Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Bilingual Education Free Essays

string(291) " Rico or even to Latin American because the United States has a diversity of cultures and it is much easier for a teacher from other countries to come to the United States and teach because they already know the culture of the student, and the students feel more comfortable and learn more\." Bilingual education is unquestionably a controversial issue. There are several people and organizations in this country, who, for various reasons are opposed to bilingual education. In today’s society regarding education there has been a big issue about whether bilingual education should be taught in classrooms for immigrant students who do not speak English. We will write a custom essay sample on Bilingual Education or any similar topic only for you Order Now Bilingual education began about 1967 as an effort to help immigrants, (mostly Spanish speakers) to learn English (Hoover, Bilingual Education Advocates). Bilingual Education involves teaching two languages to the students. Many persons believe that bilingual education means Spanish and English only, but bilingual could be any two languages. There is a common problem where many parents are against bilingual education because many students are forced into Spanish bilingual classes because they have Spanish surnames, even though they understand and speak English well and they do not speak or read Spanish (Hoover, Bilingual Education Advocates). I have found throughout my studies in bilingual education that a lot of students are placed in bilingual classes because the parents fill out a home language survey stating that the home language is Spanish. Little do the parents know that this is what determines what type of class their child will be in. This is causing many problems for children that are being forced into bilingual classes even when they are not immigrants. The promoter of bilingual education was the German language, because in 1837 students were required to take German in school at least one year (Eva Giles). But one of the most common bilingual programs here in South Texas is Spanish and English. A research states that â€Å"Nearly one in every six school age children in the United States come from a home where a language other than English is regularly spoken† (Eva Giles). â€Å"By some estimates, English is spoken today by one million people and two thirds learned it as a second language† (James Crawford). Secretary of Education T. H. Bell remarked that the support of the government for bilingual education grew from $7. 5 million in 1969 to $134 million in 1982 and it provides help for between 1. million to 3. 5 million children (Hoover, The case for and against Bilingual Education). There are many reasons why bilingual education is not effective for many people. First of all, the schools that have bilingual education do not have certified teachers. The problem that I have seen most too often is that many people are going through an alternative program to become a teacher , where they have no schooling in bilingual education and they don’t understand the concept of how it works, nor do they understand the laws. A person that has a degree in criminal justice, per se, goes through a 5 month program, takes a test, and is then considered to be a bilingual teacher. It is very common, here in south Texas where I live, that people that have gone through the ACP certification are being chosen over traditional college path teachers. Bilingual education is controversial for the simplest reason that it disrupts established patterns in school. For many schools, it can cause many headaches because they need to recruit more qualified teachers, redesign curricula, and reorganize class schedules, so many administrators want to avoid that. The monolingual teachers fear the reassignment, loss of status, or other career setbacks (Crawford). Because many schools do not have qualified teachers, the students get behind in their studies because they do not learn either English or Spanish (Hoover, Bilingual Education Advocates). Moreover, many parents complain that their children on a regular school day are exposed mostly to Spanish and only few minutes to English (Hoover, Bilingual Education Advocates). This is because the immigrants are mixed with the non-immigrants and the teachers focus more on the immigrant students so they can learn English. Furthermore, the students get confused in their writing in Spanish and English. For example, a child was enrolled in bilingual education only because he/she has a Spanish surname even though he spoke only Spanish, and by the seventh grade the child could not read or write either English or Spanish (Hoover, Bilingual Education Advocates). On the other hand, many states reported on an average annual increase of 9. 2 percent in the enrollment of limited English proficient students (Crawford). If we do not have more certified teachers in our schools most of the students would have a high rate of falling behind, failing and dropping out of school. Language minority youths are 1. 5 times more likely than the English language counterparts to have discontinued school before completing twelve years, according to the Intercultural Development Research Association. In 1988 the Hispanic youths were more than twice likely to have dropped out. Therefore if we do not have certified teachers to teach the children we are going to have more uneducated children (Crawford). The solution to this problem about not having many certified teachers in our schools is that we need to train the teachers that we already have with some programs that they need to be a certified teacher. â€Å"Bilingual programs, in order to be effective, must be able to attract and retain a teaching staff sufficient in numbers and qualify to meet the needs of the children enrolled in the program. † (Del Valle, Franco, Garcia). A teacher in the bilingual program must master a subject, possess the skills to teach the subject well, and also have mastered two languages as well to be familiar with the children’s culture. Moreover, a bilingual teacher must meet five criteria, and all are very important for them to be an efficient teacher. The five criteria are: †¢The teacher must be fluent in English †¢The teacher must be fluent in Spanish †¢Mastery of the content area to be taught; e. g. science, history etc. †¢Mastery of the teaching skills necessary to teach content area †¢Well information and complete understanding of the child’s culture, custom, and history (Del Valle, Franco, Garcia). Many schools might have to go to another country to recruit bilingual teachers; they go to Puerto Rico or even to Latin American because the United States has a diversity of cultures and it is much easier for a teacher from other countries to come to the United States and teach because they already know the culture of the student, and the students feel more comfortable and learn more. You read "Bilingual Education" in category "Papers" Furthermore, the second reason why bilingual education is not efficient for many people is because they do not have enough research on it. Many people do not know about all of the help that there is in schools for all immigrant students that came from other parts of the world. Parents do not get involved in their child’s studies or know what classes they are taking especially when they are in middle school or high school. â€Å"Many advocates of bilingual education fear that any government recognition of minority languages ‘sends a wrong message’ to immigrants encouraging them to believe they can live in the United States without learning English or conforming to Americans’ ways† (Bilingual Education). Many parents believe that enrolling their children in only English classes will help them to improve in their language. For example, there is a case in California where the government is going to enforce a new program called Ballot Initiative, which would mandate English only instruction for children until they become fully proficient in English (Bilingual Education). But parents do not see all those programs that they have in schools to help their children improve in English without getting frustrated because they do. Parents should think about all the frustration that their children are dealing with because they are enrolling them in English classes even if they do not know the language. This is why they need to be made aware of all the programs that the schools have to offer to assist the students that do not speak English. The solution to this kind of problem in the schools is a program called late and early transition that helps the students who receive instructions in their native language during the early years of schooling eventually â€Å"transition† into mainstreaming English. William M. Saunders, Claude Goldenberg. ) Transition programs can occur anywhere from the early elementary grades to middle school or later in high school; it all depends on the school program when the student starts. Transition programs are three year program constants that approach the Spanish to English development in grades 3-5 and transition programs compromise 12 specific components falling in to three categories: 1. Literature studies (literature units, instructional conversations, writing projects) 2. Skill building (reading comprehension, reading, dictation, and oral English) 3. Supporting Components (reading, reading aloud, and writing journals) A transition program is divided into three parts; Pre-Transition, Transition I, and Transition II. A Pre-Transition program is considered for the students in the third grade. Its purpose is to emphasize the fundamental role of Spanish reading and writing and oral English development that precedes transition and the goal is that by the end of the year the student should read and write Spanish, and a certain level of oral English. The second part of the transition program is called Transition I and it is used in the fourth grade. It is designed to make clear the need of an actual program for a certain time. By the end of fourth grade or Transition I, students should show at least initial reading and writing fluency in English. Moreover, the student should be able to participate in discussions in English and the student should also continue to demonstrate a good level in writing and reading in Spanish used in language arts throughout the entire year. The last part of the program called Transition II is used in the fifth grade. This last part of the program is where the students should be decoding and comprehends grade level materials in English, which mean in literature and content areas (Saunders). According to many teachers in California, bilingual transition programs work very well in schools where they have positive teachers that want to help the student and where the first language is used in the first year (Stephanie Krasren). One of my solutions for bilingual education is to implement more programs for older students as high school students. Right now we do not have enough programs that help those students and that is why we have a lot of college students that do not know how to write or read English or Spanish. In our high schools there is not enough emphasis in programs for high school students because many teachers believe that the students already know English because they attended elementary and middle school. Sometimes it doesn’t cross teachers minds that many students came to the United States when they were 16 and older and they had finished elementary or middle school in Mexico or other places. When they come to high schools here in the United States they do not know English. The program that I would implement for high school immigrant students that do not know any English would be called Older Transition. It would be separated in two parts, the first one being Older Transition I. It would be for ninth grade. The student would have a special teacher in separate classrooms, a teacher that helps them learn the basic English language and as the year goes by to improve their English in all subjects, so the student can be familiarized with the language. The second part would be called Older Transition II and would be for tenth grade immigrant students. The students would be placed in regular classes so they can be familiarized with how the classes work and begin taking the TAKS test that they need in order to graduate. Also the student would be required to participate in school activities so they can be involved with the language and improve their skills. If we would have more programs like this, many students would be beneficiated and wouldn’t feel left out and they would have a better future with more opportunities. These days, many jobs require applicants to be bilingual. â€Å"Businesses, especially telephone companies here in Texas and California are seeking for bilingual employees† (Hoover, Bilingual Education Advocates). Moreover, Texas and California have a high percentage of immigrants and Hispanics, which is why many companies ask the employee if they can speak Spanish and English. According to Hoover, English is the widely used language in history also; English in the language of Science technology, and business (Bilingual Education Advocates). Furthermore, right now in this society we have a high call for merchants, bankers, and diplomats able to speak two languages. Therefore, if programs like this would be enforced in many high schools many students would have a better future and they would not have problems in college. The opposite view about my solution of implementing more transition programs for high school students is that many high schools do not have enough funds to be spending in transition programs. Moreover, many principals say that high schools do not receive money to have special teacher or train the teachers that the schools already have to teach the immigrant students that do not speak English. I believe that schools have enough money to spend to train teachers and programs because they have enough money to spend in athletics and other elective courses. Many high schools put more interest in athletics or any other activities than in the improvement of the student’s studies. To reiterate, whether bilingual education is effective or not for immigrant students who do not speak English is up to the schools and how they approach the effectiveness of the bilingual programs. After reading much information about bilingual education, I have come to a conclusion; if we have more certified teachers who care and help the students with the English skills and if the schools implement more programs to help immigrant students, we are going to have a nation with many bilingual people who would help others. Moreover, we are going to have a better future for the kids of tomorrow. I encourage many teachers to support more bilingual programs and talk with their principals about them and put them into practice in the classrooms. A lot of this implementation starts with the district, of course, but sometimes certain districts don’t want to implement the bilingual programs and are just receiving the money for it. This is where the schools need to step up and implement the programs and possibly make a call to the TEA and make sure that the district starts following the rules. It all begins with one person making the difference and then it goes from there. How to cite Bilingual Education, Papers Bilingual Education Free Essays Why Do We not Consider the Benefits? Bilingual education is like the seat belts in the back of your car. They both serve as helpful attachments that can only prepare you for the future. Bilingual education is a form of education in which information is presented to the student in two or more languages. We will write a custom essay sample on Bilingual Education or any similar topic only for you Order Now By broadening a student’s scope to two or more languages, students hold an advantage when entering the professional world. The professional world is where work gets serious and adults have to face the real world problems. Essentially, in the 21st century adults cannot get by at work with just one language. For example, even employees of local ninety-nine cents stores are familiar with two languages such as Spanish and English. If bilingual education can affect such a mediocre job, who knows what fluency in many languages can do in the professional world. Today, in most Los Angeles Public Schools, the students are not all fluent English speakers. There are students who speak several languages other than English, students who only speak English, and even students who only speak one uncommon native language. In result, schools are filled with diverse groups of students, which is ultimately why Los Angeles Public schools have to prepare all of these numerous groups for their successful future. It is the responsibility of Los Angeles Public schools to require bilingual education because fluency in multiple languages not only benefits the self but also aids the surrounding community. Bilingual and multilingual speakers have greater long-term health benefits than do monolingual speakers. New studies have shown that bilingualism reduces the chances of developing Alzheimer, a common form of dementia. Recently, Dr. Ellen Bialystok carried out a study for patients diagnosed with Alzheimer at York University in Toronto. In leading the study, she stated, â€Å"[Bilingual] [people] perform at a higher level. It won’t stop you [from] getting Alzheimer’s disease but they can cope with the disease for longer (Derbyshire 1). † Dealing with bilingual education might be complex and strenuous, but all of the hard work pays off in the end because one will receive an education in two languages and also reduce his/her chances of Alzheimer. Although the effects of bilingual education do not guarantee the prevention of Alzheimer, the results do help fight the disorder longer than monolingual patients can fight it. Aside from the bilingual education’s relationship with Alzheimer, as long as bilingualism plays as a beneficial factor in education first and foremost, there should be no other reason why bilingual education is not required. Giving up a bilingual education program because of money matters is not worth the loss, because bilingual education can produce just as much fruitful results in the future as it is now when people are not spending money on education. It is a lost opportunity in enhancing California’s education system. In relation to enduring Alzheimer for a longer period, bilingual education also benefits the self as it enhances cognitive skills. Because bilingual education calls for the constant switch of language, students enrolled in the program develop enhanced cognitive skills. Cognitive skills more or less mean the skills of the brain. Bilingual education greatly affects a person usually as an infant, because there is a chance to grasp an equal amount of knowledge for both languages. Janet Werker, a developmental psychologist from the Univeirsity of B. C. , was studying babies growing up in bilingual environments. In her studies, she discovered that, â€Å"not only could [bilingual] [babies] distinguish between the two languages [they] [are] [familiar] [with], but that they also were able to distinguish between languages they weren’t familiar with, such as English and French (Sun 1). † Werker’s study portrays how bilingual education can affect the brain at such a young age. The distinction between monolingual and bilingual people is declared at the baby stages, which range from the time of birth to about two years old, of peoples’ lives. Although distinguishing between two languages might not be a specific benefit, the fact that a baby can differentiate between English and French portrays that bilingual education is effective in mental challenges. In addition, Dr. Ellen Bialystok, the leader of the Alzheimer study at York University, believes in enhanced cognitive skills as well. In the article â€Å"People who speak two languages are ‘better at multi-tasking and less likely to develop Alzheimer’s’† she states, â€Å"Switching between languages is a stimulating activity – it is like carrying out brain exercises which builds up higher levels of what we call brain or cognitive reserve (Derbyshire 2). † Because the act of constantly switching back to other languages exercises the brain, the practice allows bilingual people to become more adept in multi-tasking and excel in mental challenges. The fact that learning to speak two languages enriches brain activity already proves that bilingual education has a beneficial factor towards students. Not only will bilingualism cause brain exercises, but it will also help prevent dementia because juggling two languages improves brain activity. Of course all of these benefits are void now that Proposition 227 is passed. The implementation of Proposition 227 obstructs the opportunity and benefits of the students. Proposition 227 requires publics schools to teach and give out instructions in English only, if not otherwise suggested by the parents. The proposition was passed on June 2, 1998 with a sixty-one to thirty-nine percent margin. The â€Å"California Proposition 227 and Bilingualism† article states, â€Å"[Proposition] [227] would essentially require all students to learn English in one year, even though many children need several years of language support (Migration World Magazine 1). † The only reason why Proposition 227 was passed is because people are too impatient. People cannot wait on long-term effects, so instead they search for immediate gratification. Parents are too stubborn to realize the educational, professional, and health benefits that follow a bilingual education program. Moreover, Valery Fadeyev, a well-known journalist states, â€Å"[The] [authorities] don’t understand that education reform is the only real source for the revitalization of our country (Levy 5). † Clearly, the same situation of being oblivious to the bilingual education occurs in America as it already does in Russia. Furthermore, Amy Zabetakis, the author of Proposition 227: Death for Bilingual Education, states that â€Å"Ron K. Unz, a millionaire software developer, [led] the campaign in support of Proposition 227, and himself gave the campaign $270,000 (Zbetakis 2). † Opponents of bilingual education are arguing that they cannot afford the textbooks for the program, but here we have a millionaire wasting $270,000 on a single campaign. Truthfully, it is sad to here Zabetakis support Ron K. Unz when the man does not even know how to spend his money. If all that money did not go to campaigning, many public schools would have benefited from the textbooks that contain bilingual education. Although businessmen like Unz do not support bilingual education, successful companies like his hire employees with bilingual backgrounds. In the long run, the business world would greatly benefit from the requirement of a bilingual education. The skill of speaking more than one language is a key and crucial element of business, which is why the installment of bilingual education is stressed upon heavily. All types of business involve meeting people from all over the world, whether it may be dealing with a simple phone call from across the world or as complex as flying out to a foreign country for a business meeting. In either situation, bilingual people hold an advantage with the knowledge of more than one language. Domenico Maceri, the writer of â€Å"Plural Benefits of Bilingual Education,† states, â€Å"Smart companies use many ways to communicate with their customers and inform them about services and products† (Maceri 1). A subtle interpretation of Maceri’s quote is that smart Los Angeles public schools use many ways to communicate with their students, which is ultimately achieved through a bilingual education program. In addition, Maceri’s assertion about exploiting different communication tactics implies that bilingualism is bound to bring in better results than monolingualism because different communication tactics cannot be reached through a single language. Monolingualism reaches its restrictions and limitations quickly, whereas bilingualism allows for more options and choices. An example that best displays the successfulness of bilingual communication tactics is the Verizon Wireless advertisement. Verizon Wireless would not have been as successful as they are currently if it was not for its multiple advertisements translated into several foreign languages. Now, the advertisement is grabbing attention to a bigger community, instead of limiting their customers to only native English speakers. The most important point about this example is that none of these positive results would have been reached if it were not for the requirement of bilingual education. All the big companies were capable of producing multiple foreign advertisements because they had employees who experienced a bilingual education. Bilingual education in Los Angeles Public Schools should adhere to the callings of the individual student. Because not everyone speaks and understands the same languages, some students, more than others, hold an advantage or disadvantage when placed in bilingual education. Everyone has dreams they want to accomplish one day and in order to achieve them people need time. By allowing bilingual education to become optional, Los Angeles Public Schools could possibly see a rise in grade point average. This change would also allow more opportunity to focus on activities that actually interest the students. Then students would ultimately become one step closer in attaining their dreams. Works Cited â€Å"California Proposition 227 and Bilingualism. † Migration World Magazine 26. 4. Print. Derbyshire, David. â€Å"People Who Speak Two Languages Are ‘better at Multi-tasking and Less Likely to Develop Alzheimer’s'† Mail Online. Print. Levy, Clifford J. â€Å"My Family’s Experiment in Extreme Schooling. † New York Times. New York Times, 18 Sept. 2011. Web 17 Sept. 2011 Maceri, Domenico. â€Å"Plural Benefits of Bilingual Education. † San Gabriel Valley Tribune (California) (2006). Print. Sun, Vancouver. â€Å"The Benefits of Bilingual Education. † The Vancouver Sun (British Columbia). Print. Zabetakis, Amy. â€Å"PROPOSITION 227: DEATH FOR BILINGUAL EDUCATION? † Georgetown Immigration Law Journal 105-28 13. 1 (1998). Web. 18 Oct. 2011. How to cite Bilingual Education, Essay examples Bilingual Education Free Essays This essay will attempt to answer two questions about bilingual education programs. These questions are: (1) What is the basis or belief of a transitional or a maintenance approach of most bilingual education programs? (2) Why are children from culturally and linguistically different backgrounds overrepresented in classes for children with disabilities and underrepresented in classes for children who are gifted or talented and what can be done to reverse this trend? First, the basis or belief of a transitional or a maintenance approach of bilingual education programs are explained separately below: (a) Marshall, Lieb, De Morais Saavedra (2008) defines transitional bilingual education as a system of instruction which â€Å"uses students’ native languages in teaching subject areas, and students use progressively more English to transit into the mainstream education curriculum. † It is based on the belief that â€Å"the first language can be helpful in providing background knowledge, and literacy transfers across languages† (Shin, 2000, cited in Marshall, Lieb, De Morais Saavedra). We will write a custom essay sample on Bilingual Education or any similar topic only for you Order Now This approach aims â€Å"to enable limited English proficient students to become competent in all areas of English through the development of literacy and academic skills in their native language† and â€Å"to place students in the mainstream English class as soon as possible† (Marshall, Lieb, De Morais Saavedra, 2008). (b) Maintenance or developmental bilingual education, according to Vandergriff (2002) aims â€Å"to preserve and enhance students’ skills in the mother tongue while they acquire a second language† and it â€Å"is considered an enrichment model, adding to students’ linguistic abilities or additive bilingualism, continuing the development in both languages. † Moreover, Cromwell (1998) adds that â€Å"developmental bilingual education attempts to build on students’ skills in their native language as they learn English as a second language. † It is based on the belief that students can learn more by the languages they have known and learned. Second, the reason why children who come from culturally and linguistically different backgrounds are overrepresented in classes for children with disabilities and underrepresented in classes for gifted or talented children is due to the lack or deficiency of English language skills of these children which causes them not to learn the subjects in a certain grade level and causes them to fail in their academic performance. These children might have been placed in classes for children with disabilities because they are like them who repeatedly fail in their academics because of language barriers. The Washington State Transitional Bilingual Instruction Program Guidelines (2008) state that: â€Å"Students who are not proficient in English sometimes are inappropriately placed in special education classes†¦ because of their lack of English proficiency, qualified students often do not have access to high track courses or Gifted and Talented programs† (p. 25). Indeed, this is what is happening in reality. If a student lacks the language proficiency to learn in academic subjects such as math, science, history and others, s/he is likely to fail and repeat the subjects. The child then becomes similar to a child with disability in terms of academic performance. It can be said that there are many gifted or talented students among the students from different cultural and linguistic background yet they are not able to demonstrate their gifts or special talents due to language barriers. In order to stop the trend where there are more Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students in special education classes and less English language learners (ELL) in classes for gifted or talented children, the bilingual education program of the state and the nation as a whole needs to be fully implemented in every district where there are LEP and EL learners. In this way, those students who are not proficient or lacks proficiency in the English language may be proficient at it which could lead these students to understand, learn and pass other academic subjects which are taught in English. Consequently, there will be more children from culturally and linguistically different backgrounds can have access to classes for children who are gifted and talented. References Bergeson, T. (2008 February). Washington State Transitional Bilingual Instruction Program Guidelines. Retrieved 11 May 2008 from http://www. k12. wa. us/MigrantBilingual/pubdocs/TBIPProgramGuidelines. pdf. Cromwell, S. (1998). The Bilingual Education Debate: Part I. Education World. Retrieved 11 May 2008 from http://www. education-world. com/a_curr/curr047. shtml Marshall, C. , Lieb B. , DeMorais, L. Saavedra, I. (2008). Exploring Bilingual Education. Retrieved 11 May 2008 from http://filebox. vt. edu/c/cmarshal/exploring_bilingual_education. htm. Vandergriff, J. (2002 June 13). Bilingual Education. Retrieved 11 May 2008 from http://web. grinnell. edu/courses/mitc/vandergr/201%20Web%20site/Bilingual%20Education. htm How to cite Bilingual Education, Papers

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