Title Program Director: PhD and EdD Degrees in Curriculum and. Instruction. Program Leader: MS in C & I English Educ
FACULTY ACADEMIC PROFILE
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION DR. LINDA A. SPEARS-BUNTON
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR/C&I DOCTORAL PROGRAM LEADER
ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS Title Program Director: PhD and EdD Degrees in Curriculum and Instruction Program Leader: MS in C & I English Education Track Associate Professor of English Education Appointed Graduate Faculty PROGRAM AFFILIATIONS Department of Teaching and Learning African and African Diaspora Studies Latin American and Caribbean Center EDUCATION Ed D (1992) The University of Kentucky, Curriculum and Instruction. Specialization: Literature, Literature, Literacy and Culture MA. (1971) Stanford University, Secondary School English; Literature, Language and Culture BA (1970) Holy Names University, English and History CONTACT OFFICE
ZEB 351-A
ADDRESS
11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199-0001
PHONE
305-348-2976
E-MAIL
[email protected]
SUMMARY PROFILE Dr. Linda Spears-Bunton taught English in high school, community college, a factory and the university before becoming an Assistant Professor at FIU in 1993. She was an early pioneer in developing literacy programs that included multiple cultural perspectives in school literacy and language programs. In 1997 she was awarded a university Excellence in Teaching Award, and in 1998 she was promoted to Associate Professor. Dr. Spears-Bunton served for three years as Associate Director of African New World Studies (re-named African and African Diaspora Studies) at Florida International University. She teaches classes in advanced methods of teaching English in the secondary school, masters and doctoral seminars in English education, Pedagogy in the African Diaspora and classes in adolescent/multicultural literature. Her research focuses upon the interrelationships among literature, literacy and culture within mainstream groups and people who have historically been marginalized in society. She created and for eight years directed Teachers' Summer Institute in Grenada, West Indies. This Institute was designed to build bridges through cross cultural learning and understanding and to foster high academic achievement among teachers and students of the African Diaspora. She describes herself as “fortunate to be called teacher,” a perennial learner and a dreamer. She is the recipient of numerous awards for excellence in scholarship, community activism and teaching. Her publications reflect the interdisciplinary nature of her work and include an encyclopedia, journals, books and monographs. Currently she serves as the Program Director for the EdD and PhD programs in Curriculum and Instruction.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
The interrelationships among language, literacy, culture and academic achievement among adolescent learners. African Diasporic, Latino and Adolescent Literature
SELECTED ACADEMIC ADMINISTRATIVE APPOINTMENTS FACULTY
Associate Professor of English Education
1993-present
DIRECTOR
PhD and EdD Degree Programs in Curriculum and Instruction
2010-present
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
African and African Diaspora Studies (formerly African New World Studies
2001-2004
SELECTED COURSES TAUGHT LAE 6339 Advanced Methods of Teaching English in the Secondary School. Graduate. LAE 7938: Doctoral Seminar in English Education: Composition: Research, Theory and Classroom Practices. LAE 5426: Multicultural Perspectives in Language and Literature AFA 5107: Pedagogy in the African Diaspora
SELECTED PROFESSIONAL & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
2003-Present: FLASC: Florida of Africana Studies Consortium: Board Member. SELECTED SCHOLARLY AND PROFESSIONAL WORK SELECTED REFEREED JOURNAL ARTICLES, BOOK CHAPTERS
Barbetta, P. and Spears-Bunton, L.A. (2007) Literacy technology for students with disabilities in secondary inclusive classrooms. The English Journal, 96, 4 86-93. SELECTED BOOKS
Spears-Bunton, L. A. & Powell, R. (2008). (Eds.), Toward a literacy of promise: Joining the African American struggle. NY:Routledge. SELECTED OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Spears-Bunton, L. A. (2008). The obscured white voice in the multicultural debate: Race, space and gender. In L. A. Spears-Bunton & R Powell (2008). (Eds.), Toward a literacy of promise: Joining the African American struggle (pp. 105-123). NY:Routledge. Spears-Bunton, L. A. (2008). Gumbo. In C. Boyce Davies (Ed.). Encyclopedia of the African diaspora: Origins, experiences & culture. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO Spears-Bunton, L. A. (2000). Calypso, jazz. reggae, salsa:Literature, response and the African Diaspora. In N. Karolides (Ed.). Reader response in the classroom, second edition. (pp. 311-326). NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. SELECTED REFEREED CONFERENCE PAPERS
Spears-Bunton, L. A., Powell, R. & Blake, I. (2008). Toward a Literacy of Promise: African American Experiences. The National Council of Teachers of English. San Antonio, TX. Spears-Bunton, L. A. Literacy, Law and Colonizing Africans in the US. (2007) African Literature Association, May 17-21, Accra, Ghana Spears-Bunton, L. A. (March 22, 2003). Along the Road to Social Justice: Literacy in African Diasporic Communities. The African Literature Association 29th. Annual Conference. Alexandria, Egypt.
SELECTED RECENT SPONSORED SCHOLARSHIP CO-PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Co-P. I. The Children’s Trust: $471,000.
SELECTED RECOGNITION
1997 1997
Florida International University Faculty Teaching Award TIP Award For Excellence in Teaching, Florida International University
2004-2006:
