I am responsible for improving the comprehensive literacy skills of children and adolescents. I instill and inspire a positive and authentic attitude, disposition, and motivation for literacy learning and for the integration of literacy as a life-long asset. To fulfill this purpose, I disseminate literacy research and engage a professional practice of literacy pedagogy for both future and practicing literacy educators. Dr. Godina's research interests include: 1. Spanish-English phonological transfer as a strategic tool for literacy educators who work with Spanish-speaking students. 2. Etymology and Morphological origin of Spanish-English vocabulary, and implications for teaching instruction. 3. Understanding Ancestral Heritage related to students of Mexican Descent as a way to enhance positive educational outcomes.

Mexican American High-School Students in the Midwestern United States: An Ethnography of Home-School-Community Literacy & Learning Practices. - 2011

Race, suburban resentment, and the representation of the inner city in contemporary film and television. - 2005

Cultural Capital. In J.M. González (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Bilingual Education - 2008

Culturally Competent Teaching. In J.M. González (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Bilingual Education - 2008

Tracing the migrant stream from the Southwest to the Midwest: History, folklore, and challenges for the future. A. H. Benavides, E. Midobuche, & P. H. Carlson (Eds.), Hispanics in the Southwest: Issues of Immigration, Education, Health and Public Policy - 2011

High school students of Mexican background in the Midwest: Cultural differences as a constraint to effective literacy instruction. In T. Shanahan, & F.V. Rodriguez-Brown (Eds.) - 1999

Addressing the literacy needs of adolescent English language learners - 2004

A window into bilingual reading practices of fourth-grade, Mexican American children who are emergent bilinguals

The canonical debate: Implementing multicultural literature and perspectives.

The violation of Mexican American students’ educational rights: A Midwestern ethnography

Emic and etic perspectives on culturally-relevant text for all students: Moving beyond a tacit reading of Chicano Multicultural Literature.

Mesocentrism and students of Mexican background: A community intervention for culturally relevant instruction.

The contradictory literacy practices of Mexican background students: Results from an ethnography in the rural Midwest.

Digital storytelling in Bhutan: A qualitative examination of new media tools used to bridge the digital divide in a rural community school.

Korean American student language, literacy and identity: Perspectives from an ethnographic case study.

A window into bilingual reading: The metacognitive and cognitive reading strategies of Mexican-American fourth graders.

Betwixt and being tween in a Mexican American 5th grade classroom: Understanding gender and literacy implications.

Albanian immigrant beliefs about emotion, language, and social identity: Examining the workplace nuances of upward social mobility.