IN-PERSON MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY. SECTION B
Abstract
This study explores the experiences of four bilingual preservice teachers during their clinical teaching in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. These participants, enrolled in the final semester of the Bilingual Education program at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, were Spanish/English bilinguals with personal or familial ties to Mexico. Using the “4-trans” framework—transnationalism, translanguaging, transculturalism, and transdisciplinarity (Martínez-Prieto et al., 2025)—the researchers employed a qualitative methodology, analyzing 12 semi-structured interviews, lesson plans, and field notes. Findings reveal the intricate challenges preservice teachers face in multilingual and multicultural classrooms. While participants valued translanguaging as a pedagogical resource, they critiqued the prevailing English-dominant ideologies in Texas schools. They also noted that transnational students often encounter epistemological exclusion, as local educators may not recognize academic knowledge acquired outside the U.S. Furthermore, participants identified a lack of transdisciplinary cohesion in their teacher preparation programs, which hindered their ability to integrate broader knowledge systems into their practice. Despite these challenges, preservice teachers developed adaptive strategies such as “transnational mentorship,” in which participants used their linguistic and cultural assets to act as brokers of knowledge and culture, for their students to navigate linguistic, transnational, cultural, and epistemological borders. The study contributes to bilingual education scholarship by deepening understanding of the multifaceted realities at the borderlands, by building up on former research on mentorship (Harvey-Torres, 2022; Sada & Ward, 2022), resilience and community ties (Esparza, 2019; O’Donnell, 2023), and non-plus ultra ideologies (Martínez-Prieto & Zhou, 2024).
David Martínez‑Prieto is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Bilingual and Literacy Studies at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He earned his Ph.D. in Culture, Literacy, and Language from UT San Antonio and instructs future Spanish English bilingual and ESL teachers. His area of concentration examines the intersections of socio-economic, cultural, racial, and epistemological challenges that Mexican origin populations face in multilingual education in Mexico and the United States.
Dr. Sandra Musanti, a professor and department chair in BLS, contributes over two decades of experience in teacher education in the U.S. and Argentina. Her focus includes bilingual teacher preparation and community-engaged pedagogy. She is responsible for data collection and analysis, stakeholder engagement, publication, and team mentorship.
Dr. Xiaodi Zhou, an associate professor in BLS, provides methodological leadership in qualitative and dialogic research. With teaching experience in the U.S. and China and Spanish proficiency, he supports data analysis and dissemination in academic settings.
Dr. Melisa Vivanco, an assistant professor from the Philosophy Department at the Liberal Arts College at UTRGV, offers a philosophical and interdisciplinary perspective. Dr. Vivanco holds two doctorates, one in Philosophy and one in Mathematics. Based on her interdisciplinary perspective, Melisa helps interpret data bilingually, develop pedagogical materials, and connect abstract insights with educational practice.
9:30 am - 11:00 am
Thursday 25th June, 2026