Laura Hamman-Ortiz

Biography

Dr. Laura Hamman-Ortiz is an Assistant Professor of TESOL and Bilingual Education in the School of Education at the University of Rhode Island. She is an elective bilingual (English/Spanish) with over 15 years of experience supporting multilingual learners and their teachers, both in the United States (Texas, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Colorado, Rhode Island) and abroad (Chile, Ecuador, Spain).

Dr. Hamman-Ortiz teaches courses related to second language acquisition, ESL/bilingual teaching methods, educational linguistics, and foundations for multilingual learner education. She is committed to cultivating more critically-oriented, affirming, and inclusive learning spaces for multilingual students, particularly in/through bilingual education.

Research

Dr. Hamman-Ortiz’s research is situated at the intersection of applied linguistics and education, exploring how classroom language practices, policies, and ideologies shape the educational experiences of multilingual learners. Her primary interests include bilingual / dual language education, translanguaging pedagogy, student identity positioning, elementary writing instruction, and teacher learning and praxis. Current research projects include (1) mapping the dual language education landscape in Rhode Island, (2) engaging in translanguaging pedagogy design with teachers in dual language programs, and (3) exploring how two-way immersion programs navigate equity goals and commitments.

Her research has been published in a range of journals in the fields of applied linguistics, TESOL, literacy, and bilingual education, including: TESOL Quarterly, Language and Education, the Bilingual Research Journal, the International Journal for Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, the Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, and the Journal of Literacy Research.

Education

  • Ph.D., Curriculum and Instruction, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • M.Ed., Elementary Education, University of Notre Dame
  • B.A., English and Spanish, University of Notre Dame

Selected Publications

Mendoza, A., Hamman-Ortiz, L., Rajendram, S., Tian, Z., Tai, K. W. H., Ho, W. Y., Sah, P., Poza, L. (forthcoming). Sustaining critical approaches to translanguaging research in education. TESOL Quarterly.

Hamman-Ortiz, L. (forthcoming). “Because we are bilingual”: Transcending binaries in two-way immersion through collaborative bilingual identity texts. In L. Shepard-Carey & Z. Tian (Eds.), (Re)imagining the future of translanguaging pedagogies in classrooms through researcher-practitioner collaboration. Multilingual Matters.

Wolbers, K., Holcomb, L., & Hamman-Ortiz, L. (2023) Translanguaging framework for deaf education. Languages. 8(1), 59.

Hamman-Ortiz, L., & Palmer, D. (2023). Student perspectives on two-way bilingual education: Introduction to the special issue. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 26(1), 1-6.

Hamman-Ortiz, L. (2023). Becoming bilingual in two-way immersion: Patterns of investment in a second-grade classroom. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 26(1), 69-83. 

Compton-Lilly, C., Shedrow, S., Hagerman, D., Hamman-Ortiz, L., Chi, Y.K., Kim, J., Lee, S.Y., Papoi, K., Quast, E., Tiara, B.W., Zheng, B. (2022) Children in immigrant families becoming literate: A window into identity construction, transnationality, and schooling, Routledge.

Hamman-Ortiz, L., Lichon, K., Roach, C., & Harty, P. S. (2022). Strengthening and sustaining dual language education in Catholic schools. Journal of Catholic Education, 25(2), 136–166.

Hamman-Ortiz, L. & Prasad, G. (2022). Reimagining bilingual education: A linguistically expansive orientation. Journal of Language, Identity, and Education. Advance online publication. 

Hamman-Ortiz, L., Santiago Schwarz, V., Hamm Rodriguez, M., & Gort, M. (2022). Engaging teachers in genre-based pedagogy for writing arguments: A case study of shifts in practice and understanding. TESOL Quarterly. Advance online publication. 

Santiago Schwarz, V., & Hamman-Ortiz, L. (2020). Systemic functional linguistics, teacher education, and writing outcomes for U.S. English learners: A review of the literature. Journal of Second Language Writing, 40(100727), 1-12.

Hamman-Ortiz, L. (2019). Troubling the “two” in two-way bilingual education. Bilingual Research Journal, 42(4), 387–407.

Hamman, L. (2018). Translanguaging and positioning in dual language immersion: A case for criticality. Language and Education. 32(1), 21-42.

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