Faculty | M.A. in P-12 Multilingual, Multicultural Education
Julianne Bryant
- Chair, Department of Modern Languages
- Associate Professor of Modern Languages
- Ph.D., Temple University
- M.A., Temple University
- M.A., Marywood University
- B.S.W., Cabrini College
- B.A. Cabrini College
Julianne Bryant earned a bachelor's degree in Spanish and a Bachelor of Social Work from Cabrini College in Radnor, Pennsylvania. She also earned a Master of Arts in Bicultural/Bilingual Studies from Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania. She completed a master's degree and a doctorate in Spanish from Temple University with a specialization in Hispanic Linguistics. Her dissertation was...
Luciano Cid
- Director of Elementary Education
- Associate Professor
- Ed.D., Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, CA
- Ed.M., The Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA
- MAT, Chapman University, Orange, CA
- B.A., California State University of Fullerton
Luciano Cid grew up in Argentina until he was thirteen years of age. It was then when his parents made the complex decision to immigrate to the United States in search of a better life for their children. At the beginning, Cid struggled both socially and academically, which was something he had never experienced before. With time, he began to be able to communicate using his second language...
Research Interests
- Examining the interactions that exist between neurology, psychology, education, and spirituality/religion.
- Investigating, designing, and implementing redemptive classroom management systems, investigating how teachers can parallel the ways in which the Judeo-Christian God has chosen to disciple rather than simply just discipline or punish His creation.
- The role of empathy and grace in maintaining a child’s ability to develop well balanced interpersonal, intrapersonal, academic, and professional lives.
- The lack of gender, ethnic, and multilingual diversity within the teaching staff of schools (in particular pre-schools and elementary schools), the impact that this lack of diversity has on students, and how policy could provide solutions for it.
- The necessity to add a third dimension (i.e., appropriate pedagogical techniques) to the two-dimensional model introduced by Anderson, Krathwohl, et. al (2001) during their revision of Bloom’s taxonomy.
Carolina Serna
- Director of Bilingual Authorization (BILA)
- Associate Professor
Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
M.Ed., University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Multiple Subject Credential, with Bilingual Cross-cultural Language Development Credential (BCLAD), University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Carolina Serna began her teaching career in 1991 in the Culver City Unified School District as a third grade bilingual teacher. Her teaching experience at the elementary level in rural, inner city and suburban settings, and at the university level, continue to inform her teaching and research.
Her areas of research include literacy development in sociocultural contexts and teacher preparation...
Courses
- SEED520/LEDU420 English Language Arts/Reading
- SEED549/LEDU380 Children's Literature
- SEED535/LEDU335 Child Development: Birth to Adolescence
- SEED541/LEDU341 Methods of Teaching Linguistically Diverse Children
Research Interests
- Literacy/Biliteracy
- Bilingual Education
- Teacher Preparation
Nicholas Block
- Professor
- Ph.D., Claremont Graduate University
- M.Div., Fuller Theological Seminary
- B.A., Stanford University
After beginning his career in education as a science teacher in Bogotá, Colombia in 1984, Nick Block has worked most of his years in the U.S. as a public school teacher in grades three to five in a variety of language settings. At Biola, Block has taught since 2014 in the undergraduate, graduate, and Induction/Clear Credential programs. He has mainly taught courses in philosophy of education,...
Research Interests
- Dual-language Schools
- Vocabulary Development
- Spiritual Lives of Teachers
Jenna Canillas
- Chair of M.A., P-12 Multilingual, Multicultural Education
- Associate Professor
- Ph.D., University of California Riverside
- M.A., Biola University
- B.A., Bethel College
Jenna Canillas specializes in the area of English learners and second language acquisition. Her professional roles have included professor, classroom teacher, District ELD Coach, Program Specialist for District English Learner Programs, Program Specialist for Gifted and Talented Education, and new teacher mentor as a BTSA support provider and academy instructor. Canillas holds a M.A. in Applied...
Research Interests
- Second language acquisition
- Multilingual learners
- Multicultural education
- Technology in education
- Asset-based education
- Gifted education
Michael Lessard-Clouston
- Professor and Chair of TESOL
- Ph.D., University of Toronto
- M.Ed., University of Toronto
- M.T.S., Tyndale Seminary
- Hons. B.A., York University
Michael Lessard-Clouston aims to help equip students for a variety of careers that address language-related issues. Before coming to Biola in 2005, he served for 10.5 years as a professor of English and Language Education at Kwansei Gakuin University in Nishinomiya, Japan. His doctoral work was on second language education and literacy, and he is on the review boards for the Japan Journal of...
Research Interests
- Corpora in language learning and teaching
- Second language acquisition
- Vocabulary learning and teaching
Denise Reid
- Associate Professor
- PhD., Chapman University
- Multiple Subject Credential, Hope International University
- M.A., Cal State Fullerton
- B.A., Cal Poly Pomona
Denise Reid has her Ph.D. from Chapman University, an M.S. from California State University, Fullerton, and a B.A. from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Reid holds a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential and has decades of educational experience.Here experience includes facilitating the successful transition of high school students to post-secondary settings. Additionally, she...
Research Interests
- Exploring the Lived Experiences of Individuals who Attended, Taught, or Served as Administrators at All-Black Segregated Schools during Jim Crow
- Impact of Brown v. Board on Current Educational System
- Higher Education Policy Related to the Disclosure Process of Students with Disabilities Transition to Postsecondary Education for Students from Marginalized Groups
Christi Min
- Chair of Early Childhood
- Assistant Professor
- Ph.D. in Education, Talbot School of Theology
- M.A. in Christian Education, Talbot School of Theology
- B.A. in Psychology, Yeung Nam University
Christi Min, Ph.D., holds a Level VI Early Childhood Permit from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. She is bilingual and biliterate in Korean and English. Dr. Min has taught at the Pre-K, kindergarten and grades 1–2 levels, and has served as a preschool director, site supervisor and children’s ministry director. She has worked in both monolingual and bilingual environments...
Courses
- LEDU 335 Child Development: Birth through Adolescence
- LEDU 356 Early Childhood Curriculum Development
- LEDU 358 Early Childhood Classroom Management
- LEDU 360 Early Childhood Practicum
- LEDU 389 Spiritual Formation for Young Children
Research Interests
- Young children’s social-emotional/ Pro-social development
- Young children’s faith development
- Theology of children
- Early childhood classroom management
- Early childhood curriculum development
- Early childhood program development
- Assessment of early childhood learning environments