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Students of Languages at Community Colleges: Who Studies Which Languages and Why?
Abstract
Community colleges hold a unique space in postsecondary education and rep- resent a large student population, constituting nearly forty percent of undergraduate enrollments in the United States (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System). Specifically in the realm of language education, one out of every five enrollments in a language course at an institution of higher education is at a community college, and there were nearly 300,000 enrollments for languages other than English (LOTEs) at community colleges in 2016 (Looney and Lusin, Enrollments [2019] 40). Despite the essential role that community colleges play in language education, few studies have focused on language education in this context. Given the volume of language-course enrollments at community colleges and the fact that community colleges provide a context of education distinct from that of four-year colleges, dedicated thought and consideration on how to implement programs and courses of languages other than English at community colleges is crucial (Fechter). The two-year language-education context may differ in important ways from the four-year context. This article explores language education in the two-year context as a distinct entity and, where possible, makes comparisons to the four-year context. In particular, the authors discuss com- monly and less commonly taught languages at two-year compared to four-year insti- tutions; demographics of students who choose to study language at two-year schools and whether such demographics reflect the larger student bodies of two-year institu- tions, including those who do not study language; and the reported motivations of students who choose to study language at two-year schools.
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This study explored persistence for four groups of traditional-age (18–24) first-year students in an urban community college: native students, native students with immigrant parents, U.S. high-schooled immigrant students, and foreign high-schooled immigrant students. Earning a high school diploma and pre-college preparation (either high school grade point average or basic skills proficiency) contributed positively to persistence for all four student groups. Foreign high-schooled immigrant students needed the most remediation but persisted more strongly and attained higher grades, suggesting the value of support for access to higher education for immigrants.
Immigrant youth and children of immigrants make up a large and increasing share of the nation's population, and over the next few decades they will constitute a significant portion of the U.S. workforce. Robert Teranishi, Carola Suárez-Orozco, and Marcelo Suárez-Orozco argue that increasing their educational attainment, economic productivity, and civic engagement should thus be a national priority. Community colleges offer one particularly important venue for achieving this objective. Because they are conveniently located, cost much less than four-year colleges, feature open admissions, and accommodate students who work or have family responsibilities, community colleges are well suited to meet the educational needs of immigrants who want to obtain an affordable postsecondary education, learn English-language skills, and prepare for the labor market. The authors explore how community colleges can serve immigrant students more effectively. Already, more immigrant students attend community colleges than any other type of post-secondary institution. But community colleges could attract even more immigrant students through outreach programs that help them to apply and to navigate the financial aid system. Federal reforms should also allow financial aid to cover tuition for English as a Second Language courses. Community colleges themselves could raise funds to provide scholarships for immigrants and undocumented students. Although there are many good ideas for interventions that can boost enrollment and improve the performance of immigrant students in community colleges, rigorous research on effective programs is scant. The research community and community colleges need to work together closely to evaluate these programs with a view toward what works and why. Without such research, policy makers will find it difficult to improve the role of community colleges in increasing the educational achievement of immigrant students.
This article presents and analyzes instructor data from the Students and Instructors of Languages at Community Colleges (SILCC) Survey. The SILCC Survey was designed to collect data from language professionals teaching at community colleges (CCs) on the specific challenges, opportunities, and potential areas of growth in their field. Results from 140 instructor responses in 101 CCs in 33 U.S. states are used to document the current state of teaching and learning of modern languages at CCs through a systematic survey procedure. The data on modern language instruction at CCs, a segment of the U.S. educational system underrepresented in scholarly discus- sions in the field of modern language, shows both strengths and areas in need of improvement.
Because motivation plays a major role in the development of language proficiency, it is important to understand what motivates learners. Unfortunately, instructors of heritage languages are not often aware of the specific motivations driving their students. This article considers motivation as an ‘integrative orientation’ and as an ‘instrumental orientation’ to understand heritage speakers who enroll in Russian language courses. My research project was devised to identify the motivations of Russian language learners and to compare the motivations of heritage learners with those of non-heritage learners. With this purpose in mind two questionnaires were applied: one that comprises a section of a placement test used in heritage learner classes; the other consisting of a formal questionnaire distributed among forty learners of Russian in two North American universities. My article discusses the results of both surveys as well as their implications for classroom use and further research. The findings of this study might encourage Russian language instructors to reexamine how their own students’ motivational factors affect their own language development and how the curriculum addresses students’ needs.
Two recent reports offer some paradigm-shifting proposals regarding the teaching of world languages in general at the undergraduate level. The Modern Language Association's (MLA's) "Foreign Languages and Higher Education: New Structures for a Changed World" (referred to hereafter as "New Structures") and "Report to the Teagle Foundation on the Undergraduate Major in Language and Literature" (referred to hereafter as "Undergraduate Major") are the products of the ideas and perspectives of serious, thoughtful professionals from the four-year college and university sectors, the MLA, members of the legal and medical professions, and outside consultants. These reports propose several significant changes to the content and structure of the undergraduate foreign language major—changes that affect language curricula across the spectrum. Many of these changes, particularly in the area of pedagogy, are a validation of many teaching practices pioneered by community college faculty.
Absent from these reports, however, is a specific consideration of the community or two-year college perspective, a sector that currently enrolls nearly half the undergraduate student population in the United States and about one-third of all the undergraduate students in Spanish and Portuguese. These reports are to be commended for their novel perspective and laudable recommendations on teamwork, cooperative teaching, noninstrumentalist forms of language education—wherein language is not viewed simply as a skill or tool used to communicate information or accomplish a task—and faculty voice of nontenure-track faculty at four-year colleges and universities. However, the reports fail to specifically consider community college faculty or mention the contributions of academic institutions that are an essential link in the K–20 educational system. The pressing need of coherence in community college language programs, the implementation of mechanisms for steady progress from beginning to advanced levels of proficiency, the articulation of uniform outcomes and assessment, and attention to the particular needs of heritage students, over 52.5% of whom attend community colleges, must also be addressed.
It is helpful to assess the impact of these documents on curriculum development and reform at community colleges in tandem with two important sources of data. The most recent survey of the MLA on enrollments in languages in higher education includes data from community colleges and contains crucial implications for the teaching of Spanish and Portuguese (Furman, Goldberg, and Lusin). Research from the American Association of Community Colleges also provides data and an essential context for all these reports.
A clear goal, as articulated in "Undergraduate Major," is to "strengthen majors in our fields and attract new generations of students to what has been the traditional core of liberal study". That strength, of course, must be built on a foundation that rests on the first two years of undergraduate education, whether they be taken at a four-year institution or a community college. The most recent data from the American Association of Community Colleges indicate that community colleges educate, as noted earlier, nearly half (44%) the undergraduate population in the United States. In addition, the MLA 2006 survey on enrollments indicates that 33% of introductory and intermediate enrollments in Spanish are taken in two-year colleges (see Furman, Goldberg, and Lusin Tables 7a and 7b). There is a critical need to include community college language educators in this discussion and consider the specific issues and challenges facing them.
"Undergraduate Major" reiterates the primacy of the study of language and literature in the profession and underscores the role that such study plays in developing the core outcomes of undergraduate general education programs. The foundation is laid in the first two years of undergraduate education and community colleges, institutions that actively embrace the goals and mission of general education, play a central role. The constitutional elements articulated in "Undergraduate Major"—a coherent program of study, teamwork among the instructional staff members, interdepartmental cooperative teaching, empirical research to assess the successes and shortcomings of the programs—provide a framework for examining the role of the community college sector in reforming curricula to meet the needs of a changed world.
Often lacking at the two-year level in world languages is a true sense of a coherent program of study, as many community colleges do not...
Utilizing data from the language learning autobiographies of six black college students, this pilot study investigates the experiences and motivations of blacks who do and do not achieve advanced-level second language acquisition (SLA). It hypothesizes that successful black second language (L2) learners (1) have positive formative experiences of investment in a community of learners; (2) desire to connect with members of a community of L2 speakers who mirror their past, present, and future/ideal selves; and (3) are motivated to excel in SLA by their integrative need to connect with both communities of learners and speakers. Findings support the study's hypotheses; however, they also call for further investigation of the nature/variety of black student L2 classroom experiences, the role of ethno-racial affinity in integrativeness, and perspectives of black heritage language learners.
This study investigates the initial motivation of learners of Arabic as a foreign language (AFL). One hundred and twenty students enrolled in first-year and second-year AFL classes participated in this study. The participants were classified into two major groups of learners according to their heritage background: The first group consisted of learners of Arab and Muslim heritage, and the second consisted of all other heritage backgrounds. Data were collected using a survey. Descriptive statistics were used to find out the initial motivations of each group. Later, inferential statistics (t test) were used to compare the initial motivation of the two groups with each other. The results of the study indicate that AFL learners have a variety of orientations prompting them to study Arabic: travel and world culture orientations, political orientations, instrumental orientations, and cultural identity orientations. These were then broadly grouped into three major types of orientations, namely instrumental orientations, identification orientations, and travel and culture orientations. Significant differences were found between heritage and non-heritage learners on instrumental and identification orientations. The implications of these results are discussed in terms of course offerings, classroom instruction, maintaining students' motivation throughout the course, and retention.
Efforts to fund the teaching of critical languages, along with increasing enrollments in less commonly taught language (LCTL) classes, have evidenced a renewed interest in LCTL pedagogy. While much is known about enrollment trends, materials development, and professional training, far less research has compared LCTL and commonly taught language (CTL) students. Students from 83 classes (nine different languages) at a large university completed a questionnaire containing items requesting demographic and academic information. The results of a chi-square analysis demonstrated that LCTL learners were older, expected higher grades, reported higher GPAs, found their courses more difficult, and had studied a third language at a much higher rate. Although far from conclusive, these data begin to identify differences that may exist between LCTL and CTL students, specifically in university, introductory-level courses.
Persistent low numbers of African Americans in the foreign language teacher certification program at the University of Texas at Austin motivated the study reported here. Two groups of students responded to a questionnaire that sought information on foreign language experience at elementary and high school, as well as family experiences in foreign languages. Findings revealed that whereas very few students had the opportunity to study a foreign language at the elementary level, all were exposed to at least a two-year compulsory program at high school. These experiences were not motivating enough to encourage college-level continuation, nor were family experiences. Students' language preferences did not support previous findings that low enrollment figures resulted from language offerings that lacked ethnic and cultural appeal. Rather, the study found that there appeared to be little effort made to encourage African-American high school and college students to consider teaching career paths. Students recommended more aggressive dissemination of information to African-American students at the college level about the advantages on pursuing foreign language study. They overwhelmingly suggested including a foreign language requirement in all discipline areas.
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