Experiences in Lenguage Learning and Identity of retorno students in the BA

program in Language Teaching and Translation in a Mexican State University on

the border region with the U.S.

[spa] Experiencias en el aprendizaje de lenguas e identidad de alumnos de retorno

en la Licenciatura de Lenguas y Traducción en una universidad pública en la

frontera con Estados Unidos

Tatiana Estefanía Galván de la Fuente

Universidad Autónoma de Baja California

Eyder Gabriel Sima Lozano

Universidad Autónoma de Baja California

Jesús Eduardo Fong Flores

Universidad Autónoma de Baja California

Recibido: 2023/05/5

RESUMEN

Aceptado para su publicación: 2024/11/21

Publicado: 2025/03/15

ABSTRACT

La migración ha sido parte de la historia de México y

Estados Unidos desde hace algún tiempo. Recientemente se

han realizado importantes investigaciones sobre esta

migración, en particular el cruce y el recruce de la frontera

Migration has been part of the history of Mexico and the

United States for some time. There has been significant

research recently on this migration, particularly the crossing

and re-crossing of the border and its impact on social,

cultural, and linguistic issues. In this article, we discuss the

experiences of retorno students in the BA program of

Language Teaching and Translation in a Mexican state

university on the border with the U.S. They lived in the

United States a certain period of time and have returned to

Mexico to attend university. We include the voices of these

participants to gain insight into their perceptions of their

identities and the changes they witnessed regarding

language learning. Through a qualitative framework and

drawing on semi-structured interviews, data reveals how

these students feel about their identities from a cultural,

social, personal, and linguistic stance, as well as how these

two educational contexts relate, and other transnationalism

issues. Findings support Casinader´s (2017) view of

transnationalism as a “dynamic instability” revealing that

transnationalism is perceived differently by each of the

participants and that these experiences they have had effect

how they view themselves.

y

su impacto en cuestiones sociales, culturales

y

lingüísticas. En este artículo se discuten las experiencias de

estudiantes de retorno de la carrera de la Licenciatura en

Enseñanza de Idiomas y Traducción en una universidad

estatal mexicana en la frontera con Estados Unidos.

Vivieron en Estados Unidos un cierto período de tiempo y

han regresado a México para asistir a la universidad. Se

incluimos las voces de estos participantes para comprender

sus percepciones sobre sus identidades y los cambios que

presenciaron con respecto al aprendizaje de idiomas. A

través de un marco cualitativo y a partir de entrevistas

semiestructuradas, los datos revelan cómo estos

estudiantes se sienten acerca de sus identidades desde un

punto de vista cultural, social, personal

y

postura

lingüística, así como la relacionan entre estos dos contextos

educativos, y otras cuestiones de transnacionalismo. Los

hallazgos respaldan la visión de Casinader (2017) del

transnacionalismo como una “inestabilidad dinámica” que

revela que el transnacionalismo es percibido de manera

diferente por cada uno de los participantes y que estas

experiencias han tenido un efecto en la forma en que se ven

a sí mismos.

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EXPERIENCES IN LENGUAGE LEARNING AND IDENTITY OF RETORNO STUDENTS

PALABRAS CLAVE

KEYWORDS

Sistema educativo, identidad, lenguaje, retorno,

transnacionalismo, universidad.

Education system, identity, language, retorno,

transnationalism, university.

Como citar (APA 7ª Edición):

Galván, T. G., Sima, E. G. y Fong, J. E. (2024). Experiences in Lenguage Learning and Identity of

retorno students in the BA program in Language Teaching and Translation in a Mexican state

University on the border region with the U.S. Qvadrata, estudios sobre educación, artes y

humanidades, 6(12), 20-35. https://10.54167/qvadrata.v6i12.1211

Introduction

Migration has long been part of the history of Mexico and the Unites States for some time now.

Some Mexicans who have the opportunity to migrate to the Unites States to purse the “American Dream”,

and others who have the privilege to go back and forth from one country to the other for diverse reasons,

navigating two educational, economic, political, and legal systems simultaneously has not always been

easy. This dual navigation is sometimes a difficult one, as noted by Rao and Stasio (2017) “Many of those

individuals spent their formative years in the Unites States and experience distinct challenges upon

[their] return to Mexico, including extreme culture shock, depression and mental illness, and barriers to

accessing employment and education in Mexico” (p. 10). This is the case of nine students we share as

these retorno participants describe their experiences with English and Spanish and their feelings when

returning to live in Mexico. They acquired English in the United States as children of immigrants

meanwhile maintaining their use of Spanish at home. They have lived in the Unites States for a

determined period of time and have returned to Mexico for diverse reasons, especially to attend

university. Particularly, we present how these return migrants feel about their experiences in the

classroom navigating two educational systems and how these impact their identities from a cultural,

social, and linguistic perspective and the relationship to their future identity formation as language

teachers and translators. The present paper is organized as follows. We begin with a brief description of

the research context associated to the migration phenomenon between the Unites States and Mexico.

Subsequently, this is followed by a discussion of the key concepts of the study: retorno, transnationalism,

and identity. We describe the manner in which these have been conceptualized and how they relate to

each other for the purpose of this study. This is followed by an explanation of the research design of the

present project, succeeded by the presentation of the data in the form of semi-structured interviews that

represent each of the emerging categories of the project. The paper concludes with a discussion on the

diverse aspects that changed and shaped their identities upon their return to attend university.

The context where this return phenomenon takes place

The close proximity of Mexico to its northern neighboring country the Unites States, leads to an

influx and continuous migration between both countries. The Tijuana-San Diego border is considered the

largest land border crossing between both countries and the fourth busiest with 70,000 vehicles and

20,000 pedestrians crossing each day. In this sense, migration between both countries is said to be the

largest ongoing movement of migrant workers in the modern world (Massey, et al., 1994 ). Thus, the

relationship between Baja California and the state of California is in constant movement as day-to-day

interaction is through the English language for diverse purposes such as commercial, academic and social

as there is an increased population of migration from all over the world. As reported by the national

Migration Institute, 1.6 million Mexicans have been repatriated between 2010 and 2014.

The last decade has witnessed an unprecedented return migration flow form the U.S. to Mexico

(Pew Research Center, 2015 ). As a repercussion of this, hundreds of thousands of families with their

children and young adult are coming back to Mexico. Vast numbers of migrants were U.S. born children

or Mexican young adults educated in the neighboring country from a very early age. In this article, we

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have decided to identify this population as retorno since most of the participants hold strong family and

friendship connections in both countries and have developed an identification or appreciation with either

one of both cultures.

The return migration phenomenon has generated an expanding interest among researchers across

diverse disciplines such as education, applied linguistics and sociology. Some of this documentation is

already occurring in Mexican higher education scholarship. While still relatively a new line of research,

much of the scholarship has developed along three main lines. The first line focuses on establishing

greater consciousness of the existence of the retorno population in Mexican society. For instance, recent

work by Mexican scholars (Cortez, et al. 2015 ; Jacobo, 2014 ; Moctezuma, 2013; Zuñiga & Hamann, 2009,

2015 ; Zuñiga & Reyes, 2006 ; Zuñiga & Sanchez, 2000 ), all make the compelling argument of the existence

of this growing phenomenon of the returning diaspora in Mexican schools. Overall, they stress the diverse

challenges this population faces to gain full engagement and agency in Mexican culture once they return.

Specifically, the work of Zuñiga & Hamann (2009), Cortez & Altamirano (2015), and De los Santos,

Galván, Gonzalez and Nuñez, (2020) draw attention both to the limits of current pedagogical theories in

both educational systems and the challenges they face to gain complete participation in Mexican culture

upon their return. As a group, these scholars affirm that Mexican schools- from grade school to university

level- cannot overlook or ignore the educational needs of this expanding student population.

These studies (with the exception of Cortez, Garcia and Altamirano, (2015) focus on children at

grade school level. A second research line has also been identified that centers on the retorno students’

identity as they attempt to acclimatize into Mexican schools (Jacobo, 2014 ; Mora, 2015 ). Noteworthy is

the research carried out by Pablo, Rivas, Lengeling and Crawford (2015), Christiansen, Trejo Guzman &

Mora Pablo (2018) examination of the role of how language ideologies impact decision making of three

returnees as they seek a degree in English language teaching (ELT), and just how much these language

ideologies shape the participants bilingual identities and teaching practices.

A third and newer research line is bringing attention and insights into the experiences of

transnationals who have opted for a career in English language teaching and Translation. These diverse

studies focus on the challenges that these teachers encounter as their professional identities materialize

in the Mexican educational system and the outcomes for their future professional practice (Mora, Trejo

and Roux, 2016 ; Rivas, 2013 ; Petron & Graybeck, 2014 ; Petron, 2009 ; Mora, Lengeling, and Basurto,

2015 ; Trejo, et al. 2016 ).

Research in this regard has produced substantial insights into the understanding of the retornos

participation and experiences in both the educational and social sectors. Nevertheless, research in this

area tends to concentrate on a short span of their return experiences to Mexico, specifically identity work

carried out by US/ Mexican retorno students, curricular discontinuities experienced when going back

and forth from one system to another and those returnees who have opted for a career in English language

teaching. However, research has not focused entirely on students at the university level and has not

addressed the particular issues that affect the Mexican border states. Our study attempts to fill this gap

in the literature by shedding light into the perceptions these students have of their identities, and the

changes they witnessed regarding language learning once they return to Mexico to attend university.

Theoretical framework

Return migration is a term coined to describe migrants who leave the United States and return to

live in Mexico. Retorno students can be described as “the person who returns to his/her country of origin

in order to stay permanently after living in another country for an extended period of time, this return

can either be voluntary or induced” (Izquierdo, 2011, p. 172 ). Of particular attention here are the

university students that return to study at this university context. These students spend many years on

the other side of the border but then return to their hometowns to work or study. With respect to Mexican

migration, Hazan (2014) highlights a more fluid perspective on return migration as transnationalism,

which perceives the migrant as a person able to sustain strong bonds to the country of origin and to the

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country of destination, which in turn, provides them with concrete and impalpable resources that they

are then able to employ tactically.

Such conceptualization is also used to characterize the dense social networks that go beyond the

national borders, created by the physical, emotional and economic movement of the individuals and

families, between countries and cultures (Binford, 2000 ). In other words, these individuals who go back

and forth between two countries is the result of a dual life migration constantly receiving input from both

cultures, therefore, concepts such as their linguistic practices or culture are not clearly demarcated.

For these participants that migrated to the Unites States with their families in pursuit of a better

way of life learning to navigate and eventually becoming immersed in the culture tends to be challenging,

especially when it comes to identity. The concept of identity therefore lies at the center of the

aforementioned view of transnationalism. As stated by Bauman (as cited by Buckingham, 2008 ), identity

can be defined as a fluid process that can be deemed as “infinitely negotiable” as it is continuously

evolving and adding new characteristics. Identity is understood as the special and social configuration

that people have of themselves, based on their territory of origin and the new scenarios they arrive as a

result of their migratory trajectory. In such scenarios, migrants face challenges and opportunities that

contribute to the creation of their self-image. In this regard, La Barbera (2014), emphasizes that not all

“studies have demonstrated that the patterns of identification among migrants vary greatly, ranging from

identification with ones country of origin to religion or mother-tongue to receiving country, neither or

both” (p. 3). These migrants everyday interactions and border-crossings to and from the Unites States,

enable sufficient exposure to experiences and situations that derive from both cultures. Thus, there is a

probability that the individuals develop feelings of affinity towards both lifestyles. Furthermore, other

research demonstrates that individuals can identify or be a part of two or more cultures (Berry, 1992 ;

Padilla, 1994 ). To expand on this notion, it is convenient to add what Be (2011) defines as situated

identity. Situated identity is the one that embraces the practices based on family and national origins,

with an emphasis on the new context once they return. In other words, the individuals´ performance in

the new migratory space that he/she arrives on, derives from the knowledge and traditions of their place

of origin. Noteworthy is Be´s research regarding migrants from Yucatan who prepare food while living in

an urban area in California, United States. The author describes this practice, based on the knowledge of

the context of Yucatan, Mexico along with the adaptations carried out in their new place of living. In this

sense, it is relevant to know how these individuals have inherited Spanish and have arrived to the context

of Baja California to study at this university and how they generate linguistic practices in both Spanish

and English .

Research design

This paper is part of a larger identity and transnationalism project funded by the Ministry of

Public Education of Mexico (SEP- PRODEP, Mexico). The research design of this project is of a qualitative

nature since it intends to describe the experiences of these retorno students to gain insight into their

perceptions of their identities and the changes they witnessed regarding language learning. The research

questions that guided our research endeavors are as follows: What are the causes for these retorno

students to come back to Mexico? What are the changes they witnessed regarding their language learning

and identity in the university context? These questions supply us with insight that reveal how these

students feel about their identities from a cultural, social, personal, and linguistic stance, as well as how

these two educational contexts relate, and other transnationalism issues. Finally, they have helped us

identify how these students view and perceive transnationalism.

Research context and participants

The study focuses on nine participants- one male and eight female and are all considered retorno.

For a summary of the participants´ profiles see Table 1. The state of Baja California draws many of these

students from the United States during the last ten years or so to attend university. The Ensenada campus

is approximately 113 km. (70 miles) south of the Tijuana-San Diego border. All the participants are

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students pertaining to both the Language Teaching and Translation-Interpretation B.A. programs from

the school of Languages at the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC, as known by its Spanish

initials). To date, the student population in Translation studies has 216 students, Language Teaching has

93 students and the beginning semesters have a population of 137. The total population of these two B.A

Programs is that of 446 this current semester 2022. The university’s importance as the main public higher

education context cannot be underrated and remains the only viable economic option for most state

residents and the student population mentioned in this article.

Table 1. Participant´s Profiles

Reasons to

return to

Mexico

Schooling

years in the

U.S.

Place of

Birth

B.A

Program

Name

Gaia

Age

Mazatlán,

Sinaloa,

Mexico

Work and

attend

university

Language

Teaching

24

8 years

3 years

Ensenada,

Baja

California,

Attend

university

Language

Teaching

Leslie

26

Mexico

Parents

decided to

come back

and work

Hayward,

California,

U.S.A.

Language

Teaching

Adan

Carola

Martha

20

21

10 years

6 months

3 years

Tijuana, Baja

California,

Mexico

Work and

attend

university

Language

Teaching

Ensenada,

Baja

California,

Parents

decided to

come back

Language

Teaching

22

Mexico

Ensenada,

Baja

California,

Mexico

Parents

decided to

come back

Language

Teaching

Vanessa

Diana

23

24

22

13 years

2 years

11 years

San

Bernardino,

California,

U.S.A.

Attend

university

Language

Teaching

Ensenada,

Baja

California,

Mexico

Attend

university

Language

Teaching

Johanna

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Tijuana, Baja

California,

Mexico

Work and

attend

university

Juan

25

4 years

Translation

Data collection strategies

The main source of data was a semi-structured interview. (See Appendix 1). This was chosen as a

data collection instrument since we are interested in people’s opinions and views. The 9 participants were

given freedom to select the time and place to carry-out the interview. The interview was carried out in

Spanish to make it easier for the participants to express themselves, as well as allowing space for following

new and relevant information jointly co-constructed by the individual’s experiences. The interviews were

translated to English for the purpose of this article and later transcribed to identify emerging themes that

will aid in understanding their positions regarding the questions addressed. The participants were

interviewed on one occasion and each interview lasted between one and one and a half hours.

In this sense, we collected opinions to inquire about the participant’s beliefs, identities,

experiences, and life histories. It is this “process of selecting constitutive details of experience, reflecting

on them, giving them order, and thereby making sense of them that makes interviews a meaning-making

experience”. (Seidman, 2012, p. 7 ).

Data analysis

Data was analyzed using a content analytical approach as this approach emphasizes the

intervention of the researcher in the construction of meaning of and within texts, as there “is a willingness

to permit themes and topics to emerge from the data naturally, rather than attempting to impose a

preconceived set of themes on the data” (Cohen, Manion & Morrison, 2011, p. 563 ). We then looked for

similarities to discover any logical connections and particular groupings that would reveal certain

characteristics on this research. The interview contained two sections. The first section focused on the

participants’ background and the second on the reasons and perceptions regarding their language

learning and identities once they returned to Mexico to attend university.

Discussion of findings

RQ #1What are the causes for these retorno students to come back to Mexico?

Martha:

“My father was deported when I was seven years old, after a few months, my mother decided to

return to Mexico because she did not want to be alone (this was when I was younger). I decided to return

to Mexico to start university since where I lived in the United States, I would not receive financial support

to go to college”.

Martha´s experience is typical of family migration. In this sense Bean, Coron, Tuirán & Woodrow-

Lafield (1998), work emphasizes that for more than half a century, the migrant Mexican of rural origin

left his family behind while working temporarily or periodically in the Unites States. Nowadays, this

particular profile is being modified notoriously in the sense that family migration is more frequent.

Migrants accompanied by their spouses or children is increasing since the post-IRCA period (Durand,

Massey & Chavet, 2000 ) creating a more dynamic and fluid migrant society able to travel and reside

legally in both countries.

Another aspect of family migration is the lack of financial support in the U.S. to attend university,

thus making this a key issue in returning to their country of origin. Martha´s concern for the high cost

of university fees and living was a discouraging factor and she decided to return to a state university in

Mexico where the tuition fee is more affordable. The cost of living and studying in this context is

unfortunately an all-too-common experience:

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Adan:

“I came back from the United States to Mexico with my family. The reason why is that university

is very expensive and my parents did not want my brother and I to not go to college. For that reason, we

moved to Ensenada and we started school here”.

Adan´s families’ reasons for returning to Mexico was for their children to attend university as they

strongly believe that receiving an education is a priority. These efforts to access a higher education context

culminate in a new, more prestigious status as university students, leading to better payment and a more

stable employment. For Adan it is important to have a better way of life than his parents had, and getting

a university education was the obvious way to do that.

These returnees come back to Mexico with a set of new skills and experiences that can help them

in their reintegration process, and in their contribution to their country’s development. This set of new

skills defined as “funds of knowledge” (Gonzalez, Moll & Amanti, 2006) can be used in the classroom to

develop continuity with their past experiences in the U.S. and the present experiences in Mexico.

Consequently, the student´s curricular content and their ways of living can be linked. This particular

connection also makes these students more “bi-cultural and bi-national than those migrants who

returned in the past, and more fully aware of the extent of integration and mutual interdependence of the

Mexican and American societies today” (Hazan, 2017:18).

Vanessa’s experience is typical of living on the border region:

Vanessa:

“My family decided that I would finish my studies here in Mexico and then work in the United

States since many people do that. But me studying here was partly due to being with my family”.

This geographical movement between two countries constitutes a very common activity where

the family decides for their offspring to study in Mexico and constantly move back and forth to the United

States to work (Trueba, 1997). In this sense, the vast majority of university graduates living in Tijuana

shuttle between the borders day-to-day as they are able to find work in the U.S. It is these types of

migration patterns that create this particular academic population that is schooled in two different

systems. Based on their legal status, this population goes back and forth as they have the “option” to

either work or attend school in the U.S. What Vanessa’s experience suggests is that legal status marks the

difference in these students’ lives as they are able to navigate between two countries.

Some may have dual nationalities making these everyday interactions across the border easy,

facilitating both commercial and academic exchanges. This hints at the fact that a “legal” status simplifies

a circular migration pattern that enables this rapid movement. For the bearer of this legal status, he/she

has the opportunity to work, and move easily between both countries according to their necessities. This

particular activity resonates with Casinader´s (2017, pp. 15-16) notion of transnationalism as “the

dynamic instability of transformative transition that occur when people and ideas form different parts of

the world meet, cross- pollinating dimensions of thought in the process”. From this perspective, these

students view transnationalism differently as the experiences they have had on both sides of the border

have shaped how they view themselves.

Based on these experiences, the emergence of a more “bi-national migrant society” (Zuñiga, 2015 )

that takes advantage of their legal privileges in the neighboring country is more evident. These privileges

include the ability to buy a house or maintain a bank account, as this migrant society has the agency to

live legally and exercise these rights. In this sense, the post-IRCA opens the door to a migratory pattern

that is circular from a geographical perspective, but due to the legal characteristics, can also be defined

as binational because this migrant society can move and reside legally in both countries (Durand, Massey

and Charvet, 2000 ; Bach and Brill, 1991; Hagan, 1998 ; González-Baker, 1997; Durand, Massey and

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Parrado, 1999 ). In another instance, Carola recalls a sense of not feeling at home in the neighboring

country:

Carola:

“My parents did not feel comfortable being there- in the United States-and also, we were a big

family living in a house with little space. That was one of the reasons why my parents decided for my

brothers and I to return”.

The above reflection by Carola is shared by many return immigrants who reveal this

“uncomfortableness” in living conditions during their time in the neighboring country. Due to socio-

economic conditions, many are forced to live in precarious situations in a small and crowded space

sometimes located in a marginalized area of the city or town. Carola’s parents feel “unwelcome” in a new

country that does not resemble their country of origin is a pivotal factor in wanting to return. In short,

this student experience reveals that family is a central issue why they decide to become part of this return

migration. Central to this are financial and health issues, dislike of living in the U.S., and cost of attending

university. These reasons validate that family is very important and constitutes the support they need to

navigate a new culture and way of living.

RQ#2 What are the changes they witnessed regarding their language learning and identity in the

university context?

Diana offers an insightful experience with the changes to her Spanish upon her return to the

Mexican university context:

Diana:

“I have noticed some changes to my Spanish, it has improved both orally and in my writing.

Before, my abity to write was not bad, I have simply improved because I used to speak Spanish with my

family at home. Now, living and studying at the university in Mexico I am obligated to use Spanish more.

Now at university, I have to use both English and Spanish alike formal and informally. His helped me in

practicing and improving both languages”.

Diana, unlike many other retorno students who speaks very little Spanish upon their return to

Mexico, had the opportunity to interact in Spanish at home. As she mentions, she “has simply improved”

due to this. As a language resource, Spanish is a necessary component for developing the English

proficiency. Spanish, then is a necessary tool that students use to further their English language growth.

While U.S. bilingual programs may be largely successful in teaching English to immigrant children, these

interviews highlighted some issues. If Spanish in U.S. educational settings functions mainly as an entry

point, (i.e., a learning tool) to aid students in the development of their English language proficiency,

many, if not most retorno students may not be linguistically prepared in Spanish to re-enter Mexican

schools, specifically the higher education context. Our own evidence supports this. For instance, Leslie

reported that her Spanish was very limited upon her return to the Mexican university:

“Personally, I think that taking a few Spanish courses would have helped me with my Spanish-

grammar classes- to help reinforce my Spanish grammar”. I felt somewhat unready returning without the

skills in Spanish.

In her response, Leslie intimated that she felt her grammatical and syntactical structures were not

very logical or natural in Spanish. Altogether, she felt she was not ready linguistically [in Spanish] for the

rigors of the university context in Mexico. By no means does this suggest that there is something implicitly

flawed with current methods and approaches to U.S. bilingual education, the context of the learners’

language differences is to be noted. In other words, an unintended consequence may be that learners are

not sufficiently prepared in their L1 to [re] enter their birth nations educational context. This impacts

students as they attempt to “reintegrate back into their birth nation´s social, economic, political, legal

and educational systems, especially if no formal programs or systems exist to assist them” (De los Santos,

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Galván, Gonzalez and Nuñez, 2020 ). In this sense, Zuñiga (2015), highlights the need for the development

of programs that aid these students to transition from an English literacy to a Spanish one, as well as for

educators to be familiar and understand curricular content in the United States and Mexico. For that

reason, one of the most important challenges is the construction of educational policies for these retorno

students and their diverse educational trajectories. Therefore, the knowledge or command of academic

Spanish and curricular content of these students varies according to their previous academic experiences

in Mexican schools. This migrant and transnational population questions equity, inclusion and the

appropriateness of the dominant Mexican educational model and its practices (Hamman, 1999 ). In other

words, these students challenge a monolithic model that seeks to develop social demands of a modern

world instead of postmodern world in constant change and evolution. The linguistic, pedagogical and

cultural obstacles of this expanding student population demand to redefine the current educational

model and recommend alternative strategies for learning. For these students, the return to Mexico with

their families or without them implies re-integrating to the Mexican educational system, a task that is

not so simple. The following student, Gaia, offered a recollection of her friends being discriminated and

a feeling of “otherness” upon their return to the university context:

“One thing that they could do-the school- is create consciousness in classmates, from my

experience I never had problems. My friends had problems in talking with other people since they labeled

them “pochos”. Being able to open up and share our experiences growing up with two different languages

and cultures would help”.

This impression offered here by Gaia is perhaps the most demanding aspect that the new

educational context has on the identity of retorno students. Even though she has had no negative

experiences in this regard, her friends were called “pochos” (a colloquial term used to refer to a person of

Mexican origin who lives in the U.S. and mixes English and Spanish when speaking) in school. Being

discriminated or this feeling of “otherness” is a common feeling among these students. Upon their arrival

in Mexico, these students are perceived as “different” or as “not real” Mexicans and sometimes deemed

as “traitors” to the country because they speak Spanish in a “weird” manner (Zuñiga, Hamman & Sanchez,

2008 ). Therefore, at the identity level they collide. In the United States they were considered foreigners

and in Mexico, “pochos”. Their multiple identities were not accepted here or there, which makes them

feel discriminated in both contexts and countries. Gaia emphasizes the fact that more should be done on

both sides of the border to deal with these issues in terms of creating a “safe” space in the classroom to

talk about their experiences with two languages and cultures. A call for educational contexts to develop

and promote support programs that enable these students to engage in a smooth transition upon their

return to the classroom. Another student, Johanna, offered a recollection of her identity and being part

of two cultures:

“Even though my mother-tongue is Spanish, and I do use it quite a lot, as a speaker I identify

myself more with English. I identify with it more because it is a language that I learned from a very young

age and I continue to use it- (I am in contact with it by watching movies in English, listening to music,

interacting with my friends in the United States through the different social networks, etc.) as well as the

career I chose- language teaching”.

Johanna recognizes that even though her mother-tongue is Spanish, she identifies more with

English as she considers it an essential part of her identity. Her formal education has been in the U.S. and

still has strong social ties with friends and family, therefore adopting English as her dominant language

in every area of her life. Johanna has nothing but fond memories of her life in the U.S. with friends and

school as she uses English to keep in touch with friends and family. Having substantial social ties on both

sides of the border is important as she has a dual nationality. An aspect that is noteworthy as these

students and families are constantly moving between both countries as they have an option to enroll their

children in school in the United States (Zuñiga,2000 ). In regards, to the career she chose- Language

Teaching-she views English as being a commodity. With this skill she was able to attend university and

this is the reason why she considers it to be an important aspect in her life. Johanna emphasizes that

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EXPERIENCES IN LENGUAGE LEARNING AND IDENTITY OF RETORNO STUDENTS

returning for higher education is a strategy that could allow them to access and develop their imagined

identities as college-educated professionals.

It is often the case that these return students find a place in the B.A. programs of Language

Teaching and Translation due to their command of English (Mora-Pablo, Lengeling & García Ponce,

2019 ). Johanna understands that it is not enough to know the language and become a language teacher,

she needed to study and obtain her degree in order to validate her command of the language and the

academic content learned through her academic trajectory. This particular aspect breaks down the

stereotype that in Mexico all you need is to speak English to become an English teacher. With time, being

part of this B.A. community provides her with a feeling of confidence as how she identifies herself now

and in the future.

Conclusions

The purpose of this study was to gain insight into the reasons these retorno students come back

to Mexico and what changes they witnessed regarding their language learning and identity in the

university context on the border region with the U.S. The voices of these participants bring to the floor

many contextual issues such as discrimination once they return to Mexico, the “option” to go back and

forth between their nation of origin and the host nation for work, and the lack of teacher-training of

teachers on both sides of the border that will aid this population in their re-integration in the Mexican

school system.

First, as en emerging population, UABC needs to consider these almost “invisible” students in

terms of their communicative and language learning needs and how both languages are used in both

contexts. It comes as no surprise that Mexican educators do not know what to do with these students in

diverse levels and linguistic competencies in the classroom. In this sense, teachers on both sides could

reach out to one another with the purpose of learning and understand how people do schooling. The fact

that not many schools in the U.S. address the needs of migrants, therefore a call for educational contexts

to develop and promote support programs that enable discussions between scholars who receive this

increasing returning population. In this sense, Hamman (1999) reflects and questions the role of these

two educational systems that are conceived as mono-national, as these children and young adults “need

to be embraced by two worlds, but at the same time have been abandoned by both (p.1).

As seen from the participants´semi-structured interviews, the return to Mexico was considered a

stepping-stone to a higher education degree or also as an “option” as they have the priviledge to go back

and forth between both nations as some have dual nationalities. The high cost of attending university

made returning to Mexico a feasible option for continuing their education. At the same time their bi-

cultural orientations were persistent in their everyday lives.These participants havelived and grown-up

in the United States in Mexican households and in the meantime maintained close social ties with Mexico,

especially in this cross-border context in Baja California. As retorno students, their acculturation

approach was an important aspect in their lives as they learned to navigate two languages and two

cultures, looking for alternative identities, while coming to terms with their hybrid identities (Kanno,

2003). The phenomenon of transnationalism allows for migrants to interact and maintain close ties with

family and friends in both countries. It is precisely this interaction with other Mexican friends or

colleagues that provides the opportunities to use Spanish as a means of demonstrating and maintaining

this shared identity. Mobility or being able to move between two countries is a constant flux nowadays.

One of the main reasons of people moving is for a better way of life or better opportunities-academic or

monetary. It is precisely this privileged position of these students that go back and forth between two

nations to work and study is different from what others who had no option but to return to their nation

of origin. In this regard, transnationalism is achieved or viewed differently by the participants as they

make sense of their multiple mind spaces inhabiting multicultural contexts. Casinader´s (2017)

consideration of a more holistic view of the world and a more nuanced amount of transcultural

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EXPERIENCES IN LENGUAGE LEARNING AND IDENTITY OF RETORNO STUDENTS

understanding can be developed by those who have gained a trans-spatial perspective, not confined to

established, preconceived identities or geographical borders.

As a field, we need to reframe our loci of attention away from the strict privileging of mono-

national interests in order to ask new questions. We must re-think if our current methods and theories

fulfill the educational demands of this population, especially those who one day have to return and go

back and forth to their nations of origin.

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Appendix 1

Entrevista

1. ¿Dónde nació? (Ciudad, País)

2. ¿Qué lengua o lenguas habla?

3. ¿Cómo aprendió su lengua materna?

4. ¿Cómo aprendió su segunda lengua?

5. ¿En su familia qué lenguas se hablan?

6. ¿Cuánto tiempo viviste en los Estados Unidos? (U otro país)

7. ¿En Estados Unidos cuándo y en dónde usabas el español? ¿Cuándo y en dónde usabas el inglés?

8. ¿Desde cuándo regresaste a México?

9. ¿Por qué el retorno? ¿Qué le motivó a retornar? ¿Vino solo o con su familia?

10. ¿En qué nivel de competencia comunicativa te consideras como hablante del español?

11. ¿Considera que en la universidad le ha facilitado el uso del español? ¿y del inglés cómo

ha sido el proceso de uso del idioma? ¿se ha sentido cómodo?

12. ¿Por qué eligió la carrera que cursas actualmente?

13. ¿Con qué lengua se identifica más como hablante y por qué?

14. ¿Cómo se nombraba a sí mismo cuándo viviste en los Estados Unidos?

(Americano, estadounidense, mexicoamericano, hispano, latino, otro y por qué)

15. Y ahora, aquí en México, ¿cómo se denomina a sí mismo, ¿o se considera mexicano?

16. Ahora que está en México, ¿cuándo y en dónde usa el inglés?

17. ¿Crees que debe seguir aprendiendo español? ¿Por qué?

18. ¿Qué debería hacer la universidad para personas como usted que siendo herederos de la lengua

española y de identidad mexicana regresan a México?

19. ¿Ha tenido alguna experiencia negativa por hablar inglés o español aquí en México?

20. ¿Si viniera una escuela de idiomas muy reconocida y le ofreciera un curso gratuito por cinco años

y le dan a elegir entre alemán, francés, mixteco, zapoteco? ¿Cuál elegiría y por qué?

21. ¿Considera que hay algún cambio en tu forma de aprender una lengua? Es decir, ¿ha notado que

aprendió algo o te esforzaste en aprender algo del idioma español u otra lengua?

22. En ese sentido, ¿ha cambiado su identidad como hablante, individuo, sujeto, estudiante al

momento de aprender la lengua meta, el español u otra lengua?

23. ¿Cómo se siente en el escenario mexicano y cómo compararía el anterior en el que estuvo, tanto

social, cultural, lingüísticamente y lo que guste compartir?

24. ¿Y en el ámbito educativo, ha cambiado su forma de ser estudiante, universitario?

25. ¿Qué idioma prevalece en sus interacciones académicas?

26. ¿En algún momento mezcla las lenguas que habla en el aula de clases?

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