‘Good teaching for all students?’: sheltered instruction programming in Washington state language policy

Abstract

Many in the field of language policy have called for studies that connect policy texts at the macro level with their interpretations in districts, schools, and classrooms at the micro level. The purpose of this study is to trace Washington's educational language policy through the layers of interpretation to educational practice to see how the policy impacts educational opportunity for English language learners (ELLs). It examines a small school district where the sheltered instruction model is used in mainstream classrooms as the main form of programming for language minority students. We utilize a critical framework to make connections between macro- and micro-level policies as well as highlight the tension between policy structure and educator agency. Ethnographic methods are adopted to uncover the impacts of sheltered instruction as implemented in this context for students and we examine key issues in policy implementation for teachers and administrators in the district. Findings reveal the disconnect between state policy and educational practice and illuminate the reasons teachers struggle to make use of the sheltered instruction program model for their ELLs.