Resumen de Bilingual education preparation programs across the United States: a review of the past decade’s literature

Rebekah Phelps, Weverton Ataide Pinheiro, Elyssa Cherry Shive, Delia Carrizales, Linnie Greenlees, Fernando Valle, Kristi Sartor

• This narrative literature review explores critical components influencing bilingual educator preparation programs (BEPPs) while advocating for a critical pedagogical approach. Previous literature reviews about BEPPs provide only glimpses into this area, prompting us to create a nuanced and coherent picture of the BEPPs landscape. By highlighting how students and teacher candidates (TCs) are taught to analyze their socio-political contexts, we argue that pedagogy should go beyond literacy instruction for language acquisition. Language should be a tool of empowerment that promotes understanding and the ability to transform one’s world. By combining the concepts of reading ‘the word’ and writing the world, BEPPs emerge as a potent force for social justice, particularly in creating more equitable spaces for emergent bilinguals (EBs). Using thematic analysis as a methodological tool to analyze the literature, we identify and present seven themes that comprise the literature on BEPPs: Dueling Language Ideologies, Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy, Community – and Field-Based Learning, Rejuvenation of Cultural Identity, Paradigm Shift, Certification Exams, and Curriculum Constraints and Barriers. Emerging trends, pitfalls, and promising developments are highlighted in this paper. Our findings emphasize supporting translanguaging practices, culturally sustaining pedagogy, and field/community-based learning experiences.