ELN101: Introduction to Bilingualism

Last update:

Course information

  • Instructor: Tomonori Nagano, Ph.D.
  • Syllabus: Download the syllabus
  • Homepage: https://www.t-nagano.com/mycourses/ELN101/
  • Email: tnagano@lagcc.cuny.edu
  • Phone: 718-482-5484
  • Office: B-234FF
  • Office hours: E-mail is preferred, with which you should expect my response within 24 hours. Also, please talk to me after class if you have any question about the class.
  • Class schedule (ELN101.0365 (32010)):
    • TH 11:45-12:45pm (online synchronous via Zoom)
    • online (2H asynchronous)
  • Class schedule (ELN101.0367 (32466)):
    • TH 4:35-5:35pm (online synchronous via Zoom)
    • online (2H asynchronous)

Online mode

Due to the health and safety concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic, almost all CUNY courses will be taught in the distance education (fully-online) mode in Fall 2020. Please see the links below for more information about the information and policies for the online instruction.
  1. Please see the links below for more information about the information and policies for the online instruction
  2. ELN101.0365 (32010) and ELN101.0367 (32466) will be taught fully online in the following way:
    • The class meet for 1 hour synchronously (at the fixed day and time every week using Zoom)
    • The class meet for 2 hours asynchronously (at any time during the week, usually using video lectures, discussion boards, group activities etc)
  3. Each lesson cycle (each week) is in the following structure.
    1. Reading: Each lesson has required readings. Links to the reading assignments will be posted on Blackboard.
    2. Reading comprehension (RC) questions: RC questions are on Blackboard. These questions are graded. This counts as your attendance for your asynchronous meeting.
    3. Mini lecture on the reading assignments: This must be watched before the synchronous meeting. Links to the mini lectures will be posted on Blackboard.
    4. Synchronous (live) meeting: During the synchronous meeting (on Zoom), we will review the topic(s) of the week and engage in group/individual work. Link to the synchronous meeting will be posted on Blackboard.
    5. Post-lecture comprehension (PLC) questions: PLC questions will be conducted at the end of the synchronous meeting. This counts as your attendance for your synchronous meeting. These questions are graded.
    6. Post-lecture activity (PLA): Each topic has a post-lecture activity (PLA), which must be submitted before the next lecture. The post-lecture activity is graded.
  4. In order to participate in class fully, you will need the following resources or equipment.
    • High-speed Internet access: Internet speedtest by Ookla: https://www.speedtest.net. For a Zoom video conference, you should have an internet speed of 0.8Mbp (at least), 3.0Mbps (optimally), or faster. Each Zoom group meeting will need a bandwidth between 0.5GB-2.4GB/hr.
    • A desktop or laptop computer
    • A webcam for video conferencing (built-in webcam is fine): Check webcam online: https://webcammictest.com. You can also check your webcam, microphone, and speakers with Zoom's test meeting page at https://zoom.us/test.
    • Headphones with a microphones (built-in speakers & mic are also fine): Check microphone online at https://mictests.com and check speakers online at https://www.audiocheck.net/
  5. Course communication will take place on two platforms on Blackboard and Slack.
    1. Blackboard : Visit https://www.laguardia.edu/blackboard/ or https://www.cuny.edu/blackboard to access Blackboard.
    2. Slack : The URL for Slack is https://LG-ELN101-F20.slack.com. The sign-up link is https://t-nagano.info/3buDQjH .

Weekly schedule

Class Topic
  • Course outline, grade policy, syllabus, homework & exams
  • Linguistic Diversity in the U.S.
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, September 20, 2020
  1. Submit your information on the following forms
  2. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Wiley, T. G. & Bhalla, S. (2017). The Demographics of Heritage and Community Languages in the United States. (3). In O. Kagan, M. Carreira, & C. Hitchens-Chik (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Heritage Language Education. (pp. 33-47). New York, NY: Routledge.
    • [only a few pages] Nagano, T. (2015). Demographics of Adult Heritage Language Speakers in the United States: Differences by Region and Language and their Implications. The Modern Language Journal, 99(4), 771-792. (read only p.772 and pp.788-791)
  3. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account. Your readings materials and reading comprehension (RC) questions assignments are posted on Blackboard.
  4. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week01 Class website and syllabus
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week01 Intro to Blackboard
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week01 Intro to Slack
    • [optional] ELN101 Mini-lecture Week01 Intro to the post-lecture activity for Week 01
    • Do the post-lecture comprehension (PLC) questions on BlackBoard .
  5. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, September 17. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  6. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Linguistic autobiography
    • Your first post-lecture activity (PLA) is due on Sunday, September 20, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  7. Q&A (on Slack )
Class Topic
  • Linguistic Diversity in New York City
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, September 27, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Labo, A. P. & Salvo, J. J. (2013). A Portrait of New York’s Immigrant Mélange. In N. Foner (Ed.), One Out of Three: Immigrant New York in the Twenty-First Century. (pp. 35-63). New York, NY: Columbia University Press.
    • Optional: Labo, A. P. & Salvo, J. J. (2013). The Newest New Yorkers: Characteristics of the City's Foreign-born Population. Department of City Planning, the City of New York.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account. Your readings materials and reading comprehension (RC) questions assignments are posted on Blackboard.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week02 Language Access
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week02 Language Access Mini-project
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week02 U.S. Census Language Data
    • [optional] ELN101 Mini-lecture Week02 Bonus Exercise Information
    • Do the post-lecture comprehension (PLC) questions on Blackboard.
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, September 24. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: MTA language access mini-project
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, September 27, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
Class Topic
  • Different Types of Bilingualism
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, October 4, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Wei, L. (2007). Dimensions of bilingualism. In L. Wei (Ed.), The Bilingualism Reader. (pp. 3-25). New York, NY: Routledge.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account. Your readings materials and reading comprehension (RC) questions assignments are posted on Blackboard.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week03 Bilingual Types
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week03 PLA Interview Questions
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week03 Language vs. Dialect
    • Do the post-lecture comprehension (PLC) questions on Blackboard.
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, October 1. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Developing questionnaire items for the interview with an urban bilingual
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, October 4, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
Class Topic
  • Introduction to Interview Research and Transcript Analysis
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, October 11, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Merriam, S. B. & Tisdell, E. J. (2015). Conducting Effective Interviews. In Qualitative Research: A Guide to Design and Implementation. (only pp. 117-130). Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account. Your readings materials and reading comprehension (RC) questions assignments are posted on Blackboard.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week04 What's happening in Week04
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week04 Research Paper 1 Interview with Bilingual
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week04 How to Take Quiz on Blackboard
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week04 PLA Preparing for Quiz 1
    • Do the post-lecture comprehension (PLC) questions on Blackboard.
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, October 8. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Preparing for the Quiz 1
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, October 11, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
Class Topic
  • Views on Language Diversity in the U.S.
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, October 18, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Garcia (2009). Ch. 1 Introducing Bilingual Education (pp.3-20)
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account. Your readings materials and reading comprehension (RC) questions assignments are posted on Blackboard.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week05 What's happening in Week05
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week05 PLA How to Transcribe Interviews
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week05 Three Orientations toward Bilingual Education
    • Do the post-lecture comprehension (PLC) questions on Blackboard.
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, October 15. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Conducting and transcribing your interview
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, October 18, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Quiz 1
    • The Quiz 1 is posted on Blackboard. You can take the quiz anytime before Sunday, October 25, 2020. It is a timed quiz (35 min) and you need to complete the entire quiz when you start it. Please watch the mini-lecture on how to take a quiz on Blackboard before taking your quiz.
Class Topic
  • Individual Bilingualism
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, October 25, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Garcia (2009). Ch. 3 Bilingualism and Translanguaging (pp.42-72)
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week06 What's happening in Week06
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, October 22. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Developing an e-Portfolio page for ELN101
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, October 25, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Quiz 1
    • The Quiz 1 is posted on Blackboard. You can take the quiz anytime before Sunday, October 25, 2020. It is a timed quiz (35 min) and you need to complete the entire quiz when you start it. Please watch the mini-lecture on how to take a quiz on Blackboard before taking your quiz.
  8. Research Paper 1
    • Your research paper is due on Sunday, November 1, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
Class Topic
  • Individual/Small-group meetings
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, November 1, 2020
  1. Individual/small-group meetings
    • Make an appointment for individual/small-group meetings with the instructor at https://calendly.com/tnagano
    • Be ready to discuss your assignments and research paper 1
  2. There is no reading, RC, PLC, and PLA this week
  3. There is no synchronous (live) session this week
  4. Q&A (on Slack )
  5. Research Paper 1
    • Your research paper is due on Sunday, November 1, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
Class Topic
  • First Language Acquisition
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, November 8, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Lightbown, P. & Spada, N. (2013). Language Learning in Early Childhood. In How Languages are Learned. (pp. 5-34). Cambridge, Mass.: Oxford University Press
    • [optional] Lightbown, P. & Spada, N. (2013). Individual Differences in Second Language Learning. In How Languages are Learned. (pp. 75-101). Cambridge, Mass.: Oxford University Press.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week08 What's happening in Week08
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture First Language Acquisition Theories
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, November 5, 2020. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Identifying developmental stages of infants' utterances
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, November 8, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Research Paper 1 (revision)
    • Your revised research paper is due on Sunday, November 8, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
Class Topic
  • Second Language Acquisition
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, November 15, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Lightbown, P. & Spada, N. (2013). Individual Differences in Second Language Learning. In How Languages are Learned. (pp. 75-101). Cambridge, Mass.: Oxford University Press.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week09 What's happening in Week09
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Second Language Acquisition Theories
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Correlation vs. Causation
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, November 12, 2020. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Identifying developmental stages of infants' utterances
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, November 15, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Quiz 2
    • The Quiz 2 is posted on Blackboard. You can take the quiz anytime before Sunday, November 22, 2020. It is a timed quiz (35 min) and you need to complete the entire quiz when you start it. Please watch the mini-lecture on how to take a quiz on Blackboard before taking your quiz.
Class Topic
  • Bilingualism: An Asset or a Liability in the U.S.?
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, November 22, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Bialystok, E. (2009). Bilingualism: The good, the bad, and the indifferent. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 12(1), 3-11.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week10 What's happening in Week10
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Research Paper 2
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, November 19, 2020. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Summarizing articles about bilingual benefits and disadvantages
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, November 22, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Quiz 2
    • The Quiz 2 is posted on Blackboard. You can take the quiz anytime before Sunday, November 22, 2020. It is a timed quiz (35 min) and you need to complete the entire quiz when you start it. Please watch the mini-lecture on how to take a quiz on Blackboard before taking your quiz.
Class Topic
  • No class (Thanksgiving)


Class Topic
  • History of Bilingualism and Language Policies in the U.S.
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, December 6, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Dicker, S. (2003). The Modern Official-English Movement. In Languages in America: A Pluralist View. (pp. 164-215). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week11 What's happening in Week11
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, December 3, 2020. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: Legislations and court cases about the bilingual education in the U.S.
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, December 6, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Overdue Assignments
    • The old/overdue assignments were put back on Blackboard. Please submit any missing work by Sunday, December 6, 2020.
Class Topic
  • Bilingualism education programs in the U.S.
What you should do this week Deadline is on Sunday, December 13, 2020
  1. Read (link to the readings is in the welcome e-mail):
    • Baker, C. & Wright, W. E. (2017). Types of Bilingual Education. In Foundations of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. (pp. 196-213). New York, NY: Multilingual Matters.
  2. RC (on BlackBoard )
    • Log in with your CUNYFirst account.
  3. Mini lectures (on YouTube; find the link is in the welcome e-mail ) and PLC (on BlackBoard )
    • ELN101 Mini-lecture Week12 What's happening in Week12
  4. Synchronous (live) session (Zoom; find the link in the welcome e-mail )
    • Join the synchronous meeting on Zoom on Thursday, December 10, 2020. You can find the link to the Zoom meeting on Blackboard.
  5. PLA (on BlackBoard )
    • PLA: xxxxx
    • This week's PLA is due on Sunday, December 13, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.
  6. Q&A (on Slack )
  7. Quiz 3
    • The Quiz 3 is posted on Blackboard. You can take the quiz anytime before Sunday, December 13, 2020. It is a timed quiz (35 min) and you need to complete the entire quiz when you start it. Please watch the mini-lecture on how to take a quiz on Blackboard before taking your quiz.
  8. Research Paper 2
    • Your research paper 2 is due on Sunday, December 13, 2020. Submit it through Blackboard.

Lecture Slides

Post-Lecture Activity (PLA) Instructions

Instructions for Research Papers