In my very first civic issues blog, I talked about bilingual education in the United States, and some of the most commonly used programs regarding education for non-English speakers in U.S. schools. On my last civic issues post, I would like to expand on the topic by mentioning a newer programs for bilingual education that serves for both immigrants and Americans alike. Several schools in the United States utilize “Dual-Way Immersion” programs, which are basically bilingual schools for both English speakers and non-English speakers, where the first group can expand their global knowledge and the second group can retain their first language while becoming fluent in the second.
The history of bilingual schools in the United States dates back to the 1694, when immigrants from Germany founded the first ‘kindergarten’ and eventually expanded bilingual education to schools in Ohio, Pennsylvania, North and South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin in the 1850’s. Since then, bilingualism in schools has been the topic of many debates and shifting public opinions. Through the 1910’s ad 20’s, many different factors such as World War 1, the second big wave of immigration into the country, and the Nationality Act of 1906 (which requires all immigrants to have some level of English proficiency before they can become citizens), led to people shifting their opinions towards a more monolingual culture.
However, the launching of Sputnik by the Russians in 1957 and the Civil Rights Movement in the 60’s led to people preferring bilingual education. A big case which supported the public opinion at the time was Lau vs. Nickols, a case which prohibited English mainstreaming education in the state of California, citing that it was a violation of the Equal Rights Act of 1964. Public opinion changed yet again during the 80’s when the Reagan ministration began, Reagan himself took a stance against bilingual education and criticized many times:
“It is absolutely wrong and against the American concept to have a bilingual education program that is now openly, admittedly, dedicated to preserving their native language….” – Ronald Reagan
This is how mainstream English immersion programs went from being banned to becoming the norm. Although bilingual education is illegal in the U.S., the fact remains that immigrant, non-English speaking children are becoming an increasing part of our school system. Because I mainly focused on English immersion programs and transitional programs on my previous post, I will now focus on the other alternative: dual-way programs.
Dual programs are considered as a possible option because they teach both English and non-English speakers two languages at a 50:50 ratio and in the same environment. These schools usually achieve that all their students achieve bilingualism and bi-literacy while still getting a good education in all required subjects. An example of these schools is this Spanish immersion dual-program in Milwaukee, Wisconsin:
One advantage of these programs is that many young children from other countries get to keep using their own language to achieve a native level of proficiency in both languages. Meanwhile, English-speaking children can acquire a second language early on in their lives and therefore get to a native language level of proficiency in both languages as well. A critic about the programs though, is that each school has to be very specific in which language they will educate. The Milwaukee school on this video is focused on Spanish/English immersion, which means that immigrant children from non-Spanish speaking countries would not benefit from this school. Critics of the program state that, “even if there were a demonstrable advantage for Spanish-speakers learning to read first in their home language, it does not follow that the same holds true for speakers of languages that do not use the Roman alphabet. To refute this claim though, the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) has stated that the ability to read does transfer across languages, even when the writing systems are different. NABE has even stated in their official page that, “there is evidence that reading ability transfers from Chinese to English, from Vietnamese to English, from Japanese to English, and from Turkish to Dutch. In other words, those who read well in one language, read well in the second language.”
Another downside is that this type of education can cause a constant worry for the parents. Both immigrant and local parents have expressed in some instances their worry that the children might not be learning enough English, and they say they would rather have a 60:40 ratio program where English is the dominant language. However, there are no studies which could suggest that children don’t acquire English at a proficient level in these programs. Moreover, there are studies which show that children in these programs actually perform better at school because of cognitive benefits, such as an enhanced understanding of mathematics, creativity and selective retention.
In my personal experience, I went to a dual-language school in Germany when I lived there for a year; although I don’t remember much because I was in first grade, my mother has told me many times that she saw the positive results very early in the year. I think this would be my preferable choice compared to the other options I mentioned in my other post. What do you guys think?
Sources: http://www.nabe.org/BilingualEducation
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/12/bilingual-education-programs-_n_5138927.html
http://www.education.com/slideshow/reasons-why-bilingual-education-debate/literally-literate/
Alexander Bilger says
I think that bilingual education is a great thing. It gives people a sense for other cultures (languages say a lot about the people that speak it), and in my opinion can really help reduce the ignorance of other countries that the US is often infamous for.
Annika Hansen says
I really like the idea of having bilingual schools in the United States. Throughout Kindergarten to high school I was enrolled in Spanish classes that met a few times a week, and in high school everyday. I learned very little throughout my 10 years taking Spanish. I think immersion is key to learning another language. I have been speaking German since I was born and I’ve noticed my German is at it’s best after I have spent a few weeks in Germany. I am taking German here at Penn State, and despite having German class four times a week for two semesters, I do not know as much now as I did when I would come back from Germany.
Ashlyn D Mckee says
I think that bilingual schools are definitely necessary and should be integrated into the American education system. However, I also believe in order to maintain American pride and nationality, it is important for every citizen to be speaking a common language, its what links us together.