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Electrical Coagulation of Synthetic Produced Water Using a Continuous Flow Reactor
No full textProduced water (PW) is a byproduct of oil and gas mining that is a major concern due to the large volume that is being generated as well as the narrow recycling capabilities without extensive treatment. A promising treatment technology for PW that has been discussed in scientific literature is electrocoagulation (EC). This study looked at the viability of a continuous flow EC system to treat synthetic PW by using a continuous EC reaction basin which was made to treat synthetic produced water using aluminum electrodes as the source of coagulant. Experimental runs were used to give a general understanding of the effectiveness of the treatment by changing applied conditions. Results have shown the reduction of target water quality parameters such as turbidity and total organic carbon (TOC). Future EC studies will analyze its effects on heavy metals, PW, and the theoretical economic viability of using EC treatment technology for PW
Optimizing Omnivory: Quantifying Digestive Efficiency in Response to Different Diets in the Day Gecko, Phelsuma grandis
No full textMany organisms possess physiological and morphological adaptations, coupled with symbiotic relationships with specialized microbes in their gut to help them maximize the efficiency of digestion. Omnivores, particularly those that eat arthropods and plants, must digest both chitin and cellulose, two compounds that are notoriously hard to break down. This investigation documents how changes in diets acutely impact digestive efficiency in the gastrointestinal tracts of a reptilian omnivore. A sample of day geckos (Phelsuma grandis) are fed three distinct dietary regimens: arthropod only, fruit only, and a combination of both. Here, we report baseline differences in digestive efficiency for future complementary studies using chronic treatments and microbiome assays. This study not only contributes to our knowledge of reptilian digestive physiology, but also sheds light on the intricate interplay between diet, gut microbiota, and overall digestive efficiency in these organisms
Indexicalities of a haiga: a transfronterizo sociolinguistic stereotype in an educational setting
Get PDFCultura y (ataque de) Corazón: A Training for Health Professionals needing Medical Interpretation Services
No full textLimited English proficiency is a known barrier to quality health care outcomes (Green 2017, Helmi 2021). Inclusion of a certified language interpreter during health care encounters improves outcomes among ESL (English as a Second Language) patients (Karliner, Jacobs, Chen, and Mutha 2007). Interpretation with a certified interpreter promotes understanding between patients and their medical providers, and advances both health and race equity (Foiles Sifuentes, Robledo Cornejo, Castaneda-Avila, Tija, and Lapane 2020). Most health care workers receive no formal training in how to use an interpreter with limited English-proficiency patients. Located in the Hispanic Heritage District of an increasingly Latine mid-sized city in New York State, our training focuses on Spanish speaking patients.
Methods
This innovative program uses simulation to teach learners how to use an Interpreter. Learners watch vignettes, and then debrief with faculty. Vignettes point out pitfalls of not using a certified interpreter, such as using a Spanish-speaking janitor, or family member. Vignettes were built in collaboration between the Spanish, MFA, and Physician Assistant programs at the University. During the session, learners also play a game of our invention. This game imitates the feeling many non-English-speaking patients have of being misunderstood and misunderstanding; building empathy for the fear of leaving a medical appointment without full comprehension.
Results
Results of pilot pre- and post- test data show statistically significant improvement in students’ understanding of how to use a medical interpreter, why to use one, and their likelihood of requesting formal interpretation services in future encounters. The students also enjoyed the experience and would recommend it to peers. The implications of the training may increase access to high quality health care for non-English-speaking community members, better health equity, and decrease pay inequity for multilingual health professionals. A more engaged community is a healthier one, and this training helps achieve that goal
From language brokering to professional translation in HL education
Get PDFResearch has shown that language brokering—i.e., the language practice whereby bi/multilingual individuals with no formal training in translation or interpreting linguistically mediate between two or more parties, usually adult family members and individuals from the dominant culture (Kam, 2011)—is a common language practice of heritage language (HL) speakers (e.g., Antonini, 2015; Cline et al., 2010; Hall & Sham, 2007; Kwon 2014; López, Lezama & Heredia, 2019; Orellana, Dorner & Pulido, 2003). Despite HL education’s recognition, validation, and integration of students’ language varieties and diverse community practices, language brokering is rarely acknowledged in pedagogical proposals and consequently not integrated as a language practice in classroom settings.
Therefore, this research-based presentation examines the connections between language brokering research and HL education and offers pedagogical recommendations to integrate students’ language brokering experiences in the HL classroom. First, the importance of explicitly recognizing and validating HL students’ language brokering experiences is discussed, and then, considerations to promote the development of professional translation and interpreting skills building on students’ language brokering experiences are offered. Recommendations will also be offered about engaging students as translators in their local communities through community-engaged learning practices. These considerations may serve as a starting point for researchers and practitioners to integrate translation and interpreting more systematically into HL courses and programs
¡Nuestra historia es importante! Centering Ethnic Studies in the Spanish as a Heritage Language Classroom
No full textTile of presentation
¡Nuestra historia es importante! Centering Ethnic Studies in the Spanish as a Heritage Language Classroom
Abstract for conference program
In the first part of this presentation, I will share my testimonio, which centers my lived experiences as a heritage speaker who became a SHL educator. In the second part I will share a unit rooted in Ethnic/Chicano studies that I designed and have implemented in my SHL classroom.
Presentation description
For numerous heritage speakers, Spanish as a Heritage Language (SHL) classes are their first opportunity to further develop their heritage language in an academic setting. SHL classes have evolved from being rooted in an eradication approach, that aimed to replace students’ home language practices, to a critical approach that centers the language and cultural practices of heritage speaking students. Although SHL scholars’ theoretical and practical efforts have pushed the SHL field to be grounded in social justice, not much research has documented the intersections between Ethnic Studies and SHL classes. SHL classes were established as a result of the Chicano and Puerto Rican Movements of the late 1960s (Aparicio, 1997), yet this history and literature is hardly ever included in SHL curriculum. There is research proving that Ethnic Studies contributes to the academic achievement of Students of Color, yet limited research explores the implementation of Ethnic/Chicano Studies in the SHL classroom.
Drawing from Chicana Feminist theory and methodologies, I will share my testimonio, including reflections of my lived experiences as a heritage speaker turned SHL educator. I will start by sharing my journey of coming to critical consciousnesses which facilitated my understanding that I experienced a Eurocentric education that excluded my history and language and that of other U.S. Latinx communities across the educational pipeline. I will share mi travesía to reclaim my history, language and culture and how these experiences directly inform my SHL teaching practices. Afterwards, I will share a unit I designed for the SHL classroom that centers Ethnic Studies. I will end by providing a pedagogical reflection of the unit implementation. This unit provided my heritage speaking students with an opportunity to see not only their language and culture but also their histories at the core of our SHL classroom.
Three to five learning objectives
The audience will be able to...
Reflect on the importance of designing a curriculum that is reflective of their students ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
Understand the importance of reflecting on how their lived experiences can influence their teaching practices
Utilize the unit provided as a resource to begin centering Ethnic/Chicano studies in their SHL classroo
Mi idioma, mi cultura: Understanding Linguistic Oppression and Promoting Cultural Pride
Get PDFMi idioma, mi cultura”: a Heritage Spanish unit addressing language loss and cultural identity. This presentation unveils a unit tailored for suburban Chicago students, tackling language loss and Hispanic diaspora challenges. Through diverse methodologies, students explore historical and contemporary issues, fostering empathy and advocacy for linguistic diversity. Real-life narratives, interactive activities, and student-driven solutions intertwine to nurture cultural pride and preservation
Diverse voices and experiences: Insights from SHL students and instructors in the Midwest
Get PDFEnrollment in university Spanish heritage language (SHL) program benefits learners via gains in cultural pride, linguistic self-confidence, Latinx college retention rates, and overall personal and academic benefits (e.g., Beaudrie & Ducar, 2005; Holguín Mendoza 2018; Prada & Pascual y Cabo, 2022). Over the past decade the number of SHL programs in U.S. universities has continued to rise, including in regions such as the Midwest without “long-established Spanish-speaking communities” (Beaudrie, 2012). The present study represents the next step in understanding what creates the success of an SHL program comprising of six intermediate and advanced course offerings in a large Midwest university. Pilot data on students in SHL courses in our university in the Midwest showed that students increased their appreciation of linguistic variation, began challenging standard language ideologies, desired the incorporation of culture in the classroom and differentiated in the need to find community in the classroom/city.
This study builds on current knowledge of the program’s success by incorporating pre and post surveys at the beginning and end of the semester – which serves to further delineate the extent to which enrollment in the SHL program achieves HL instructor goals through a Critical Language Awareness (CLA) lens (Beaudrie & Wilson, 2022). The methodology was then triangulated by student-only focus groups based on the themes identified in the survey answers. Pre-survey general trends suggest positive experiences in the program, feeling welcome to Spanish variation, translanguaging and self-expression, and appreciation for instructors, and CLA approaches. We predict that post-survey data will demonstrate an array of differences in the progression of student course outcomes related to instructors’ linguistic and pedagogical background. Some implications include the value of instructor training and language ideologies in SHL programs, while also highlighting instructor willingness to empathize to non-pedagogical student needs.
Key Words: Spanish Heritage Learners, Instructor training, language ideologies, critical language awareness, dialectal variation, pedagogical goals
References
Beaudrie, S. M. & Ducar, C. (2005). Beginning level university heritage programs: Creating a space for all heritage language learners. Heritage Language Journal, 3(1), 1-26.
Beaudrie, S. (2012). Research on university-based Spanish heritage language programs in the United States: The current state of affairs. In Spanish as a heritage language in the United States: The state of the field (pp. 203-221). Georgetown University Press.
Beaudrie, S. M. & Vergara Wilson, D. (2022). Reimagining the goals of HL pedagogy through Critical Language Awareness. In S. Loza & S. M. Beaudrie (Eds.), Heritage Language Teaching.
Holguín Mendoza, C. (2018). Critical language awareness (CLA) for Spanish heritage language programs: Implementing a complete curriculum. International Multilingual Research Journal, 12(2), 65-79.
Prada, J., & y Cabo, D. P. (2022). Toward an Understanding of the Relationship between Heritage Language Programs and Latinx Student Retention: An Exploratory Case Study. Outcomes of University Spanish Heritage Language Instruction in the United States, 169
Exploring Spanish Heritage Speakers’ Coping Mechanisms to Manage Name-based Microaggressions
Get PDFSpanish Heritage Speakers (HSs) in the U.S. can be the target of indirect acts of discrimination related to their ethnolinguistic identity (Ayón & Philbin, 2017). Name-based microaggressions are subtle insults directed at marginalized groups or individuals as a reaction, often unconscious or automatic, to their given name. This can include mispronunciation, renaming practices or indexical bleaching of an ethnic name (i.e., Bucholtz, 2005; Ayón & Philbin, 2017). Although it may seem harmless to a casual observer, students exposed to name-related subtle discrimination can experience feelings of othering, hyper-awareness, and unconscious internalization of harmful racial ideologies directed towards their ethnoracial group (i.e., Kohli & Solórzano, 2012; Ayón & Philbin, 2017; Bucholtz, 2016). Informed by Critical Race Theory and critical raciolinguistic scholarship, this study seeks to answer the following three questions: Do Spanish heritage speakers experience name-based microaggressions? What coping mechanisms do heritage speakers utilize to counteract name-based microaggressions in the educational setting? What specific strategies could be implemented in the SHL classroom to encourage student agency? To answer these questions, we surveyed a total of 95 college-age Spanish heritage speakers across the country. Participants were asked to complete an online Qualtrics questionnaire on their experiences with name-based microaggressions. This questionnaire consisted of eleven background questions adapted from the Bilingual Language Profile (Birdsong, Gertken & Amengual, 2012), and twelve critical questions about the topic under study. Furthermore, small focus groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted to expand on students’ coping mechanisms regarding name-related microaggressive experiences. In line with previous research, preliminary findings indicate that HSs often utilize avoidance, internalization, and assimilation strategies to fend off uncomfortable interactions or feelings of distress. Other coping mechanisms include choosing when and where to assert their ethnolinguistic identity, and when/where to adapt to other’s expectations of them. This study contributes to our understanding of Spanish heritage speakers’ racialized realities and raciolinguistic microaggressions in the learning environment
