Contexts for self- and co-regulated learning in a dual-language elementary school classroom

Abstract

Using a qualitative case study design and applying a sociocultural theoretical perspective, support for self-and co-regulated learning in an elementary Spanish and English dual-language classroom was documented. The multi-age classroom comprised 33 students acquiring English and Spanish, at school (52% female students; 20 fourth grade and 13 fifth grade students; 28 dual-language learners). Spanish was the home language for most students. Four classroom observations of mathematics and writing instruction periods and three in-depth teacher interviews were collected over a five-month period. Analyses of inductive, deductive and thematic coding characterize the teacher's and students' interactions that worked to support student self-and co-regulated learning of the two languages. Findings suggest that flexible learning contexts coupled with communicative activities provide a classroom microculture that affords students opportunities to become more regulated (i.e., setting own learning goals, reflective of strategies) learners of English and Spanish. These results have implications for practice, informing educators about instructional methods that support self-and co-regulated language learning in dual-language environments.