Discussing difference: Color-blind collectivism and dynamic dissonance in two-way immersion contexts

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis comparative case study (based on observational, interview, and picture-sort data) examines how teachers and students talk about cultural, linguistic, racial, and socioeconomic difference in two elementary Spanish-English two-way immersion programs. In addition, I analyze how those discourses are associated with both contextual conditions and cross-cultural attitudes and behaviors. In one program, teachers used a discourse that minimized group difference and emphasized commonality, while in the other teachers expressed cognitive dissonance that stemmed from everyday interactions in a more diverse setting. These distinct discourses were associated with differing student outcomes. Based on these findings, I hypothesize that there may be a link between intergroup contact conditions and how people talk about difference. In turn, this process may impact how students engage in social categorization and develop positive cross-cultural attitudes and behaviors, an important goal of two-way immersion programs.