Fordham Faculty in the Field: Serving Bilingual Education Classrooms

Diane Rodriguez

The High School for Health Careers and Sciences in the Washington Heights section of New York City offers students the opportunity to learn in their native language.

Diane Rodriguez, Ph.D., associate professor at Fordham’s Graduate School of Education (GSE), researches bilingual education, and in this video, she observes a class in action at the northern Manhattan school. In the video, she says that programs like this affirm the diversity of the students, develop critical thinking skills in two languages, manifest a positive classroom environment, and foster inclusion and participation of all students.

The high school’s Transitional Bilingual Program provides students with instruction in their native language in order to ensure students don’t fall behind in content areas while learning English.

“When schools promote the development of bilingual students’ first language,” says Rodriguez, “students tend to experience academic success.”

Watch the entire video below, and for more on multilingual education programs at GSE, visit the Fordham website.

-Rachel Roman

New Book Highlights Video Games' Educational Value

Let's get one thing out of the way. Stomping on yet another Koopa Troopa as you guide Mario to Princess Peach is not on par with plowing through a chapter of War & Peace.

That said, there is strong evidence that video games are a treasure trove of learning opportunities, says Fran Blumberg, Ph.D.

"Playing a video game does promote skills,” she said. “But the extent to which these skills have direct relevance on what one does in school remains to be seen.”

Blumberg, an associate professor of education and coordinator of the educational psychology program in Fordham's Graduate School of Education, has been researching video games since 1993, and recently finished editing a book on the subject.

Learning by Playing, (Oxford, 2014), which was published in April, brings together contributors from the fields of education, learning sciences, cognitive and developmental psychology, and instructional design, to provide perspectives on the most current thinking about leisure video game play for academic classroom learning.

The book is split into four sections:

-A foundational understanding of the cognitive skills and content knowledge that children and adolescents acquire and refine during video game play. 

-An exploration of game features that captivate and promote skills development among game players. 

-Sections on children and adolescents' learning in the context of different types of games and the factors that contribute to transfer of learning from video game play to the classroom. 

It all comes together with recommendations for how to investigate the academic potential of video game play, particularly using those games that child and adolescent players find most compelling. 

Whether that includes guiding Master Chief through battles between the United Nations Space Command and the Covenant, you'll have to read to find out.

—Patrick Verel 

Fordham Hosts Education Dean/New York Regents Meeting

The leaders of the institutions that train teachers came together on Monday, Nov. 7 at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus to meet with Merryl Tisch, the Chancellor of the New York Board of Regents.

The meeting, which was attended by John King, the New York State Commissioner of Education and New York area deans of schools of education, was meant to address changes being proposed for teacher evaluation and preparation.

James Hennessy, Ph.D., dean of the Fordham Graduate School of Education, chaired the meeting along with Joan Lucariello, Ph.D., University Dean for Academic Affairs The City University of New York.

“We’re joined here today by members of board who really committed to understanding your issues. We would prefer that you lay everything out so that some fresh air can enter the dialogue between us. It is not helpful for us if you have your conversations by phone with each other,” Tisch said.

“As with anything, there will points that can be addressed, there will be points of commonality, and then there will be points of disagreement. But if everything’s not on the table, then the conversation continues to take place in the shadows. This is our opportunity to get it out of the shadows.”

The three and half-hour meeting was dedicated to addressing:

-Race to the Top;
-Assessment of Teacher Educator Effectiveness;
-The Adequacy and Use of Video in Performances-Based Assessment
-College and Career Readiness

—Patrick Verel

GSE to Sponsor Early Childhood Development Conference

Fordham’s Graduate School of Education (GSE) will co-sponsor the 2011 Young Child Expo & Conference on April 7 and 8, in the Hotel Pennsylvania in Manhattan.

The conference, organized by Los Niños Services, brings together top leaders to provide the latest information about essential topics in early childhood development. Early childhood professionals and parents will also learn about services, resources and products to help all children reach their full potential. In one unique event, this conference integrates learning about typically developing children as well as those with special needs, including autism.

James Hennessy, Ph.D., dean of GSE, will present the Excellence in Early Childhood Award, to Ami Klim, Ph.D., director of the Autism Program at Yale University. The award recognizes early childhood professionals who are extraordinary champions and advocates for young children and their families. Klim has conducted groundbreaking research in the area of early assessment of autism.

Klim will deliver the keynote speech on Thursday, April 8, at 8:30 a.m.

For more information on program and speakers, or to register to attend the conference, please visit http://www.youngchildexpo.com/

Los Niños Services is a multilingual agency serving the developmental needs of young children and their families.

Founded in 1841, Fordham is the Jesuit University of New York, offering exceptional education distinguished by the Jesuit tradition to approximately 14,700 students in its four undergraduate colleges and its six graduate and professional schools.

-Gina Vergel

Fordham a Strong Presence in Presidential Management Fellowship Competition

Back in October, 2010, 9,100 graduate students from around the country applied to become Presidential Management Fellows. Of those, only 1,530 made it through the rigorous selection process to become semi-finalists, and ten of them hail from Fordham.

Henry Schwalbenberg, Ph.D., associate professor of Economics and Director of the Graduate Program in International Political Economy and Development (IPED), noted that the percentage of Fordham students who have made it this far (10 out of 39, or 26 percent) is much higher than the national average of 17 percent.

With five semi-finalists hailing from the School of Law, three from IPED, one from the Graduate School of Education (G.S.E.) and one from the Graduate School of Business Administration (G.B.A.), Fordham is well-positioned for one of the country’s most prestigious fellowships.

“The presidential management fellowship program is the flagship leadership development program for the federal government. It attracts and selects the best candidates coming out of America’s graduate schools,” he said. “It is designed to develop a cadre of potential government leaders for the future.”

The process of becoming a fellow is one that finishes in March, when 900 finalists are offered jobs within the federal government. Schwalbenberg noted that the final round of the process, which is taking place right now, involves a full day of interviews and observations in Washington D.C.

The payoff for such a grueling process is a two-year long fast track into the agencies that make the executive branch function. Former students who have completed the fellowship have gone on to work in the International Trade Administration, which is part of the Commerce Department, the Foreign Agricultural Service, which is part of the Department of Agriculture, the Department of the Treasury and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

“The aim is that towards the end of their career, these will be the leaders of the Civil Service,” Schwalbenberg said. “So they won’t be the political appointees, but they’ll be the people who actually run the bureaucracy for the different secretaries and political appointees.”

—Patrick Verel

GSE Poet Interviewed on Cable Arts Show

Donna Marie Reale has a lot of irons in the fire. The master’s degree candidate in Fordham’s Graduate School of Education is a teacher, a former businesswoman, a longtime Minister of the Word at St. Bartholomew Roman Catholic Church in Elmhurst, N.Y., and a poet. Tonight she’ll be a television star.

Reale will be interviewed by Tammy Nuzzo-Morgan, poet laureate of Suffolk County, on tonight’s TNSPS's Arts Forum, on Cablevision's Channel 20, at 5 p.m. Reale will read from and discuss her poetry on the show, broadcast live from Riverhead, N.Y.

An instructor at Kingsborough Community College, Reale teaches English as a Second Language to adult immigrant students, and is enrolled in The Graduate School of Education’s master of science program in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL), where she is a member of Phi Kappa Phi. She has a strong interest in linguistics and in preserving languages which are in danger of extinction, and is a member of Arba Sicula (“Sicilian Dawn”) which seeks to preserve the language and culture of Sicily.

Reale has been writing poetry since she was a child, and began reading her work aloud several years ago at the Italian American Poets and Writers Piazza, an annual event at Hofstra University. Much of her work is Christian spiritual in nature.

“We cannot deny the presence and interaction of the Divine in our daily lives and need to share that with others,” she says.

Her poems “The Camper” and “The Message” have been published in The Gospel magazine as well as on the website of Hudson Valley Catholics. Reale has a bachelor of science degree in marketing from St. John’s University.

GSE Students Present at NCTE

Kristen H. Turner, Ph.D., assistant professor of education at Fordham, attended the National Council of Teachers of English's convention in November, along with several students from the Graduate School of Education.

Graduate student Kathleen Riley participated in a panel in which she spoke on "Theory into Practice: My Journey with Code-Switching." GSE students Jeta Donovan and Eytan Apter presented findings from a research study in their talk "Online and In Step: Community, Convention, and Self-Expression." They have been a part of the study from its inception.

Yes, Fordham, There is a Virginia

Fordham has its share of famous alumni, but with Thanksgiving tomorrow and the official arrival of Santa Claus in New York (courtesy of the Macy’s parade), our thoughts turn to Virginia O'Hanlon, Ph.D., Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, 1930.

In 1897, Virginia, then eight years old, famously wrote the New York Sun from her family home at 115 West 95th Street in Manhattan to ask whether there was a Santa Claus.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Francis Pharcellus Church
The New York Sun
Sept. 21, 1897

(See the full text, original clipping and a picture of the extravagantly mustachioed Church at the Newseum website.)

Virginia, later Virginia O’Hanlon Douglas, went on to attend Hunter College, Columbia University and Fordham. She spent her entire career teaching in the New York City School System, and retired in 1959. She died on May 13, 1971, in Valatie, N.Y.

“What Church did was sustain a child's hope while giving her a statement of ideals that are worthwhile for the adult. He did not simply continue a myth. He gave a reason for believing,” William David Sloan, a journalism professor at the University of Arkansas, told the New York Times on the 100th anniversary of Church’s famous reply.

Sunday, Nov. 29, marks the beginning of Advent—an appropriate time to remember Virginia O’Hanlon’s timeless question, and Francis Church’s generous response. Fordham University wishes our readers a happy and safe Thanksgiving, and a joyous holiday season.

Updated Dec. 3, 2009

Bill Baker on How to Save the News

William F. Baker, Ph.D., the Claudio Aquaviva Chair and Journalist in Residence in Fordham’s Graduate School of Education, has posted an article and video on the PBS NOW website: "How to Save the News." Baker is the president emeritus of WNET, the country's largest PBS station.

Graduate School of Education Launches Blog

Fordham’s Graduate School of Education (GSE) officially launched its blog on Aug. 25 at fordhamgraded.blogspot.com. The blog, maintained by GSE’s Office of Admissions, Marketing & Media Relations will feature news and event listings, including:

• Announcements of new program launches and other GSE academic news.
• Notices from admissions, division offices, and the dean's office for prospective and current students, such as open houses, information sessions and deadlines.
• Notice of events open to GSE students, including lectures, conferences, happy hours, and other social events.
• Links to websites or current articles of interest to students and faculty in all divisions.
• Links to other Fordham blogs, as well as to faculty blogs or websites.
• Video clips
• Notice of faculty publications, as well as any additional faculty and student accomplishments.
• Graduation and honor society induction information.
• Student life information, including University and GSE services and resources available to GSE students.

GSE is seeking contributions from faculty, students and staff, including news items, publications, events, program updates, or other information. Send submissions for consideration to Michelle Adams at miadams@fordham.edu.

GSE Professor Bill Baker on Tavis Smiley Tonight

William F. Baker, Ph.D., the Claudio Aquaviva Chair and Journalist in Residence in Fordham’s Graduate School of Education, will be the guest on the Tavis Smiley Show, which airs at Midnight tonight on WNET 13/WLIW 21. (The show technically airs on Tuesday, May 12, 2009, at 12 a.m.)

Baker was named the Claudio Aquaviva Chair and Journalist in Residence at Fordham in October 2008, after 20 years as chief executive officer of the Educational Broadcasting Corporation (EBC).

Fordham Faculty Member Bill Baker Writes on Media

William F. Baker, Ph.D., the Claudio Aquaviva Chair and Journalist in Residence in Fordham’s Graduate School of Education, writes Perspectives on Media for WNET-13 at BLOGthirteen.

In today’s Media Briefing he says, “Just when you thought the saga of ousted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich couldn't get any stranger, it has. Blagojevich wants to star on the NBC reality show I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here!”

Silent Running

Sorry for the absence. The past week saw a lot of nasty head colds among the staff and several high profile events:

Fordham Law Kicks Off $100 Million Campaign
Bolivian President Outlines Plans for Sharing Nation's Wealth
Documentary Shows that Kindness Gets Results

We'll resume regular blogging tomorrow.

Business Leadership: A Lesson in Kindness

One of Fordham’s newest faculty members, William F. (Bill) Baker, Ph.D., University Professor and Journalist in Residence in the Graduate School of Education, will be airing a new program on Thirteen/WNET New York And WLIW21 New York, Leading with Kindness, an inside look at successful organizations and their leaders.

An expanding group of innovative executives have discovered a new and unusual way to increase profitability and productivity among their workers. The secret? They are leading their employees with kindness, as detailed in Baker and Michael O'Malley's book, Leading with Kindness: How Good People Consistently Get Superior Results (AMACOM, 2008).

Leading with Kindness
Sunday, October 19, 10 p.m. | WLIW New York
Sunday, November 23, 10 p.m. | Thirteen/WNET New York.

To dispel the notion that a boss has to be imperious to succeed, Thirteen/WNET president emeritus Baker and co-author O'Malley bring their book to public television viewers in the new one-hour special by the same name. The program, hosted by Baker, interviews executives of Google, Eileen Fisher and Pitney Bowes, among other leading firms. In addition to interviews with executives, the program features company profiles and expert commentary provided by O'Malley, and shows how leadership traits and business practices common among top executives have led to their company's growth and success.

Baker is president emeritus of Thirteen/WNET and executive in residence at Columbia University Business School. Michael O'Malley is senior editor for business, economics, and law at Yale University Press and adjunct professor at Columbia University Business School.