ENGLISH ONLY POLITICS AND ARGUMENTS FOR BILINGUAL EDUCATION By Brittni Cosgrove and Louisa Lee

HISTORY OF ENGLISH ONLY LEGISLATION In 1981, a constitutional English Only Amendment was created, but has never come to a Congressional vote. It would have made English the official language of the United States voters in Arizona, Colorado, and Florida passed state constitutional amendments making English their official language.

ENGLISH PLUS MOVEMENT Movement to promote acceptance of language diversity. Emphasizes need for LEP populations to acquire English as an economic/social necessity. Multiple language skills important for future well-being of the nation. Encourages education in both English and secondary languages across the entire population. English Plus resolutions have been adopted in New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington.

BILINGUAL EDUCATION ACT, TITLE VII OF THE ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT OF Established federal policy for bilingual education. Requires special assistance programs to give language minority students "full access to the learning environment, the curriculum, special services and assessment in a meaningful way“.

1970 US DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND WELFARE MEMORANDUM “The district must take affirmative action steps to rectify the language deficiency” Affirmed the application of the Civil Rights Act (1964) to language-minority children Identified three main areas of concern: 1.Unequal access to participation in school programs 2.Segregation by tracking, ability grouping and assignment to special education programs 3.Exclusion of parents from school information

LAU V. NICHOLS Court case based on the failure of a California school to provide English language instruction to Chinese-American students. Violates Title VI of Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans discrimination based “on the ground of race, color, or national origin”. Unequal education rights is violation of 14 th amendment. Court of Appeals denied relief, because “every student brings to his or her educational career different advantages and disadvantages based on social, economic, and cultural background, which are factors created separately from the school system.” Supreme Court decided that "there is no equality of treatment merely by providing students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum”. Identical education differentiates from equal education.

CASTENEDA V PICHARD In 1981, Mexican-American children and parents claimed that the Texas school district was discriminating against them because of their ethnicity. This ruling led to the “Casteneda Test”, three criteria that a program serving LEP students must meet: 1.Must be based on “a sound educational theory” 2.Must be “implemented effectively” with adequate resources and personnel. 3.After a trial period, must be evaluated as effective in overcoming language handicaps.

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND 2002 NCLB places emphasis and pressure on students’ standardized test scores and improvements. However, for ELLs, the test is a measure of not only achievement in the subject matter, but language proficiency as well. Title III funds can be awarded to exemplary districts and schools, and be used for the development of language instruction educational programs.

CASE AGAINST BILINGUAL EDUCATAION The most frequent arguments are: Studies have shown that it is ineffective There are better choices, such as immersion It is not needed for students to succeed, since there are successful people who have not had bilingual education The writing systems have to be similar in the two languages for bilingual education to even have a chance of being successful

CASE FOR BILINGUAL EDUCATION “When we give children quality education in their primary language, we give them two things: (1) Knowledge, both general knowledge of the world and subject matter knowledge. The knowledge that children get through their first language helps make the English they hear and read more comprehensible…(2) Literacy, which transfers across languages.” (Alatis). Three steps to transfer of literacy from the first to the second language 1.“(according to Frank Smith and Kenneth Goodman) We learn to read by reading, by making sense of what we see on the page. 2.If we learn to read by reading, it will be much easier to learn to read in a language we already understand; and 3.Once you can read, you can read. The ability to read transfers across languages.” Literacy also helps with using language to solve problems and gain more knowledge.

BILINGUAL PROGRAMS “(1) Comprehensible input in English, through high quality English as a Second Language (ESL) and sheltered subject matter teaching; (2) Subject matter teaching in the primary language, without translation. This provides children with knowledge that will make the English they hear more comprehensible; and (3) Literacy development in the first language, which transfers to the second.”

HOW CAN THIS HELP TEACHERS Having more books, in the first and second languages, because “free voluntary reading can help all components of bilingual education: It is a source of comprehensible input in English, a means of developing knowledge through the first language, a means of promoting first language literacy, and it can help continue first language development.”

SOURCES Crawford, James. Bilingual Education. Issues in U.S. Language Policy English Plus Movement. Washington, D.C Holmes, Joseph M. Bilingual Education : Serna v. Portales Municipal Schools. Laws and Court Cases Related to National Origin Equity and Desegregation. Intercultural Development Research Association. /Laws_and_Court_Cases/ /Laws_and_Court_Cases/ Stanford University. Casteneda vs. Pickard (1981).

SOURCES Summary of Lau v. Nichols Beyond Brown. Alatis, James E. "Linguistics, Language Acquisition, and Language Variation: Current Trends..." Google Books. Georgetown University Press, n.d. Web. 20 Feb Freeman, David E., and Yvonne S. Freeman. Between Worlds: Access to Second Language Acquisition. Third ed. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, Print.