Bilingual Education

2757 Words6 Pages

Bilingual Education Bilingual education has been a politicized topic of debate for years. There are many whom support bilingual education being incorporated into students’ curriculums while others are adamant that it should not be a part of the classroom. Those that are opponents of bilingual education seem to fear the idea of students being exposed to a second language or becoming proficient in two languages. Bilingual education has many dimensions and definitions, which can cause some confusion, but the benefits of its inclusion into student’s curriculum are irrefutable. What Is Bilingual Education and How Did It Come About? An encompassing definition of the term bilingual education is, The use of two languages, one of which is English, as mediums of instruction for the same pupil population in a well-organized program, which encompasses all, or part of the curriculum and includes the study of the history and culture associated with the mother tongue. A complete program develops and maintains the children’s self-esteem and a legitimate pride in both cultures. (Blanco 1977, p.123). Bilingual Education began in the United States in the mid- 60’s. The time that the bilingual movement started coincided with the height of the civil-rights movement for African Americans. During this time there was a great outcry from Latino activist that protested against discrimination that led to a high drop out rate for Spanish speaking students. In 1968 congress approved a bill to aide in equal education opportunities, this was the Bilingual Education Act. Its intentions were merely to help Limited English Proficient (LEP) students become literate in English, today goals of Bilingual education have advanced (Porter 2003). On... ... middle of paper ... ...al.org. April 29, 2003. “Bilingual education/Limited English proficient students” National Center for Educational Statistics. www.nces.edgov. April 18, 2003. Blake, P (ND). “A Summary of Prop. 227” Second Language Acquisition University of California Davis Institute. www.secondlanguageacquisition.com. April 23, 2003. U.S. Department of Education (1995). “Model Strategies in Bilingual Education: Professional Development” Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Language Affairs. http://www.ed.gov/pubs/ModStrat/. April 28, 2003. Magazine Article: Porter, R. (ND). “The case against Bilingual education” The Atlantic Online. www.theatlantic.com. April 23, 2003. Zehr, M. (2003). “New Arizona Chief clamps down on Bilingual rules” Education Week.http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=24arizona.h22&keywords=bilingual%20education. April 28, 2003.

Analysis Of Richard Rodriguez 'A Memoir Of A Bilingual Childhood'
794 Words | 2 Pages
Opinion Editorial By Hassan Abdi In the article written by Richard Rodriguez, Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood, he conveys an opinion that Bilingual education doesn’t work. He conveys it through his personal experience. Published by the Phi Beta Kappa to the American Society in 1981, the audience and his message are a broad and important now as it was thirty five years ago. As the amount of children that don’t speak English as their first language continue to rise, bilingual education has become a polarizing topic like most things, and for me, I am neutral on the topic. A form of bilingual education has failed me, but, for most students it benefits in the long term, and it 's not right to dispel one side of the topic to push your own
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Bilingual Education Philosophy Statement
389 Words | 1 Pages
The reason I want to be a teacher is so I can make a positive impact in the lives’ of children similar to the teachers that taught me who impacted my life growing up. When I was six years old my family left Mexico and migrated to Greenville, Texas. The transition was challenging; I left behind everything I knew and was forced to adapt to a brand new world where I could not understand the language that everyone spoke. Luckily for me, Greenville had a bilingual program and I was placed in the classroom of Ms. Ramirez. I will never forget how she treated all her students, she truly is one of my biggest inspirations as to why I decided to become a bilingual teacher. Every time I stepped foot in her classroom, I always felt safe, secured, and
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Bilingual Education and Latino Civil Rights
1912 Words | 4 Pages
The number of English language learning (ELL) students in the U.S. has grown dramatically in the last decade. According to a 1991 national study, there are over 2,300,000 students in grades K through 12 who are English language learners (August & Hakuta, 1997). This number has grown by over 1,000,000 since 1984. The majority of these students are Spanish-speakers (73%), followed by Vietnamese-speakers (3.9%). Because the overwhelming proportion of ELL students are Spanish speakers, the issue of bilingual education is largely a Latino one.
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Bilingualism in the United States
2585 Words | 6 Pages
Currently in the United States, about one in four, or twenty-six percent, of American adults can speak a language other than English (McComb). To be bilingual means to possess the ability to speak two languages, and a society that implements a bilingual approach is one that adapts means of everyday life, ranging from street signs to education, to the inevitabilities of more than one language. The United States is in debate on whether or not to adopt Spanish in conjunction with all English communication. In my opinion, to assume a bilingual society would create a separation in our country with two competing languages. There are multiple perspectives on the issue and to accurately form an opinion requires consideration of numerous aspects. The decision to undertake Spanish alongside English in all facets in the United States should be constructed on bilingual history, statistics, legal implications, supportive and defensive arguments, education dynamics, cultural factors, and the necessary provisions to our current society needed to implement such a system.
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Summary Of Bilingual Education By Richard Rodriguez
451 Words | 1 Pages
Richard Rodriguez, the author of Aria, develops a personal intake and personal experience on the topic of bilingual education. He uses different rhetorical devices throughout his essay, which include juxtapositions and antithesis. In paragraph 5 of the essay, Rodriguez states that “…it is not possible for a child—any child—ever to use his family’s language in school. Not to understand this is to misunderstand the public uses of schooling and to trivialize the nature of intimate life – a family’s ‘language,”( Rodriguez, Paragraph 5). Rodriguez cultivates this claim by explaining the purpose or the definition of bilingual education and what this education is meant to accomplish. The definition of bilingual education is,”…a program that seeks to permit non- English speaking children…to use their family language as the language of school,” (Rodriguez, Paragraph 5).
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Loss Of Bilingual Education In Aria By Richard Rodriguez
1143 Words | 3 Pages
Richard Rodriguez, writer and author of “Aria” mentions the use of multilingualism in school. He refers to the concept as, “bilingual education”, which is define as “an education in an English-language school system in which students with little fluency in English are taught in both their native language and English” (google).
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Bilingual Education
1698 Words | 4 Pages
When visiting just about any school across America, students who attend come from all over the globe. This raises the question across America about bilingual education. This can create many challenges in and out of the classroom. The classroom should be a safe place for all students regardless of what native language they speak. In the essay Lost in translation written by Eva Hoffman, describes a foreign student who tries hard to fit in. Instead, Eva begins to feel angry, hurt and confused because people laugh at her. In Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education by Elizabeth R. Howard, Julie Sugarman, Donna Christian Center for Applied Linguistics Kathryn J. Lindholm-Leary San José State University David Rogers Dual Language Education of New Mexico. Guiding principles gives great ideas to educators to stop kids from making other students feel the way that Eva felt. After reading several articles about bilingual education, it is evident that all children in school should learn English but never lose their native language. When all the students speak one language, students will be less likely to make fun of each other. A good educator should learn enough foreign languages to aid them in effective communication in their classroom although; if an educator does not speak a foreign language, they should recruit within the classroom students to be peer mentors. However, a teacher should be willing to listen and encourage the students. Above all a good educator should be a good role model to their students by respecting their heritage and their language.
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Bilingualism Essay
855 Words | 2 Pages
An ongoing battle of culture, freedom, and language occurs in America today. The battle is commonly called Bilingualism. The dictionary definition: being able to speak multiple languages. Though, when you dig deeper, you discover the hunger of differing tongues. Many people believe bilingualism should have a certain role in the public and education. One of these figures is Martin Espada who believe that bilingualism is also respecting one's culture. He believes that there should be more effort put into understanding different cultures and languages. An opposing figure to this is poet and author, Richard Rodriguez, who believes bilingualism should not be emphasized in the public and education system. Rather being able to speak one language and communicating is superior.
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A Language Barrier
1256 Words | 3 Pages
From my experience, bilingual education was a disadvantage during my childhood. At the age of twelve, I was introduced into a bilingual classroom for the first time. The crowded classroom was a combination of seventh and eighth grade Spanish-speaking students, who ranged from the ages of twelve to fifteen. The idea of bilingual education was to help students who weren’t fluent in the English language. The main focus of bilingual education was to teach English and, at the same time, teach a very basic knowledge of the core curriculum subjects: Mathematics, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences. Unfortunately, bilingual education had academic, psychological, and social disadvantages for me.
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Literature Review On The Foundations Of Bilingual Education
1676 Words | 4 Pages
The objective of this review is to present valuable information about the foundations of bilingual education, the bilingual educational programs, and the advantages and disadvantages of bilingual education.
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Subtractive Bilingual Education
1322 Words | 3 Pages
According to August & Hakuta in 1998, only 10% of teachers working with English Language Learners were certified in bilingual education (Nieto). Our district needs to ensure that our teachers know how to teach English language learners in the classroom before we discuss separate programs for these students. Most schools are in charge of developing their own ways of educating their English language learners, and this can sometimes result in two or three different approaches to educating these students within the same school district (Walqui). Our teachers should start by explaining the social norms in American schools to those who are new to the area. The rules concerning schoolwork, for example, are social norms that have been learned by the
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Bilingual Education in Public Schools
3734 Words | 8 Pages
For the past thirty years in the State of California, bilingual education has been undertaken by all the public schools of the state. Under such system, children of non-American ethnic have had a special treatment in their early academic career. Children of minority groups have been thought various subjects in their native tongues. Such subjects are Math, History and some Science classes. The bilingual program presented the student a scholastic curriculum that simultaneously instructed students all the required classes while teaching them the English language. For such method, bilingual teachers were the focal point for the success of individual students of any class level.
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Bilingual Education Essay
1431 Words | 3 Pages
...thousands of years. Generally, bilingual education can mean any use of two languages in school, by teachers, students, or both – for a variety of social and pedagogical purposes. It also refers to the different approaches in the classroom that use the native languages of English language learners (ELLs) for instruction. These approaches include teaching English, fostering academic achievement, acculturating immigrants to a new society, and preserving a minority group’s linguistic and cultural heritage. Building on, rather than just discarding the students’ native-language skills, create a stronger foundation for success in English and academics. Also, if students learn languages at a younger age, it will be easier to remember and learn them, rather than if they were older. It helps to learn another language for students, and can later be useful in the future.
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Argumentative Essay On Bilingual Education
1214 Words | 3 Pages
“Learning a second language not only has cognitive and academic benefits, it also supports a greater sense of openness to, and appreciation for, other cultures” (Tochen, 2009). For many students in the United States, English is not the primary language spoken at home. There are several options for getting these children to reach proficiency in the English Language. However, there is only one model that preserves the child’s first language, while also gaining literacy in English. This model is Bilingual Education. Bilingual education is not new to the United States. It in fact started in 1968 under title VII. However, there is still a lot for the general public, and parents of language learners, to learn about this form of education. Bilingual
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Benefit Of Bilingual Education Essay
725 Words | 2 Pages
America, a country built on immigration dating back to the early 1600s Mayflower voyage, continues to thrive as a melting pot full of various cultures and ethnics. In the past, many immigrants came to America due to the offered freedoms and equality, yet today, many naturalized citizens suffer with injustices, including with educational practices. The use of bilingual education, which is teaching students in both English and their native language, has become a controversial topic. In 1968, the Bilingual Education Act, which recognized and offered education to students who were lacking English, was passed, yet the topic still seems questionable to some. Bilingual education provides a variety of beneficial attributes to equally help foreigners
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Bilingual Education

Analysis Of Richard Rodriguez 'A Memoir Of A Bilingual Childhood'