Bilingual Education

Bilingual Education

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The presence of bilingual students in U .S . schools is significant and the result of internal and external historical factors . Educators and policymakers must consider their needs and potential contribution to our education system . The multiplicity of languages and the complex nature of bilinguals renders a complicated but exciting educational field for research , practice , and educational innovation . Unfortunately , languages become entangled in political battles , dragging the education and the future of innocent children into such conflicts

Indigenous inhabitants , colonizers , and immigrants to the

United States have and continue to represent a variety of language backgrounds . Like it or not , the United States is highly multilingual . Fashions in using language in education and attitudes toward bilingualism have undergone many changes since the United States became independent

During the initial colonization of the United States , European settlers used the languages of their countries of origin . The Continental Congress considered French and German important for political purposes It recognized the need to disseminate information among disparate populations to broaden the cause of independence (Heath , 1976 . The settlers established schools that educated their children in their own languages , especially French , German , Spanish , and Swedish , while teaching English as a second language . Schools that used English as the medium of instruction taught one of the other European languages as a second language ( Keller Van Hooft , 1982

The presence of many languages in U .S . schools was an accepted reality until the 1870s "Newss , schools , and societies provided instructional support for diverse languages (Heath , 1981 ,

. 7 . There was , however , concern for seeking a common language , especially to conduct government affairs (Heath , 1981 . The original colonies and territories incorporated later into the Union comprised local governments that used different languages , such as German in Pennsylvania , French in Louisiana , and Spanish in New Mexico and California . English , nevertheless , always played an important role in the public life of the colonies because from the beginning England colonized the United States . The form of government embraced after the American Revolution reflected English values (Conklin Lourie , 1983 Economic and historic factors helped solidify the position of English as the language of government

During the first half of the 20th century , English was imposed as the language of instruction in most states . As many as 34 states enacted laws mandating English as the language of instruction . Other languages were forbidden and teachers could be fined or jailed if found using them "No polyglot empire of the old world has dared be as ruthless in imposing a single language upon its whole population as was the liberal republic 'dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal ( Johnson , 1949 , pp . 118-119

Political , social , and economic rationales for denigrating all languages other than English advanced linguistic and cognitive theories that attacked bilingualism . Public schools quickly adopted a "sink or swim attitude during the first half of the 20th century . Special programs such as English as a Second Language (ESL ) served only adults . The assumption was that...