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Examining English language learners’ learning needs through the lens of algebra curriculum materials

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Abstract

Curriculum materials have a substantial influence on mathematics instruction and, consequently, students’ learning opportunities. Many curriculum programs provide instructional notes for teachers and tasks for students as a means of accommodating particular student groups, such as those identified for English language learners. The presence of such materials communicates a narrative about the students they seek to accommodate. In particular, this narrative entails what English language learners need to learn mathematics. We examined the curriculum materials in four commercially available curriculum programs to understand the learning opportunities they provide for the target group and their assumed needs inferred from analyzing those opportunities. We found the curriculum materials implied a homogenous view of English language learners as a group who requires mathematical remediation and additional vocabulary practice. The curriculum materials provided a narrow set of learning opportunities, in terms of both mathematics and language, and may reinforce teachers’ existing deficit perspectives.

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Notes

  1. We use the term English language learner (ELL) in this article because this is the term used within the textbooks we analyzed. We recognize this term privileges English and highlights what students lack (i.e., English) as opposed to what they possess.

  2. In the USA, ELLs are defined as individuals of ages 3–21, enrolled in K-12 schools, whose native language is other than English, and whose difficulties in English impedes their academic success and full participation in society (US Department of Education, 2016). Once they acquired English sufficiently, students are then re-classified as former ELLs. The English proficiency threshold is captured by language tests and varies by state or even district.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge Amy Dwiggins for her help with earlier iterations of the analysis of this data set. We also wish to thank the reviewers and the editor for their helpful feedback throughout the review process.

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The University of Missouri’s Cambio Center provided financial support for this study.

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  1. University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA

    Zandra de Araujo

  2. University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS, USA

    Erin Smith

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Erin Smith serves as a consultant for Illustrative Mathematics.

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de Araujo, Z., Smith, E. Examining English language learners’ learning needs through the lens of algebra curriculum materials. Educ Stud Math 109, 65–87 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-021-10081-w

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