Learning and not Learning English

A rich qualitative and compelling case for attending to the complexity and power of acknowledging and being responsive to language learning inside and outside those places we call school. - Eugene E. Garcia, Professor and Dean, University of California, Berkeley ""Riveting, courageous, and forthright. Dr. Valdes exposes the inequities of the lack of access to knowledge that middle school and high school immigrant students face in the teaching and learning of academic English, and shows us that we need to seriously revamp how we teach English as a second language or we will continue to fail future generations."" - Barbara M. Flores, Professor of Education, California State University, San Bernardino ""Helps the reader see how access to English and to academic knowledge is denied by the same structures and policies that aim to help. In essence, Valdes documents how schools and children collude to not learn, the frustration of children when their motivation structures are shattered, and the structures that become the traps of the system."" - Maria E. Torres-Guzman, Program in Bilingual/Bicultural Education, Teachers College, Columbia University