Transcript Understanding the Bilingual Education Controversy

Understanding the Bilingual
Education Controversy
Let us remember:
Goals of Bilingual Education:
• Subject matter knowledge, i.e., the
development of academic skills;
• Biliteracy, i.e., the development of literacy
both in English and in the heritage
language.
Understanding the Bilingual Education
Controversy
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Good bilingual programs:
Provide background knowledge through the
first language via subject matter teaching in
the first language to the point that
subsequent subject matter instruction in
English is comprehensible;
Provide literacy in the first language;
Provide comprehensible input in English,
through ESL and sheltered instruction.
Understanding the Bilingual Education
Controversy
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Main points of the controversy:
Definition of bilingual education;
Types of programs appropriate for
language minority students;
Role of public schools in promoting
bilingualism;
How to measure academic achievement
among language minorities.
Main points of the controversy:
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Issue of segregation;
Preservation of native language and cultures;
National unity and democratic values and
equal education opportunities;
Role of home in preserving heritage
languages;
Political and economic advantages of English
v. multiculturalism;
Linguistics and cognitive advantages;
Cultural and social advantages;
Types of research and validity.
Circumstantial arguments against
bilingual educaiton
1. The United States is a monolingual
nation where English is
considered the main and only
language of the country. However,
English is loosing ground to other
languages now spoken in the
United States
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Counterevidence:
In spite of massive immigration,
the English has survived
without any help from the
government, such an officiallanguage legislation.
2. Newcomers to the United States
are learning English more slowly
than in previous generations
States
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Counterevidence:
To the contrary of the
opponent’s views, today’s
immigrants appear to be
acquiring English more rapidly
than ever before.
3. Bilingualism disrupts the unity of
the country. Language unity helps
us build a national character and
identity in the midst of so many
diverse elements, including ethnic,
cultural and linguistic diversity.
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Counterevidence:
Bilingualism is a natural gift in a
diverse country such as ours.
4. English has historically been the
language of opportunities. By
learning English, immigrants and
following generations will be
empowered.
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Counterevidence:
US residents recognize the
importance of English.
However, multilingualism is a
tremendous resource to the
country’s global
competitiveness.
5. The best way to learn a language is
through “total immersion”. The
more contact with the language
the faster one learns it .
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Counterevidence:
The climate of full cognitive
development is crucial in the
development of L2. Input must
be comprehensible to promote
L2 acquisition. There is no
credible evidence to support
the claim that the more children
are exposed to English, the
more English they will learn.
6. Children learning English are
retained too long in bilingual
classrooms, at the expense of
English acquisition it.
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Counterevidence:
Truly bilingual programs seek
to cultivate proficiency in both
languages, and research has
shown that students’ native
language can be maintained
and developed at no cost to
English learn.
7. The earlier in life one learns a
language the better.
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Counterevidence:
The climate of full cognitive
development is crucial in the
development of a second
language. Indeed the best age
to acquire an L2 is 9-21.
8. Bilingual instruction is far more
costly than English language
instruction.
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Counterevidence:
All programs serving ELL’s cost
little more than regular
programs for native speakers.
Federal law and court cases
require special languages
services for language
minorities.
9. Disproportionate dropout rates for
Hispanic students demonstrate
the failure of bilingual education.
Counterevidence:
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Latino school dropout is the result a
series of background variables:
poverty, racism, shortage of
successfully schooled Latino role
models, under-empowering school
culture: lack of material resources and
reading material, lack of qualified
bilingual teachers, and administrative
support.
10. Public is against bilingual
education. In particular languageminority parents do not support
bilingual education .
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Counterevidence:
Contrary to what is shown by the
opinion polls on bilingual
education the public is not against
bilingual education. The results of
English-only acceptance are due
to a bias posed by the poll
questions.
11. Many have been successful
without bilingual programs.
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Counterevidence:
Research on linguistic and
learning issues is advancing
demonstrating the linguistic and
cognitive advantages of bilingual
education, resulting on personal
and social advancement.
Further implications
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The public needs to be educated;
School districts must have coherent
guidelines, and personnel must believe in
the program model they are expected to
implement;
The country needs to prepare good
bilingual teachers;
Further implications
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Well-trained and certified teachers in wellstructured and well-supported programs
are the best qualified to deal with students
with a wide range of language proficiency
and academic performance levels;
The debate must be placed not on battling
research finding and competing models of
instruction, but on finding ways of better
serving language minorities;