From Reduction to Empowerment: a Second Look at Access to World Language Education for the African American Student

College readiness policies dictate the number of credits of world language study a student ought to obtain by the time he / she graduates from high school (Barnes, Slate, & Rojas-LeBouef, 2010). However, traditional schooling practices camouflaged by “neutral” education policies limit African American students’ access to quality curricular and instructional discourses (Apple, 1999; Gillborn, 2014; López, 2003). Limited access to enriching educational goods and resources, world language instruction in particular, causes them to question their self-worth and academic identities, decreases their classroom engagement and motivation to learn, and impacts their secondary and post-secondary learning outcomes (Fernández, 2002; Pringle, Lyons, & Booker, 2010; Saffold & Longwell-Grice, 2008; Weinstein, Gregory, & Strambler, 2004). Therefore, this study used critical race theory to examine the high school world language experiences of 17 African American undergraduate students enrolled at a Midwestern four-year university. The participants in this study discussed the impact of school- and non-school-based adults as well as same-race peer networks on their secondary and post-secondary goals. Their counter-narratives not only provided evidence of how African American students break from traditional schooling structures to learn a needed world language, they also show how this particular population of students reject the dominant epistemologies that invalidate their academic experiences. Findings from this study suggest education policymakers critically examine the policies that affect African American students’ every day experiences as well as challenge teachers and school counselors to adopt culturally relevant practices that meet students where they are

Risky Sexual Behavior and Knowledge of HIV/AIDS Transmission in a Community Sample: Sexual Orientation, Race, and Gender

New cases of HIV/AIDS are disproportionately diagnosed among men who identify as lesbian, gay, and bisexual and Black. Reasons for this disparity may be related to differences in knowledge of how HIV/AIDS is transmitted and differences in willingness to engage in risky sexual behaviors. In this study, we examined whether differences in knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission and engagement in risky sexual behaviors differed among men and women; lesbian, gay, and bisexual and heterosexual people; and White and Black people. Findings indicate knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission was not related to sexual orientation or gender; however, White participants had higher scores on a measure of knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission than Black participants. While neither gender nor race seemed to be related to differences in engaging in risky sexual behavior, differences in what types of risky sexual behavior people participated in existed based on sexual orientation. Implications for prevention efforts are addressed

Corinth Excavations Archaeological Manual

“The publication of the Corinth Excavation Manual offers us a unique view into real-life archaeological practice on one of the most important Classical sites in the Mediterranean.” Adam Rabinowitz, Associate Professor and Assistant Director, Institute of Classical Archaeology, University of Texas, Austin The Corinth Excavations Archaeological Manual is the first major field manual published from an American excavation in Greece and among a very small number of manuals published from the Eastern Mediterranean in the last generation. The appearance of this book is timely, however, as there is a growing interest in field methods and the history of excavation practices throughout the discipline of archaeology. Moreover, Corinth Excavations has long held a special place in American archaeology in Greece as the primary training excavation for graduate students associated with the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. As a result, the field manual has had a particular influence among American excavators and projects in Greece, among Mediterranean archaeologists, and in archaeology classrooms. Published as a technical field manual, an archival document, and a key statement of practice from a major excavation, the Corinth Excavations Archaeological Manual presents a guide for daily procedures at the Corinth Excavations, a complete record of documentation forms used in the field, and a practical glimpse into the functioning of a complex, major, project. The manual is a landmark text appropriate for the university student, the scholar of methodology, and the working field archaeologist. “The Corinth manual has grown over the years into a comprehensive and authoritative guide to open-area, stratigraphic excavation, covering everything from excavation of pits, wells, and robbing trenches to the removal of deposits to inventorying objects in the museum. ” David Pettegrew, Associate Professor, Messiah College and author of The Isthmus of Corinth (2016). All of the authors have worked on the excavations at Corinth in various capacities. This manual was developed under the directorship of Dr. Guy Sanders by former field directors Alicia Carter Johnson and Dr. Sarah James. Additional contributions come from past and present Corinth staff including assistant director Dr. Ioulia Tzonou-Herbst, architect James Herbst, conservator Nicol Anastasatou, and archaeologist Katerina Ragkou. The authors would also like to recognize the contributions of the many students from the American School of Classical Studies at Athens who offered valuable feedback on earlier versions of this manual over the past 10 years.https://commons.und.edu/press-books/1005/thumbnail.jp

Best Practices in the Multidialectal High School English Class: Implementing Code-switching and Code-meshing

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)Linguists define dialect as a form of a language, and they agree that all dialects are equally legitimate forms of the language. The stratification of dialects, however, is based on social hierarchies and results in some dialects being privileged and others carrying stigma. The bias against nondominant dialects results in language discrimination and limits one’s access to social power. This inequity gives rise to additional obstacles that impede academic success for students who speak a nondominant variety. A significant portion of those obstacles can be addressed with appropriate teacher training and the incorporation of language studies in the secondary English classroom. Language studies will benefit students who speak the dominant dialect by preparing them for interactions with the wide varieties of English they will encounter in the increasingly diverse and global workforce. Students who speak nondominant dialects will be equipped with the tools to navigate and challenge the standard language ideology