Why Do Students' Languages Matter?

Summary

Students and families who come from the Freely Associated States (FAS) of the Pacific (the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia [FSM], and the Republic of Palau) have unique language backgrounds and experiences that shape how they navigate their education. Multilingual students will have varied experiences in multilingual contexts that influence how they adapt and thrive in any education system. These experiences will manifest in students' uses of language to make meaning across different social contexts (school, work, community) while using different language modes (listening, reading, writing, speaking). This infographic provides a high-level overview of languages in the FAS, how multilingual students navigate education within and outside of the FAS, and tips for educators and education systems on how to support FAS students.

• Dr. Katie Gao, REL Pacific (kgao@mcrel.org)

References Used in the Creation of the Infographic

Bloom, P., & Keil, F. C. (2001). Thinking through language. Mind & Language, 16(4), 351–367.

Choi, Y. (2013). Teaching social studies for newcomer English language learners: Toward culturally relevant pedagogy. Multicultural Perspectives, 15(1), 12–18.

Kaneshiro, S. M. & Black, R. S. (2012). Strengths and Resources of Micronesian Students in a Hawaiʻi Middle School. Pacific Educational Research Journal, 14(1), 43–66.

Mayfield, V. M., & Garrison-Wade, D. (2015). Culturally Responsive Practices as Whole School Reform. Journal of Instructional Pedagogies 16(1), 1–17.

Taira, D. (2020). “We Are Our History”: Reviewing the History of Education in Hawaiʻi and Oceania. History of Education Quarterly 60(4), 632–643. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1275538

REL Pacific. (2021). What do students' languages matter? [Infographic]. Getting to Know Pacific Island Students from the Freely Associated States Infographic Series. Institute of Education Sciences. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/ pacific/student-series/pacific-student-infographic-4.asp