UTSA Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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This collection contains electronic UTSA theses and dissertations (ETDs), primarily from 2005 to present. The collection is not comprehensive; search the UTSA Library Catalog for a complete list of UTSA theses and dissertations.
Since 2023, the UTSA Graduate School has required all theses and dissertations to be made publicly available in Runner Research Press. However, authors are able to request an embargo. Embargoed ETDs will not be downloadable until after their embargo expires.
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Browsing UTSA Electronic Theses and Dissertations by Department "Bicultural-Bilingual Studies"
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Item A busker's world: performance space and cinematic representation(2014) Fitzgerald, Dora R.This is a study on the public phenomenon known as busking, which may be loosely defined as any type of premeditated street performance occurring on public streets using a multitude of artistic performance types. In most busking as opposed to street performance, there may be a monetary exchange between the performers and the spectators. The focus was to study the space in which the performance takes place, namely the urban street, and the actions of performers and audience members in the creation of a phenomenon I call urban sanctuary. The shift in human interaction and human experience, which occur with large-scale urban busking, will form the epicenter of the space to be interrogated. This study will investigate the practice of busking with original research, utilizing the case study method, which will chronicle the activities of a group of present-day buskers known as The Crooners. The case study includes data collected from individual interviews, focus group sessions, and physical data in the form of video footage of their performances. This data will be analyzed using phenomenology as a basis for understanding the lived experience of the participants. The Crooners have practiced busking since 2001. Theoretical insights and case study results will be juxtaposed with analysis from a three contemporary films (The Soloist, Once, and The Visitor) that represent busking within their narratives in profoundly different ways. Phenomenology is also employed in the discussion of the three films as well as the band's experience of the films. The ultimate intent of this work is to assess affect in both the lifeworld and cinematic world concerning the practice of busking.Item A Case Study of the Language Policy of a Local Newcomer Program(2019) Saulsbury-Molina, Anna KirstenA growing population of students from refugee backgrounds in the United States has contributed to linguistic and cultural diversity in the K-12 public education system. School districts and communities respond differently to changing demographics. The development of newcomer programs has been one method educators have used in an attempt to provide a space for refugee-background students to acclimate to their new environment. The language policies these programs implement impact the integration of newcomers into the larger school system. Utilizing ethnographic methods in a case study investigating the language policies of one elementary school's newcomer program, this dissertation found that flexibility and responsiveness to the needs of students were critical to the program's existence and success. As the program experienced demographic changes based on international and national politics over the course of a decade, the newcomer teachers continue to uphold language policies that attempt to provide a space for students to adjust to the U.S. public school system before moving into an ESL classroom.Item A comparison of bilingual education and generalist teachers' approaches to scientific biliteracy(2010) Garza, EstherThe purpose of this study was to determine if educators were capitalizing on bilingual learners' use of their biliterate abilities to acquire scientific meaning and discourse that would formulate a scientific biliterate identity. Mixed methods were used to explore teachers' use of biliteracy and Funds of Knowledge (Moll, L., Amanti, C., Neff, D., & Gonzalez, N., 1992; Gonzales, Moll, & Amanti, 2005) from the students' Latino heritage while conducting science inquiry. The research study explored four constructs that conceptualized scientific biliteracy. The four constructs include science literacy, science biliteracy, reading comprehension strategies and students' cultural backgrounds. There were 156 4th-5th grade bilingual and general education teachers in South Texas that were surveyed using the Teacher Scientific Biliteracy Inventory (TSBI) and five teachers' science lessons were observed. Qualitative findings revealed that a variety of scientific biliteracy instructional strategies were frequently used in both bilingual and general education classrooms. The language used to deliver this instruction varied. A General Linear Model revealed that classroom assignment, bilingual or general education, had a significant effect on a teacher's instructional approach to employ scientific biliteracy. A simple linear regression found that the TSBI accounted for 17% of the variance on 4th grade reading benchmarks. Mixed methods results indicated that teachers were utilizing scientific biliteracy strategies in English, Spanish and/or both languages. Household items and science experimentation at home were encouraged by teachers to incorporate the students' cultural backgrounds. Finally, science inquiry was conducted through a universal approach to science learning versus a multicultural approach to science learning.Item A Consequential Validity Study of a State English Language Proficiency Assessment: The Texas English Language Assessment Program (TELPAS)(2021) Collier, Jo-KateWith this study I investigate the consequential validity of a state English language proficiency (ELP) assessment, following Messick's (1989) expanded theory on validity. I examined intended and unintended consequences of the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS) through stakeholder perceptions. TELPAS is a federally required annual assessment used to measure the English proficiency of English learner (EL) students enrolled in public schools in Texas. TELPAS is a high-stakes test impacting over a million EL students and their campuses and districts (Texas Education Agency [TEA], 2020). In 2019-20, Texas planned for increased stakes regarding TELPAS as its role within state and federal accountability systems became more impactful due to implementation of new federal requirements under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). The law requires that states embed results from state ELP testing within state accountability systems (ESSA, 2015) eliminating multiple systems of accountability but increasing the stakes for ELP testing by giving it a higher profile. Research advocating more robust validity studies of ELP assessment instruments is needed (Chalhoub-Deville, 2020). With this study I contribute to such a body of research by conducting a mixed methods investigation, using survey research and semi-structured interviews, of aspects of the consequential validity of TELPAS. I explore key stakeholders' perceptions of the intended and unintended consequences of TELPAS.Item A critical examination of language ideologies and identities of Cambodian foreign-trained university lecturers of English(2014) Boun, SovichethThe global spread of English has resulted in differing views among scholars who attributed it, on the one hand, to choices made by national actors for political and economic integration and, on the other hand, to linguistic imperialism from first-world English-speaking countries. In Cambodia, despite its momentum, the spread of English and English language teaching (ELT) has not been critically examined. More research is needed that examines the sociological and political aspects of English and ELT in Cambodia. As Pennycook (1994) maintained, the spread of English and ELT is imbued with cultural, economic, political and ideological meanings, irreducible to the examination of its functionalist roles as natural, neutral and beneficial. Drawing on language ideology and community of practice perspectives, this study explores the interrelations among language ideologies, classroom practices and the negotiation of identities. Data collected in the Spring of 2013 in Cambodia include interviews with university lecturers who received their master's degrees in ELT-related fields abroad, classroom observations, social observations, and relevant documents and artifacts. The findings reveal four ideological categories around which the participants expressed a range of ideological views about English and English language teaching: (1) image and status of English; (2) image and status of Khmer; (3) native speakers vs. non-native speakers; and (4) English language teaching. These various ideologies have been attributed to four sociocultural contexts of their experiences which include personal observations/experiences, prior learning/education, teaching experiences, and educational experiences abroad. The findings also indicate how these ideologies contribute to the participants' negotiation of teaching practices and formation of identities. This study adds to the current understanding of the global spread of English, the native speaker ideology, the communicative language teaching, and the transnationalization of TESOL education.Item A descriptive analysis of the representation of social status through Spanish print media(2013) De la Miyar, DanielThe purpose of this research is to deconstruct the mechanisms through which social status is presented in print advertisements and make the reader aware of the influence that is created to reflect status in Mexican magazines for rich Mexican bilingual readers of English and Spanish through a descriptive analysis. The goal is to determine the relationship between social status and the messages advertisers create through the use of visual and textual semiotics based on the semiotic analysis framework of Bell and Milic (2002) and to locate instances that index social status reflected in the advertisements selected. Four campaigns were selected with a total of 25 advertisements included in two Mexican elite magazines only circulated in Mexico: Caras and Quién.Item A discourse analysis of U.S. national and state language policies: restraining English instruction for refugee adults(2012) Whitney, Diana Maria JosephinaUsing a (critical) discourse analytic approach, this thesis examines how refugee policies at different scales (state and national) interact and entextualize specific perspectives on second language acquisition. Policy texts examined include the Refugee Act (1980), Code of Federal Regulations (2011), Texas Administrative Code (2004), Request for Proposals (RFP) for Refugee Social Services (2008), and the Refugee Social Services Provider Manual (2008). This study contrasts discourses of language acquisition and learning as reflected in policy documents with principles of second language learning to determine how these texts support or do not support long-term goals for English language development, integration, and self-sufficiency. The data show how discourses embedded in policies frame English as a Second Language (ESL) programs as an employability service with a principal focus on the achievement of economic self-sufficiency. Moreover, the discourses in the current policies, I show, have significant pedagogical implications, particularly in the allocation of federal funding for educational programs.Item A literacy profile of majority-language dual-immersion participants(2014) Sinclair, JeanneThis thesis establishes a numerical profile of native English-speaking students' literacy in a Spanish-English two-way dual language immersion program, based on state assessment data (STAAR). This is a relevant area for research because such programs are increasingly common, and yet there are relatively few investigations focusing on this group's literacy. The subjects are third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade students in a Central Texas school district. A two-way immersion (TWI) program is a type of bilingual education program that integrates children from diverse language backgrounds and provides academic instruction in two languages. In this case, the curriculum is taught in Spanish and English. Approximately half of the students in these TWI programs is classified as English Language Learners/Limited English Proficient (ELL/LEP), which indicates that their primary language is one other than English and that through norm-referenced tests they demonstrate to not have acquired English language abilities commensurate with their age or grade level. The other half of the students participating in this TWI program is non-ELL/LEP, meaning that their home language is English (also known as majority language speakers). I analyze the non-ELL/LEP students' scores on the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) reading tests, and compare with ELL/LEP students in the same program, as well as grade-level peers in monolingual (English-only) settings. I also investigate data trends related to socioeconomic status.Item "A nerdy adrenaline": the influence of ethnomathematics on female mathematical identity(2015) Al-Gasem, Nadiah SanabriaIn 2011, the National Science Foundation reported that out of the 28.4% of women in STEM fields, only 3% are of Hispanic origin. With a constant increase in Hispanic population in the US, it is important to address why so many Latinas do not pursue STEM fields, especially those involving mathematics. This study explores the development of female mathematical identity of a group of secondary Latina students who belong to an all girls' school and are active members of the school's Ethnomathematics Club. Through a Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) lens, this qualitative case study consists of interviews, field notes, and student products. The study analyzes how the tensions between the CHAT components influence female students' identity in reference to math study through an examination of trajectories in math study. The dissertation ultimately addresses the question as to what influences the Ethnomathematics Club has on the students' mathematical identity?Item A Study of Playful Pedagogy in Secondary Language Education and the Collaborative Action Research Partnership Behind It(2019) Ferguson, Misty MichelleThis collaborative action research (CAR) study explores what happened when a teacher adopted playful pedagogy as a response to "grim" secondary school culture (Fine, 2014; Garfath, 2015). During the academic year of the study, 25 hours of classroom video along with teacher reflection, both oral and written, collaborative planning materials, and student work artifacts were collected and used to improve the implementation of playful pedagogy in the pursuit of knowledge and change. This dissertation presents three post-hoc qualitative analyses of that data, examining the implementation of playful pedagogy in the classroom, the teacher's process of change, and the function of the collaboration in the project. The first essay explains that implementing playful pedagogy was an arduous process, resisted from a variety of directions but found to be a uniquely effective path toward connection in the classroom, a cornerstone for human well-being and achievement (Blum, 2005). The second essay demonstrates that when the teacher explored playfulness as an alternative, creative pedagogy, her process of learning was constrained by the gaze of powerbrokers (Foucault, 1971). As she gradually tuned in to the force of her own intention and to her students' deepest needs, her confidence about her pedagogical decisions increased. The third essay examines the collaboration of the teacher and researcher, offering a protocol for analyzing inside/outsider collaboration by evaluating and reporting it systematically, democratically, and ecologically outside the dichotomy of failure and success, which provides an opportunity to do better CAR projects going forward.Item An Ethnographic Case Study: The Co-Construction of Mathematical Knowledge in a 4th Grade Dual Language Classroom(2017) Gonzales, Nancy C.According to the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES), the National Assessment of Educational Process (NAEP) revealed that there is an achievement gap in mathematics between English learners (ELs) and non-ELS (NCES, 2015). Across the U.S., the cultural and linguistic diversity in classrooms continues to grow. Equitable mathematics education that builds on students' culture and language may allow Latino emergent bilingual students to make more positive strides in mathematics. Teachers of Latino emergent bilingual students play an important role in preparing these students in mathematics. In this study I considered that a teacher's understanding of mathematics along with her language learning beliefs and classroom practices dictate what and how she will teach. This ethnographic, exploratory, qualitative study delved into how a 4th grade dual language teacher used her mathematical knowledge for teaching mathematics and language learning beliefs and language learning classroom practices in order to understand how she co-constructed mathematical knowledge alongside her Latino emergent bilingual students. Additionally, the students' funds of knowledge and previous home and school experiences were also examined to observe their participation in the co-construction of mathematical concepts.Item AN INVESTIGATION OF FIRST LANGUAGE (L1) INFLUENCE ON SECOND LANGUAGE (L2) PHRASEOLOGICAL USE: A CORPUS-BASED STUDY(2024) Alnufaie, RanaThis study investigates the use of phraseological units in academic argumentative essays written by English language learners from Arabic, Chinese, Russian, and Spanish L1 backgrounds. By employing corpus-based methods and using the analytical frameworks of structural taxonomy by Biber et al. (1999) and the functional taxonomy by Hyland (2008), the study identifies distinct preferences in functional and structural categories and sub-categories among the produced phraseological units from the four different L1 groups. The statistical analysis shows significant differences in the use and preference of these phraseological units influenced by the learners’ L1 backgrounds. These findings highlight the strong impact of the L1 on L2 academic writing, suggesting that the L1 repertoire significantly influences the production of phraseological units in L2 English academic writing, especially at the lower levels of proficiency. This study not only informs language teaching practices by highlighting the importance of considering L1 influence but also sets the ground for future research. To deepen our understanding of the interplay between the L1 and the L2, future research can investigate these dynamics in a more diverse range of L1 backgrounds and other written genres.Item An Overview of the Technology Use in Iraqi EFL Classrooms: Lessons Learned, Challenges to Overcome(2022) Algarawi, HassanThis study covered the topic of technology adoption by Iraqi EFL classrooms between 2003 and 2021. Iraq is one of the first Middle Eastern countries to have very basic technology use but never upgraded it. The current study explored the adoption of technology for language learning because technology became a powerful tool for language learning. This research investigated the reasons that prevented Iraq from developing technology and using it to enhance foreign language learning. Researchers provide some recommendations to overcome the challenges that Iraqi education suffers from. This current study also provided some recommendations as well to resolve some of the challenges found throughout the research. For example, this study discusses suggestions such as applying blended learning, using authentic speaking, using social media tools, training educators and showing the advantages of technology to both teachers and students. Also, teachers and students' attitudes were explored to see their readiness for technology integration. Iraq was forced to adopt e-learning throughout the spread of COVID-19 and some of the studies were explored and cited in this current study. The pandemic has helped the English language teaching field around the world to overcome some of the challenges; thus, Iraqi classrooms can also benefit from the new good practices of e-learning.Item Art as an embodied practice: artistic expression, conocimiento, and identity formation(2016) Castillo, SarahWith a study designed to research questions to which I have sought answers, such as how do artists rely on art to understand their evolving identity, autoethnography facilitates my self-knowledge positing that art-making shapes the formation of identity. Further, I visually articulate intersectionality in a creative expression that channels healing and understanding in the context of Chicana mental health and my identity development. This study is guided by questions framed to understand the ways that art, identity, and healing expand our notions about relationships to Self and the sociocultural world. Moreover, it examines the spatial positionalities of a self-identified Chicana feminist artist who came to identity formation in the process of graduate education. To document the process, I have utilized journal entries, artwork, and qualitative and quantitative information as a positioned subject who is central to the project. Photographic self-portraits and collections of prose document an interdisciplinary path, underscoring self- and other-knowledge in reference to identity formation. In addition to providing explanations of how I came to see myself as Chicana artist, I have gained a landscape of identity-based art strategies for understanding the ways in which Chicanas claim their ethnic, gender, and racialized identities.Item Art as research and research as art: the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center (GCAC) Y Su Veladora(2014) Campbell, Kimberly GarzaThe Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center is an ethnic specific cultural institution that serves as a cultural broker that facilitates visual communication via public art. This project analyzes the large mosaic sponsored by the organization in the Westside of San Antonio titled La Veladora of Our Lady Guadalupe by Jesse Treviño. Experimental methods were employed to communicate the results of the research visually. The work concluded in the production of ten original paintings that reflect the emergent themes of the research, bicultural ritualistic practice, and the contemporary cultural use of the Virgen de Guadalupe in a secular public space. This process enables the production of an art experience that engages an audience and transmits information. The research found that GCAC maintains a visual presence in the cultural economy of San Antonio. By way of the production of public art, they facilitate communication between cultures. The GCAC also serves as a role model that shapes behavior that inspires change within the community. Through the use of culturally charged imagery in public art, the organization establishes its presence as a secular temple of artistic production.Item At the mainstream's margins: Re-examining Hmong students' schooling through the eyes of Hmong administrators, teachers, and parents(2016) Yang, YengHmong Americans have been in the United States for more than 40 years, yet, their communities have continued to be invisible and marginalized from the mainstream society. At a time when many traditional public schools have failed to meet the cultural, linguistic, and academic needs of Hmong students (Vang, 2005), this study focuses on examining the first Hmong-based charter school in Northern California; the study examines how the school operated and executed its curricula, instructional practices, and pedagogies to meet the linguistic, cultural, and academic needs of Hmong students. The research questions that guided this study consisted of the following: (1) What are the views and beliefs of the administrators, teachers, and parents about the rationale for and mission of the PSY Academy and the school's effectiveness in meeting the academic, linguistic, and cultural needs of Hmong-American students? (2) What are the instructional practices and pedagogies used to address the needs of Hmong students classified as ELLs? And (3) How does the school incorporate Hmong language and culture into the curriculum? The findings suggest that while there is a robust character education program in place in supporting the young Hmong students to become productive and responsible citizens in society, the linguistic and cultural needs of Hmong students are not being fully addressed. This study ultimately argues that Hmong linguistic and cultural practices must not be perceived as a subset of the charter school, rather, they must be infused unequivocally into the school.Item Autohistoria Al Talón: Mariachi Performance, Space, Reinforced Gendered Boundaries(2018) Lopez, Julio C.This thesis analyzes the concept of talón as it relates to performance of mariachis in Mexican restaurants in San Antonio, Texas. Applying the method of autohistoria, an analysis of memory through lived experience, gives insight into topics of gender and sexuality as they appear in this type of display. Supported by the theoretical frameworks of Gaye Theresa Johnson’s (2013) spatial entitlement and Maria Herrera-Sobek’s (1990) feminist archetypal analysis of women in traditional Mexican corridos, I reflect on my own experience to better understand problematic components in mariachi music and performance. I ultimately conclude, that while this research is minimal in terms of potential scope, it initiates important dialogue on topics that need to be addressed within mariachi such as gender and sexuality. I further encourage careful consideration of restaurants as spaces of learning and teaching, recognizing their influential value to cultural identity. These communicative events create important opportunities for much needed conversations that connect our sense of cultural identity to a larger social context.Item Becoming maestras: Future bilingual teachers authoring bicultural and biliterate identities(2010) Brochin, CarolThis dissertation is a qualitative case study about the process of cultivating pre-service teachers into becoming maestras within a bilingual teacher preparation program at a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in South Texas. I drew from both case study and literacy research methods. I spent fifteen weeks in the four courses of the bilingual approaches block during which I completed over 180 hours of participant observation. The data for this dissertation included observational field notes; the collection of official documents, such as syllabi and course lectures; the collection of written artifacts produced by pre-service teachers in all four courses and across all literacy events; and transcripts from course discussions and interviews. Analysis of data was done by applying literacy research methods (Moje & Lewis, 2007), including textual analysis (Fairclough, 2003), event mapping (Dixon & Green, 2005), and cross-case analysis (Merriam, 1998). The findings revealed that cultivating maestras includes four tenets: (1) critical (self) reflection for cultural recovery, (2) affirmative practices that view communities as sitios/sites for learning, (3) community building with peers and (4) advocacy and awareness of bilingual education within the boarder sociocultural historical context of education. The findings in this dissertation make visible what all teacher preparation programs can learn from opportunities provided for pre-service teachers to draw from their unofficial literacy practices. Studying the development of a maestra identity is important because it provides insight into the transformative potential of education when the languages, literacies, and cultures of all students are affirmed.Item Being & becoming financially literate in a South Texas community: Valuing the funds to practice literacy(2009) Munoz, Henrietta LynnA healthy and productive economy requires the full participation of all sectors of society; those who are financially self sufficient and those who are trying to achieve financial self sufficiency (Wheary, 2005). Low financial literacy can "contribute to the making of poor financial choices that can be harmful to both individuals and communities" (Jacob et al., 2000, p. 8). Moreover, a balanced economy assures a participatory system where both consumption and economic equality is valued and practiced. This research combines two fields of study: financial literacy and education. Learning to be and become financially literate in a South Texas community is the process I investigate by incorporating a transformational mixed methods design. Multiple quantitative and qualitative data sets are used to uncover a process by which individuals learn and practice how to become financially stable in this community. Three recommendations emerge from the study; (1) financial literacy must be treated as a long-term, repetitive process; (2) appropriate educational contexts, materials, and methods are needed for low and moderate income individuals; and (3) programming should exploit moments of motivation. The data collected reveals that behavior changes with the current financial literacy quality and standard within this community. However, the number of those accessing the financial mainstream and achieving stability can and should improve. Thus, the study provides suggestions to incorporate a funds of knowledge pedagogical approach to teaching and learning financial literacy while maintaining a life-long learning relationship through a community of practice. I propose that these additions to the current programming will increase the quality and quantity of those receiving and achieving financial stability and sustainability. This study extends the current financial literacy literature by going from talk to action.Item Being and becoming teachers of adult ELLs: case studies of professional identity negotiation, development and performance(2014) Swoyer, Jennifer GilardiTeachers of adult ELLs serve a diverse, highly motivated, and discerning student base. Unlike K-12 credentialing requirements, instructors of adult students only need a bachelor's degree, in any field, to begin their career. As the field mainly offers part-time positions, employees are often either first time instructors, or retired educators applying their previously learned classroom skills in another venue. Considering these various entries into the field of adult ELL instruction, and the potential disparity in preparation, the purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the process of becoming and experiences of being teachers of adult ELLs. This qualitative study took a case study approach, analyzing discourse gathered through a series of three-interviews with seven instructors of adult ELLs, single interviews with three administrators, and three interviews with adult ELLs. Most of the case study participants had previous careers in the field of education in primary or secondary schools, and they ranged in adult education experience from less than one, to nearly 20 years. The findings of the study suggest that individuals become teachers of adult ELLs through a combination of self-guided, peer-supported, and policy-enforced means. They tend to rely most heavily on feedback from their students and support from fellow educators to evaluate their performance. Teacher identity, or realization of being a teacher, was found to be more a result of years of experience, comfort, and confidence than a measurable or tangible accomplishment of a certain skill set.