College of Education and Human Development

Department of Curriculum and Instruction

Constance Walker

  • Associate Professor, Emeritus

  • Office Hours

    by appointment

Constance Walker

Areas of interest

Language minority students and the social context of achievement, fostering collaboration within schools to build on the strengths and address the needs of bilingual learners

Degrees

PhD, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
second languages and cultures

Biography

I have long had an interest in the school experiences of second language learners, particularly those students who must learn English as a second language while also mastering academic content at school. What lays behind the struggle for achievement that so many of our young citizens face as they navigate the complex world of learning a second language while at school? How much of a role does the school culture play in that struggle? How can teachers help students develop the academic and language skills they need for success at school?

It is the teacher development piece that energizes my work in second language education. I currently direct a 5-year U. S. Department of Education grant, Teaching English Language Learners — Action Model to Unite Professionals. This project involves teams of grade-level teachers, ESL teachers and paraprofessionals from particular schools in long-term efforts to build on the strengths and address the needs of bilingual learners. Teachers set individual and school-site goals, meet, read, discuss and exchange information through formal and informal processes, all directed at developing collaborative mechanisms for providing effective instruction.

National and state-level policies about the educational needs and services for bilingual students form a backdrop for the curriculum, instruction, and assessment that make up their school experiences. Often such policies and practices are built on myths and misperceptions concerning language learning and developing bilingualism. Preparing teachers to challenge such myths and to adjust practice to best bring out the talents of bilingual learners is my primary goal.

Publications

Walker, C. L. & Stone, K. (2011). Preparing teachers to reach English language learners: Preservice and in-service initiatives. In Lucas, T. (Ed.) Teacher preparation for linguistically diverse classrooms: A resource for teacher educators (pp. 127-142). New York: Routledge.

Edstam, T. S., & Walker, C. L. (2009). Collaborative professional development in one elementary school: A focus on English language learners. MinneWiTESOL Journal, 26. Available online at http://minnetesol.org/journal/26articles/4_article_edstam_walker.pdf

Fortune, T. W., Tedick, D.J., and Walker, C. (2008). Integrated language and content teaching: Insights from the immersion classroom. In Fortune, T. W. & Tedick, D.J. (Eds.) Pathways to multilingualism. Evolving perspectives on immersion education (pp. 71-96). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters, Ltd.

Edstam, T. S., Walker, C. L., & Stone, K. (2007). Educating English language learners in a rural district: A case in point. MinneWi TESOL Journal, 24, available online at http://minnetesol.org/journal/articles/educatingells.html

Bigelow, M., & Walker, C. (Eds.). (2005). Creating teacher community: Selected papers from the Third International Conference on Language Teacher Education. Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition.

Walker, C. L., Ranney, S., & Fortune, T. W. (2005). Preparing preservice classroom teachers for students learning through a second language: A content-based approach. In Tedick, D. (Ed.) Second language teacher education: International perspectives. (pp. 313-333). New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Walker, C. L., & Tedick, D. J. (2000). Bilingual education, English as a second language, and foreign language education: Movement to a center. In D. Birchbickler & R. M. Terry (Eds.), Reflecting on the past to shape the future (pp. 223-244). Lincolnwood, IL: National Textbook Co.