English Only Sink

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Recommended: Drawbacks of bilingual education

“English Only; Sink or Swim” The first day of school was the most unforgettable day of my life; I was only twelve years old. Nobody spoke my language and for some reason I thought that even my name had changed; I remember not knowing what to say when I was asked my name. What would I have done if I was not offered the program that I needed in order to be successful in this wonderful country? How can people now say, fight and vote for an all English country? While some people strongly believe in the freedom of speaking whichever language one chooses, others believe that the use of any language other than English causes controversy. “Bilingual education has been practiced in many forms, in many countries, for years”. In today's society, …show more content…

S. Supreme Court ruled that using only English to teach Spanish speaking students violated their civil rights. This decision paved the way for bilingual instruction for Spanish speaking children. The bilingual education program benefits families who have a limited English vocabulary. In Bilingual Education programs, the children use the knowledge they attain in the classes instructed in their first language to better comprehend the English language. In today’s period of demographic transformation in United States, bilingual education means something more specific. It relates to the methods used in the classroom that will teach the English language …show more content…

These supporters fear that any government recognition of minority languages "sends the wrong message" to immigrants, encouraging them to believe they can live in the U.S.A. without learning English or conforming to "American" ways; complaints that have made bilingual education an object of political argumentation. In states like; California, Arizona, and Massachusetts have voted for all-English instruction for most children until they become proficient in the English language. These limitations on bilingual education have dismantled effective programs and made it harder for educators to serve the English language learners students more effectively. Teaching English is the main goal of every bilingual program in the United States and the success of bilingual education in obtaining these goals has been supported by researchers. The “English-only, sink or swim" system was a failure for immigrant children, that leads to low academic achievement and high dropout rates. The English language was not "in danger" then or now. In two or three generations immigrants will most likely have lost their native

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