Heriberto Godina, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Literacy & Biliteracy; College of Education, University of Texas at El Paso. He conducts research on optimum literacy practices for culturally- and linguistically-diverse students and examines how their school experiences would allow for subsequent positive social mobility. His most recent research focuses on bridging the digital divide for English Language Learners, and how Spanish/English cross-linguistic phonology can be used as a tool to improve literacy instruction for ELLs. Dr. Godina presently serves as the co-editor for the Journal of Bilingual Education Research & Instruction, and he is also Chair for the Bilingual Education Research Special Interest Group for the American Educational Research Association. He is originally from El Paso and previously taught reading at Eastwood Middle School. After receiving his Master of Arts in Reading degree from the College of Education at UTEP, he received a doctorate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Godina is also notorious for rescuing stray animals who wander around his neigborhood. He has two dogs, named Timmy and Tara; two cats, named Ripley and Midnight; and two turtles, respectively named Big Turtle and Little Turtle.
Articles
Digital storytelling in Bhutan: A qualitative examination of new media tools used to bridge the digital divide in a rural community school (with Khendum Gyabak), Computers & Education (2011)
This qualitative study examines the use of digital storytelling as an instructional intervention for bridging...
Korean American cultural differences in classroom literacy activities: Observations from an ethnographic case study. (with Jeonghee Choi PhD), Journal of Multicultural, Gender and Minority Studies (2009)
This study explores teacher-student perceptions about cultural differences and their influence upon classroom literacy activities....
Contradictory literacy practices of Mexican-background students: An ethnography from the rural Midwest, Bilingual Research Journal (2004)
This ethnographic study explores the contradictory literacy practices of 10 high school students of Mexican...
Mesocentrism and students of Mexican background: A community intervention for culturally relevant instruction, Journal of Latinos in Education (2003)
How does the integration of information about a student's ancestral culture elicit a more positive...
Emic and etic perspectives on culturally-relevant text for all students: Moving beyond a tacit reading of Chicano Multicultural Literature (with R. McCoy), Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy (2000)
Books
Mexican American High-School Students in the Midwestern United States: An Ethnography of Home-School-Community Literacy & Learning Practices (2011)
This ethnographic study explores the literacy practices of 10 high-school students of Mexican background from...