Border Experiences: Spanish & English as Learning Tools

Teaching history extends beyond the transmission of facts; it encompasses a healing aspect for both educators and students. This encourages us to recognize ourselves as integral parts of various historical narratives. History gives sense to our daily experiences. As an international student, my academic journey has been marked by persistent challenges: language barriers, unfamiliarity with the host country's education system, and economic obstacles. These experiences have shaped my approach to teaching because they sparked a transformative reevaluation of bilingualism from being perceived as a problem to understanding it as a valuable skill.

As a Ph.D. student of Borderlands History at UTEP, I had the opportunity to teach one of the university's introductory U.S. History 1301 last summer. Even though I had taught the same class online during the pandemic, this was my first experience teaching in an in-person classroom setting. Being self-aware of my accent and the errors I commit when speaking in English put extra pressure on me. For example, when creating lesson plans, I often find myself overly preoccupied with English grammar, as if the slightest mistake could negate the value of my lesson, information, and activities. In other words, a fear of a minor error could compromise my professional identity.

Participating in the Humanities Collaborative at EPCC-UTEP fellowship this past semester at the professional level has been pivotal to contemplating how students integrate Spanish and English into classroom dynamics. Also, it has provided me a space to reflect on bilingualism as a teaching tool and "re-signifying" my ability to navigate both languages. Hence, this reflection involves considering the application of both languages as an educational strategy and recognizing them as unique legacies of the Mexico-United States border history.

As part of my activities in The Humanities Collaborative, I had the opportunity to observe El Paso Community College (EPCC) Professor Dr. Freddy Jaimes in some of his History (HIST) 1301 and 1302 classes at the EPCC Rio Grande Campus near downtown El Paso, Texas. Shadowing Dr. Jaimes provided valuable insights, fostering a deeper reflection on integrating Spanish and English into my teaching plan. It is noteworthy that Dr. Jaimes possesses fluency in three languages—English, Italian, and Spanish—a skill he utilizes to help students engage with the activities.

Teaching at a community college in a border city like El Paso demands a significant emphasis on bilingualism as a crucial skill. Scholar Richard Ruiz's advocacy for using students' home language as a learning strategy resonates deeply with my teaching philosophy. My interest in reflecting on how Spanish and English are part of students' learning process was sparked during Dr. Jaimes's HIST1301 class. One day, when he was teaching about the Mexican-American War and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Dr. Jaimes led the class to stand in front of a window in the building; he asked students to observe the view and identify key border landmarks.

Interestingly, the initial participants in the activity opted to express themselves in Spanish as they described significant landmarks from Ciudad Juarez, such as "la X," "Anapra," and "el Puente." Drawing from my role as an instructor and a native Spanish speaker, I have noticed that students who rely more on Spanish for communication tend to be shy and reticent during class discussions. This activity lasted less than ten minutes, but it made me realize that the border and bilingualism are not just part of students' daily lives but also a shared language that is an integral part of their learning experience.

My classroom observations have led me to reconsider bilingualism not as a problem but as an opportunity to enhance my teaching practice. Ruiz (1984) outlined three orientations or social attitudes toward language: viewing it as a problem, right, and resource.(1) Richard Ruiz's nuanced understanding of language as a resource provides a versatile tool to facilitate learning in bilingual contexts.

In the first orientation, language-as-problem focused on how the Mexican-American population was identified with negative criteria in the '70s and '80s because their bilingualism was understood to impede effective classroom communication and understanding.(2) However, the second orientation perceives language as a human right, emphasizing the importance of individuals preserving, developing, and using their home languages. The third orientation seems more aligned with the current educational moment that recognizes and values cultural diversity. In Ruiz’s view, language-as-resource acknowledges the value of linguistic diversity. According to Ruiz, language is not merely a tool for communication; it involves identity, culture, and cognition.(3) In the context of education, bilingualism and multilingualism become opportunities for students to have meaningful learning experiences because language shapes our identity and plays a crucial role in connecting us to culture and, of course, history (past, present, and future).

Therefore, the choice of language can influence how we express and understand our ideas. In the unique context of the border, where students are in contact with the culture of both El Paso and Ciudad Juarez, they navigate different cultural frameworks. Validating students' knowledge in their home language can improve their critical thinking skills because they gain confidence in expressing complex ideas.

While Ruiz's conceptualization of language-as-resource encourages teachers to adopt a holistic perspective, I think it is equally important to recognize students' autonomy in the classroom. Throughout the semester, I had the opportunity to observe student development in the classroom without intervening. I watched, took notes, and reflected on my teaching practice. In the classroom, I noticed that students decide when to use one language or another. This autonomy allows them to navigate between languages, share their diverse cultural experiences, and enhance the effectiveness of bilingual approaches.

In the classroom, students often preferred English to show their understanding and creativity when presenting ideas or class materials at formal moments during the class, such as a presentation or when they felt evaluated. A second observation is that bilingual students reserved Spanish for less formal moments like student-to-student interaction. Some of them used their ability to explain to their classmates to understand the main concepts of the readings. The students' strategy to use Spanish for peer feedback emphasizes friendship and expands their collaborative network, further enhancing the learning experience.

As an instructor, I think the challenge for me is to create an inclusive and supportive learning environment that recognizes the linguistic diversity of students while enhancing their historical knowledge and language skills. An initial way to do this is to provide instruction in both languages. The goal is for students to understand discussions and feel competitive enough. Thinking on the particular student population attending EPCC Campus Rio Grande, some commute daily from Ciudad Juarez; others are first generation; bilingual classrooms can benefit greatly, including improved cognitive abilities, increased cultural awareness, and enhanced career opportunities.

Finally, this semester, my evolving understanding of language has shaped my recognition of being a valuable tool for bridging cultural and linguistic gaps in the classroom and helped me reconcile myself with my linguistic gaps. In the near future, I want to integrate more in my lesson plans historical events from the perspectives of border cities like El Paso and Ciudad Juarez; it would allow me to provide sources in both languages, and it will enable the students to compare historical narratives and interpretations in both languages and develop cross-cultural awareness. I am aware that creating a bilingual or multilingual classroom is challenging. Still, I think this is a good teaching strategy to encourage students to analyze and connect topics with their personal history, something that will provide them with meaningful learning experiences.

Written by Fior Garcia Lara, Doctoral Teaching Fellow

The University of Texas at El Paso, The Humanities Collaborative at EPCC-UTEP

Bibliography

1.  Ruiz, Richard, "Orientations in Language Planning," NABE Journal, 8:2, 1984, pp. 15-34, DOI: 10.1080/08855072.1984.10668464

2.  --, "Orientations in Language Planning," NABE Journal, 8:2, 1984, p.19.

3.  --, "Orientations in Language Planning," NABE Journal, 8:2, 1984, p.17.