transformed into a classroom in a for-eign country. Students returning from an out-side class are first greeted by immigrationofficers and then engaged in a short academiclesson given in a language that is not familiarto most of them, with the exception of several

speakers of that language in the class and anywho have been recruited from other classesfor the activity. A discussion session followsthis lesson to allow students to reflect on theexperience and to understand the importanceof collaborating with ELLs.

There are several rationales for this activ-ity. First, as mentioned above, shock lan-guage raises the awareness of themainstream students with whom ELLs havea large amount of immediate, daily schoolcontact. Whereas school teachers and staffoften have professional development oppor-tunities to learn how to best serve ELLs,rarely do mainstream peers have direct learn-ing experiences that enable them to under-stand various challenges that ELLs face andto collaborate with them. Shock language isone way to provide such an educationalexperience to mainstream peers.

Second, cross-cultural experiences con-tribute to the creation of a socially and cul-turally positive classroom environment,facilitating the linguistic, cognitive, and aca-demic success of all students. According toThomas and Collier (1997), there are fourcomponents that influence language acquisi-tion in a school setting:

1. sociocultural processes2. language development3. academic development4. cognitive development

Although all four components are interrelated,at the center are the sociocultural processesthat strongly influence the other three compo-nents. Sociocultural processes include affec-tive factors, such as anxiety and self-esteem,as well as social interaction, which is often influenced by prejudice and discrimination.

Winter 2000 13

A positive sociocultural environment, creatednot only by teachers but also by students inthe classroom, helps all students succeed inschool. Central to the positive socioculturalenvironment are supportive and caring inter-personal relationships. Research on collabora-tive learning suggests that interpersonalrelationships, as well as achievement and pro-ductivity, are enhanced through collaborativelearning, and that such interpersonal relation-ships influence students’ achievement efforts,self-esteem, and efficacy in a reciprocal man-ner (see Johnson & Johnson, 1994). In light ofthe view that “human relationships are at theheart of schooling” (Cummins, 1996, p. 1), itis necessary for all students to develop posi-tive relationships with each other.

Students should certainly learn toappreciate ethnic artifacts that are dif-ferent from their own, but they shouldalso learn to interact and collaboratewith culturally and linguistically dif-ferent peers and to affirm cultural andlinguistic differences.

The effect of positive sociocultural envi-ronments on the academic development ofall students has been demonstrated in two-way bilingual education. Shock language cancreate an environment quite similar to thistype of education. Two-way bilingual or duallanguage programs, in which both languageminority and majority students learn schoolsubjects together in the minority and major-ity languages, aims not only to develop bilin-gualism and biliteracy but also to fosterpositive cross-cultural attitudes, behaviors,and competence (cf. Baker, 1996; Dolson &Meyer, 1992). In a Spanish-English dual lan-guage program, for instance, Spanish-speak-ing students can help English-speakingstudents when the language of instruction isSpanish and vice versa, stimulating coopera-tion and friendship. Research has indeedconfirmed the development of students’ cross-cultural communication skills, ability to workin diverse groupings, and sensitivity to dis-crimination (Freeman, 1995). Also, Lambertand Cazabon (1994) reported students’ prefer-ence for having friends and classroom experi-ences across ethnic/racial boundaries.3 S h o c klanguage provides mainstream peers andELLs with a simulated experience of thiseffective dual language education.

Third, a shock language activity addressesan important aspect of multicultural educa-tion for social justice. Among variousapproaches to multicultural education, theliberal, and yet superficial, one that is com-monly practiced in schools has received criti-cism. Critics argue that schools often focusonly on celebrating foods, fairs, festivals,

and the like as neutral, apolitical culturalartifacts, failing to address more fundamentalissues such as attitudes and feelings relatedto race, gender, class, language, and culture(cf. Nieto, 1995). This implies that appreciat-ing cultural artifacts per se does not neces-sarily reduce negative attitudes andprejudices toward people with differentracial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic back-grounds. Also, this superficial approachemphasizes the appreciation or mastery of acultural product, represented by static andgeneralized features, rather than focusing onthe process of becoming multicultural (Ford,1999; Nieto, 2000). Contrary to such anapproach, critical multicultural educationenvisions democracy, equality, and socialjustice, transforming not only individualawareness but also collective and institu-tional practices (Nieto, 1999). Studentsshould certainly learn to appreciate ethnicartifacts that are different from their own, butthey should also learn to interact and collab-orate with culturally and linguistically differ-ent peers and to affirm cultural and linguisticdifferences. Shock language is a vehicle todevelop such skills and attitudes that gobeyond appreciation of cultural artifacts.

Fourth, related to critical multicultural-ism, shock language promotes mutual ratherthan one-way accommodation, which isessential in our increasingly diverse commu-nity (Nieto, 1995, 1999, 2000). In school andsociety, it is often the marginalized who areforced to adapt to the dominant norm.However, in a truly democratic society,accommodation is a two-way process. Shocklanguage creates an opportunity for the dom-inant group to learn mutual accommodationby experiencing minority perspectives cre-ated in a vicarious experience of cultural andlinguistic marginalization (cf. Sleeter, 1995).The ability to accommodate and collaborateacross racial, ethnic, and linguistic bound-aries is indeed essential for the increasinglydiverse society and workplace in the newmillennium, in which cross-cultural andcross-linguistic contact will be the norm(Cummins & Cameron, 1994). Schools areresponsible for preparing global citizens forthe new century. Shock language can help allstudents develop the ability to accommodateand work with people with cultural and lin-guistic backgrounds that are different fromtheir own.

Finally, shock language engages learnersin praxis4 and dialogue, encouraging them tobecome committed individuals who affirmdiversity and act on the creation of a justsociety. Praxis and dialogue are at the heartof critical pedagogy that opposes mere trans-mission of knowledge from the teacher to thestudents or banking education, in whichknowledge is deposited by the teacher into

the empty head of a student (Freire, 1998).The reflective discussion session after theshock language experience is built on a dia-logue between the teacher and the studentsfor reflecting on their feelings and exploringfuture actions, rather than passive learningfrom a lecture given by the teacher. The dis-cussion session is based on the vision that“thinking critically about practice, of todayor yesterday, makes possible the improve-ment of tomorrow’s practice” (Freire, 1998,p. 44).

Shock language can enable mainstreamstudents to understand, respect, and affirmlinguistic and cultural differences and to col-laborate with ELLs. It is a powerful tool thatcan yield positive effects.

Background andProcedures

A shock language lesson can be conductedfor any age or grade level. The example pre-sented here occurred at the elementary schoollevel. A shock language lesson consists of theimmigration stage, a short lesson on a schoolsubject taught in a language that is unfamiliarto mainstream students, and a follow-up dis-cussion. Several speakers of the target lan-guage (hereafter referred to as target languagestudents) in the same class and those who arerecruited from other classes participate in thelesson to make it as realistic as possible.After the experience, students engage in areflective discussion led by a school guidancecounselor and/or family specialist. Involvinga counselor and/or social worker, if available,produces better results because these special-ists have specific training for conducting thistype of potentially volatile discussion. It isnecessary for ESOL teachers to collaboratewith these specialists in creating the discus-sion questions in advance.

In this case, the activity was conducted ina fourth-grade class after the playgroundincident mentioned at the beginning of thearticle. Japanese was chosen as the targetlanguage for the activity because of theavailability of a trained teacher from Japan,the unfamiliarity of the language and cultureto the mainstream peers, and a desire not todraw too much attention to the harassed stu-dent by using his native language. Theenthusiastic participation of all school per-sonnel as well as the responses of the class-mates and parents inspired us to conduct ouractivity with other classes. Thus, the follow-ing year, the activity was applied in threenew classes, one each from the second, third,and fourth grades, where it was again con-ducted in Japanese. The procedures and thecomments from student participants pre-sented in this article are based on this sec-ond-year project.

14 TESOL Journal

Shock Language ActivityScenario

The activity begins with transforming aclassroom into a typical Japanese classroomwhile the class is out of the room. Outsidethe classroom door is a banner that says“Welcome to Japan” in Japanese. AuthenticJapanese posters and calendars are posted onthe walls. Desks and chairs are arranged inrows. Close to the door is a table with a signthat says “Immigration” in English andJapanese.

Students, returning from another class,are given passports by a teacher upon entryto the classroom and proceed to the immigra-tion table. The shock language teacher andanother adult Japanese speaker greet the stu-dents, stamp their passports, and give themname tags written in Japanese. Then, the stu-dents find a seat and read a paper tellingthem (in English) that they are now in Japanand that today is their first day of school.They are instructed to listen to the teacherand to try to get along in class. SeveralJapanese-speaking students are already dis-persed around the room and have beeninstructed not to speak English to the incom-ing students. This initial phase of the activitytakes about 10 minutes.

The shock language teacher comes to thefront of the classroom. A Japanese-speakingstudent-of-the-day leads the class in standingup and bowing, as is customary in manyJapanese schools. Then the teacher calls theroll using students’ last names and Japanesepronunciation.

In school and society, it is often themarginalized who are forced to adaptto the dominant norm. However, in atruly democratic society, accommoda-tion is a two-way process.

The teacher then begins a language artslesson in Japanese by instructing students tolook at a photocopied page from an authenticJapanese textbook. In this lesson, studentsare to read a story about a fun day and towrite an outline of their own stories. Theteacher asks for volunteers to read the storyaloud. When the class finishes reading thestory, the teacher instructs the class to writetheir own story based on an outline. But first,she presents an outline of her own story byshowing pictures and gestures.

The teacher then hands out writing sheetsto the class. She instructs the students towrite their names and make their own storyoutlines by drawing pictures and listingevents. While non-Japanese-speaking stu-dents are struggling to figure out what theyare supposed to do, Japanese-speaking stu-dents try to assist them.

After a couple of minutes, the teacherannounces that it is time to stop. The stu-dent-of-the-day performs the end-of-the-les-son greeting. The other Japanese-speakingstudents help the mainstream peers performthis task by prompting them to stand up andbow.

After this 20-minute experience, themainstream students, together with Japanese-speaking students, engage in a discussion ledby a guidance counselor and a family spe-cialist. The students reflect on their experi-ence and respond to questions, such as

• What was your first thought or reaction to the Japanese class?

• Did you understand anything?• How did your emotions or understanding

change during the lesson?• What helped you understand the lesson?• What did you learn from this activity?• How could you help a student who did not

understand English?• If you saw a friend teasing a student from

another country, what would you do?

After a 10–15-minute discussion, the ESOLteacher concludes the activity by thankingthe participants.

Shock Language Lesson PlanningAs shown in the above example, the

teacher needs to create a carefully planned15–20-minute shock language lesson. Thefollowing are some guidelines.

1. Make the lesson as academic and authentic as possible. To create a realistic academic environment, use excerpts from an authentic textbook. If textbooks are unavailable, select written material from the target language likely to evoke the academic atmosphere of a school in another country. The teacher and the tar-get language students should remember to speak only in the target language.

2. Incorporate cultural customs and manners that are different from those in U.S. schools.

3. Design the lesson to make it progressivelycomprehensible so that the mainstream students can become aware that they themselves can use the strategies modeled by the teacher. Techniques to make the lesson accessible include pointing; gesturing; and using visuals of familiar concrete nouns (e.g., names of people, places, events), English origin words, hands-on activities, and peer help.

4. Interact with the target language students and the mainstream peers rather than giving a lecture throughout the lesson. This strategy gives the mainstream peers asense of feeling isolated, helpless, or

embarrassed. The teacher can ask questions of the target language students, have fun conversations with them, and askvolunteers to read the text aloud. Also, theteacher can ask mainstream students to hand out materials and talk to them.

5. Include individual work that requires active participation from each student. This not only increases the frustration of the already exasperated mainstream students but also creates more opportunities for the target language students to help their mainstream peers.

6. Prepare for situations in which main-stream students refuse to participate or insist on speaking in English during the activity, particularly in the middle school or high school setting. To maintain an authentic cultural setting, use a discipline procedure that is in accordance with that of the country being used for the activity, withany modifications that might be needed (e.g., no corporal punishment). Teachers or specialists can assist the shock languageteacher in dealing with such situations. The procedure needs to be discussed and agreed upon in advance by the shock language teacher, classroom teacher, guidance counselor, family specialist, and other volunteers who will be present in theclassroom.

If any disruptive behavior is anticipated,selected students could be advised inadvance to cooperate during the activity.However, it is important to keep in mind thatsuch preemption could diminish the value ofdiscovery learning. Instead of trying to antic-ipate potential problems ahead of time,teachers could allow problems to arise anduse them as a topic for the follow-up discus-sion. Students could discuss why they didnot want to participate or why they usedEnglish during the activity. They could alsocompare and contrast their feelings andbehavior during the activity with how theythink ELLs feel or are compelled to behavein U.S. classrooms. The discussion couldinclude questions such as

• Would ELLs feel the same way that you did during the activity?

• Would they refuse to speak English or continue to speak their native language likeyou did during the activity? Why or why not?

• What can be done?

Preparing the Target LanguageStudents

The readiness of the target language stu-dents is one of the most important compo-nents in the effectiveness of the activity. It isnecessary to set up a meeting between the

Winter 2000 15

shock language teacher and the target lan-guage students in advance to convey the pur-pose and procedures of the activity.

1. Discuss the purpose of the activity. Discussing their own experiences as ELLs and their perception of cultural differences in the classroom will help the students understand the purpose of the activity.

2. Explain what the students are supposed to do during the lesson. Tell them to use the target language only and to try to help their peers as the lesson moves along. If the activity involves oral reading, it is necessary to take into account the possibilitythat some students may not feel confident reading in their native language after having lived in the United States for some time. Have them take home a copy of the reading materials so that they can practice at home. If necessary, talk to their parents to explain the activity.

3 . Help the students feel comfortable with their role. Informing them that the activity is like a theater performance can make them feel excited and willing to play the main role. Keep in mind that the class dynamics may change because some of these students are recruited from other classes.

Planning the Shock LanguageActivity

As demonstrated above, a shock languageactivity involves a number of players. Therefore,coordination and careful planning are extremelyimportant. Below is a timeline and checklist forplanning the shock language activity.

Two months before:1. Acquire permission from the principal or

supervisor.2. Decide on the target language and locate a

teacher who is a fluent speaker of that language.

3. If necessary, recruit students who are tar-get language speakers and obtain permission from their teachers and parentsto pull them out of their regular classes.

4. Set the date and time of the activity with the principal members of the team (i.e., shock language teacher, classroom teacher, classroom teachers of the recruited students, guidance counselor, family specialist, and other volunteers).

One month before:1. Review the plan with each team member.2. Plan the shock language lesson and secure

any authentic materials.3. Photocopy passports and make a welcome

door banner.4. Write a short explanation of the activity to

be placed on each student’s desk.

5. Prepare a name tag for each student written in the target language.

6. Prepare follow-up discussion questions with the guidance counselor and/or family specialist.

The day before the activity:1. Review the plan with each team member.2. Have a preparation meeting between the

shock language teacher and the target language students.

The day of the activity:1. Set up the room while the class is out of

the room (e.g., arrange seats, set up an immigration table, place introduction notes on the desks, and hang authentic materials).

2. Review the plan with the target language students.

ConclusionBased on students’ reactions, the shock

language project we conducted was quitesuccessful in that the mainstream students inthe second, third, and fourth grades e x p e r i-enced the same frustration, confusion, andanxiety that their ELL peers often do. Theseshared feelings are demonstrated in their oraland written responses. One second graderwrote, “I felt weird and like I didn’t no eny-thing [sic]. It felt like no one spoke mylagewige [sic].” A third grader wrote, “I feltscared because I thought the teacher wouldcall on me and I didn’t know what to do.” Afourth grader commented, “I felt bad andembarrassed because I could not read theJapanese book.” When asked what they coulddo to help ELLs once they had “tried onELLs’ shoes,” students responded that theywould assist them by helping them understandEnglish, sitting together, using gestures, andmaking them feel more comfortable. Onethird grader wrote, “If they did not know howto do something, I would show them how todo it.” Some students even went further andcommented that they would try to learn theirlanguage. Some also mentioned buildingfriendships. One fourth grader commented, “Iwould try to be his or her friend and keeppeople from picking on them.”

Schools are responsible for preparingglobal citizens for the new century.

The mainstream students were not theonly ones affected by the shock languageactivity. The Japanese students also bene-fited from this learning experience. Forthem, the activity was “easy and fun,” andperhaps because of this, they felt it was“very short.” These responses reflect theirfeeling of being confident and able to fully

participate in the lesson. One second graderalso mentioned, “I felt busy helping theclassmates.” When asked why they thinkthey did this activity, a Japanese fifth graderresponded, “Maybe so the other people thatis an American to feel how other people feltwhen they just came.” One second graderwrote (in Japanese), “So that Americansthink that Japanese people are good.” Thiscomment seems to hint at the possibility thatthe student felt stigmatized in her U.S.school. For students like her, this experienceseems to have provided an opportunity forempowerment.

As ESOL instructors, it is our respon-sibility to implement schoolwide multi-cultural education and continue toaddress issues of diversity, focusing onthe development of caring and equalhuman relationships.

We observed positive effects after doingthe shock language activity in the third gradeclass. For instance, one dominant, often trou-bled boy helped a girl recently arrived fromJapan read a paper that the teacher had dis-tributed. Before long, another student joinedthem and, together, all three negotiated thenext activity. A month later, students werestill much more involved with the Japanesestudent than they had been prior to the shocklanguage activity. They sought her out on theplayground and called goodbye to her whenshe left for her ESOL class. In our experi-ence, each time we have introduced thisactivity we have noticed similar enthusiasmand positive interactions among students.

Shock language, though it is a useful activ-ity to engage students in a vicarious experi-ence, is only one way to promote peercollaboration and affirmation of diversity inschool. As Nieto (2000) suggests, multicul-tural education that envisions social justiceand transformation should be integratedthroughout the curriculum so that all studentshave many opportunities to explore, express,and alter their thoughts, feelings, and actionsabout different cultures. Continuous efforts toaffirm diversity in daily school life will notonly build the confidence of ELLs as they seetheir language and culture given credence, butalso serve to remind mainstream peers of theimportance of mutual accommodation andcollaboration. As ESOL instructors, it is ourresponsibility to implement schoolwide multi-cultural education and continue to addressissues of diversity, focusing on the develop-ment of caring and equal human relationships.

To close, we would like to share a reflec-tive note written by a teacher after the play-ground incident introduced at the beginningof this article:

16 TESOL Journal

As the year progressed, there were nomore violent incidents between the stu-dent and his classmates, and the overallattitude in the classroom graduallybecame one of support rather than deri-sion. In fact, there were a few mainstreamstudents that became “study partners”with the student and began to help himwith English in exchange for his assis-tance in learning Chinese.

Notes1We use English language learners (ELLs)

to refer to those who are usually called lim-ited English proficient (LEP) learnersbecause of the negative connotation of theword limited, which conveys a focus on whatstudents cannot do (cf. Ovando & Collier,1998).

2The term mainstream peers can be prob-lematic for the same reason the term main-stream classroom is problematic. WhenELLs are placed in ESL classes in elemen-tary schools, they are generally a part of themainstream for most of their school day andreceive additional support for mainstreaminstruction in ESL class (Ovando & Collier,1998). Mainstream classroom is also a termused by special education, but ELLs shouldnot be equated with students with specialeducation needs (see also Cummins &Cameron, 1994). In this article, however, weuse mainstream peers because we are unableto find a better substitute.

3This study, however, involved only asmall number of students and results shouldbe interpreted as trends only. Also, two-waybilingual education should not be viewed asa panacea for promoting cultural and linguis-tic equality and empowering marginalizedstudents. See Freeman (1995) and Valdés(1997).

4A combined reflection and action fortransforming the reality (Freire, 1998).

ReferencesBaker, C. (1996). Foundations of bilin-

gual education and bilingualism (2nd ed.).Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.

Cummins, J. (1996). Negotiating identi-ties: Education for empowerment in adiverse society. Ontario, CA: CaliforniaAssociation for Bilingual Education.

Cummins, J., & Cameron, L. (1994). TheESL student IS the mainstream: Themarginalization of diversity in currentCanadian educational debates. EnglishQuarterly, 26(3), 30–33.

Dolson, D. P., & Meyer, J. (1992).Longitudinal study of three program modelsfor language-minority students: A criticalexamination of reported findings. Bilingual

Research Journal, 16(1 & 2), 105–157.Ford, T. (1999). Becoming multicultural:

Personal and social construction throughcritical teaching. New York: Falmer Press.

Freeman, R. D. (1995). Dual-languageplanning at Oyster Bilingual School: “It’smuch more than language.” TESOLQuarterly, 31, 557–582.

Freire, P. (1998). Pedagogy of theoppressed (Rev. 20th-anniversary ed.) (M. B. Ramos, Trans.). New York:Continuum.

Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. (1994).Cooperative learning in the culturally diverseclassroom. In R. A. DeVillar, C. J. Faltis, &J. P. Cummins (Eds.), Cultural diversity inschools: From rhetoric to practice (pp.57–73). Albany: State University of NewYork Press.

Lambert, W. E., & Cazabon, M. (1994).Students’ views of the Amigos program(Research Report No. 11). Santa Cruz, CA:National Center for Research on CulturalDiversity and Second Language Learning.

Nieto, S. (1995). From brown heroes andholidays to assimilationist agendas:Reconsidering the critiques of multiculturaleducation. In C. E. Sleeter & P. L. McLaren(Eds.), Multicultural education, critical ped-agogy, and the politics of difference (pp.191–220). Albany: State University of NewYork Press.

Nieto, S. (1999). The light in their eyes:Creating multicultural learning communi-ties. New York: Teachers College Press.

Nieto, S. (2000). Affirming diversity: Thesociopolitical context of multicultural educa-tion (3rd ed.). New York: Longman.

Ovando, C. J., & Collier, V. P. (1998).Bilingual and ESL classrooms: Teaching inmulticultural contexts (2nd ed.). New York:McGraw Hill.

Sleeter, C. E. (1995). Reflections on myuse of multicultural and critical pedagogywhen students are white. In C. E. Sleeter &P. L. McLaren (Eds.), Multicultural educa-tion, critical pedagogy, and the politics ofdifference (pp. 415–437). Albany: StateUniversity of New York Press.

Thomas. W. P., & Collier, V. P. (1997).School effectiveness for language minoritystudents. Washington, DC: NationalClearinghouse for Bilingual Education.

Valdés, G. (1997). Dual-language immer-sion programs: A cautionary note concerningthe education of language-minority students.Harvard Educational Review, 67(3),391–429.

AuthorsRyuko Kubota is assistant professor in

the School of Education and the Curriculumin Asian Studies at the University of North

Carolina at Chapel Hill, in the UnitedStates. She is a second language teacher andteacher educator. Her research and peda-gogical interests include multicultural edu-cation, issues of culture, and criticalpedagogy.

Kirsten Gardner, Mary Patten, andCynthia Thatcher-Fettig are ESOL special-ists in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro CitySchools. All have MAT degrees from theSchool for International Training, inBrattleboro, Vermont, and collaborate onteacher training classes in Duke University’scontinuing education certificate in teachingESOL program.

Michiko Yoshida is a former Japaneselanguage specialist in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. She worked as atranslator and interpreter for parents and asa teacher of survival Japanese for schoolpersonnel. She was also a teacher andteacher trainer of Japanese as a second lan-guage in Japan.

A video demonstrating and explaining theplanning and execution of a shock languageactivity is available for purchase. For furtherinformation, contact Josephine Harris, coordinator of special programs, at ChapelHill/Carrboro City Schools: 750 South MerrittMill Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-2878 USA,Tel. 919-967-8211, extension 244. E-mail jharris@chccs.k12.nc.us

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