Immigrant Adults and Their Teachers: Community and Professional Development Through Family Literacy
Abstract
In this piece, Weinstein describes her work with a program serving Cambodian families in Long Beach, CA. She begins by contrasting mastery versus constructivist orientations to curriculum and argues for a model for learner-centered teaching that integrates these two orientations. The model, which she calls Learners’ Lives as Curriculum, builds on the premise that teachers must listen for learner stories to discover the most pressing issues that will bring language learning to life. In this article, Weinstein illustrates how this model was applied to themes and issues identified by the Cambodian families with whom she worked. Finally, she proposes a model for connecting materials development with professional development, in family literacy or any other language or literacy program. Weinstein argues that teachers are also learners who benefit from communities of peers who solve problems together.