This is nothing new. As with most French-Canadian immigrant families in the Northeast years ago, my father was sent to bilingual school in both French and English starting in first grade in a very similar model. He is now in his 70s and made it through college, law school, and a long and distinguished law career 'despite' the fact that the majority of his early schooling was in French. Of note, even though he hasn't spoken French in decades, on a recent trip to France, he still got along quite well. Stop thinking the sky is falling. Plenty of people in the past, and all around the world currently, do very well with this type of schooling.
2
By all means, let's punish these children for being dominant in one language and weak in another. Let's teach them that the language they think themselves "stupider" in is the one that describes them accurately as people.
And, for heaven's sake, let us never, never assume that people who learned aversion to foreign languages because of their family's linguistic transition to this country are bigots.
And, for heaven's sake, let us never, never assume that people who learned aversion to foreign languages because of their family's linguistic transition to this country are bigots.
I ran into a teacher from Sweden a number of years ago, indeed an American ex-patriate. He was teaching sixth grade, which he told me was roughly equivalent to American sixth grade, at least a far as age of students was concerned. He also told me that by 3rd grade, students were learning their first foreign language, generally English and by sixth grade they were learning their second Foreign language. The literacy rate in the Scandanavian countries is amongst the highest in the world. Could learning a 'second-language,' or beyond contribute to their success in education? Probably.
5
Many readers comment that time spent in learning another language is time taken away from learning English. Note that learning in any language automatically becomes part of the knowledge-base for that student. In dual language programs, where languages are taught separately, children learn the content curriculum in each language and actively integrate information across languages. Think of the multiple associations and interconnectivity taking place in their brains, it is much more than for monolinguals.
In addition, multilingual-speakers can communicate in any of their languages at the same time and with different people, holding and processing different types of information in an effortless manner. That requires a degree of executive control and attention not available to monolingual speakers.
So the benefits of a bilingualism extend beyond communicating in another language. They tap into cognitive resources that include selective attention, problem solving, creativity, metalinguistic awareness, and memory. There is plenty of research showing these benefits. For those who hold oppositional views on bilingualism, I suggest they read up on the research. Once place to start is work of Ellen Bialystok, who has published several books and research articles on the cognitive advantages of bilingualism. I also refer readers to the work of Ofelia Garcia on translanguaging and the benefits derived from actively integrating and learning across languages.
In addition, multilingual-speakers can communicate in any of their languages at the same time and with different people, holding and processing different types of information in an effortless manner. That requires a degree of executive control and attention not available to monolingual speakers.
So the benefits of a bilingualism extend beyond communicating in another language. They tap into cognitive resources that include selective attention, problem solving, creativity, metalinguistic awareness, and memory. There is plenty of research showing these benefits. For those who hold oppositional views on bilingualism, I suggest they read up on the research. Once place to start is work of Ellen Bialystok, who has published several books and research articles on the cognitive advantages of bilingualism. I also refer readers to the work of Ofelia Garcia on translanguaging and the benefits derived from actively integrating and learning across languages.
2
The fact that the readers are debating if speaking two languages is good or not for children (or anyone) shows the new --tea party ignorance-- fabric of US. This level of dumbness of the once so-called most advance country in the planet, is depressing and really scary... Buena suerte señores
10
According to studies, being bi- or multilingual - that is using two or more languages constantly - decreases the chances of having dementia in old age.
Besides, what's wrong with being able to speak several languages? Over here in Europe, some people call it being civilized.
Besides, what's wrong with being able to speak several languages? Over here in Europe, some people call it being civilized.
5
Since the negative comments all appear to be coming from people with zero experience as parents--much less as teachers--let me share my extremely positive experience in a well-established dual immersion program in CA. My two English-dominant children started the program in kindergarten; they're now in 7th and 5th grade. While not as orally fluent in Spanish as in English (I speak it as a 2nd language; my husband doesn't), they have WAY more than a "smattering": they read at grade level in Spanish, have excellent if not perfect grammar, know about Latinate word derivation, and possess far more knowledge about history and current events in Latin America and Spain than your average adult. Because the community in the immersion program is relatively small and stable, meaningful friendships and collaborations have formed across class and neighborhood lines (the program chooses 50/50 from Spanish- and English-dominant households. The Spanish-dominant kids I know who have stuck with the program--many but not all of them low-income and with immigrant parents--have really succeeded academically. Part of this success derives from the way such programs identify their existing language skills as an asset, not a liability, from the start. It's a global world, and these programs offer marketable skills as well as pathways to life success.
7
Great concept. I agree that english is essential, but the introduction of new means to communicate is brilliant. Math is the universal language. Everybody understands it. Even those that are limited to one spoken language, but we all accepted it. This introduction to new spoken languages should be accepted as a means of stimulating core intelligence, not viewed as a threat. I understand the basic thought behind one language in this great nation, but I prefer to increase educational opportunities that will keep it great. We need to exercise or stimulate our children's minds and this is another way of doing it.
2
My two year old granddaughter understands two languages. She will eventually speak two languages -- and I am glad. I see this as an advantage, not a disadvantage.
4
The first experiments with bilingual classes were carried out in Canada more than forty years ago, only these were with English and French.
What the Canadians discovered was that merely exposing Anglophone children to French was not enough. Sure, they learned to understand French, but having few native speakers to emulate, they developed their own "classroom dialect" of broken French that was hard to correct.
Portland, Oregon seems to be making the same mistake. I once spoke to a young girl who was a ten-year veteran of an immersion program in a language I speak well. When I asked what they were doing in her tenth grade class, her answer, translated in English, sounded something like, "Grammar, since like our grammar were awful bad."
Scandinavians start English early in elementary school, but as an additional class, not in a fully bilingual setting. Most TV programming in those countries is imported from English-speaking countries, occasionally from France, Germany, or Italy, and it is subtitled rather than dubbed, as are movies. Thus, as soon as they know how to read, children in these countries are exposed to English spoken by native speakers in North America, Britain, Australia, and other countries, reinforced by subtitles in their own language.
Then, on the university level, most of their textbooks are in English, since those countries are too small to have their own college textbook publishers.
What the Canadians discovered was that merely exposing Anglophone children to French was not enough. Sure, they learned to understand French, but having few native speakers to emulate, they developed their own "classroom dialect" of broken French that was hard to correct.
Portland, Oregon seems to be making the same mistake. I once spoke to a young girl who was a ten-year veteran of an immersion program in a language I speak well. When I asked what they were doing in her tenth grade class, her answer, translated in English, sounded something like, "Grammar, since like our grammar were awful bad."
Scandinavians start English early in elementary school, but as an additional class, not in a fully bilingual setting. Most TV programming in those countries is imported from English-speaking countries, occasionally from France, Germany, or Italy, and it is subtitled rather than dubbed, as are movies. Thus, as soon as they know how to read, children in these countries are exposed to English spoken by native speakers in North America, Britain, Australia, and other countries, reinforced by subtitles in their own language.
Then, on the university level, most of their textbooks are in English, since those countries are too small to have their own college textbook publishers.
4
the comments to this article are almost as informative about NYTimes readers as the article is about dual language school.
if you are an spanish speaking english language learner and learn half the day in spanish and half the day in english you are the same as a english speaking child learning spanish half the day and english have the day. Why would the former be bad for learning english and the latter be good for learning spanish.
There is good evidence that by middle school these children test as well (or better) as children who are taught only in english. Seems great to me.
if you are an spanish speaking english language learner and learn half the day in spanish and half the day in english you are the same as a english speaking child learning spanish half the day and english have the day. Why would the former be bad for learning english and the latter be good for learning spanish.
There is good evidence that by middle school these children test as well (or better) as children who are taught only in english. Seems great to me.
5
When you live in a country, you learn the language of that country (although English was never acknowledged as our official language). If I were to live in France, I could get away with English for a short time, but would really need to learn French. English is the language used in advanced scholarly work; English is the language employees expect. That does not mean that Americans should not learn a second language but the emphasis should be on non-English speaking children learning English. As was suggested elsewhere, an English immersion class might be better.
3
I think instead of teaching Spanish we should teach our kids native American culture and languages.
I think that you are doing a disservice to these students. The reason for this is that most parents now want their children to go to college someday. Well if you check out colleges you will find that there are certain classes/subjects that you must take and these classes are only given in English. So if you child cannot read or speak the English language how can they pass these class/subject. Now this will cost you double, can you or your child afford to pay this big amount? Because as we all know College is expensive and the cost is only going up. Is this fair to the children?
4
Why should the state/federal government waste money on bilingual education at a time when English is the language of the United States? Before the bilingual programs, people from various countries learned English. Given the reason, Spanish and people of other countries should learn English, not Spanish and English.
2
There is no official language of the United States. By common acceptance, it is widely used, but unlike other countries you mention, there is no law saying so.
Interestingly, your grammar is also incorrect. Perhaps you should have spent more time learning English?
Interestingly, your grammar is also incorrect. Perhaps you should have spent more time learning English?
4
There are only advantages to bilingual education. As a native English-speaker raising children in France for 16 years, I have seen no negative outcome whatsoever among any of the dozens of bilingual--or trilingual, or polyglot--kids I've met. On the contrary, as studies have shown (in Quebec, for example) bilingual children are often brighter given their ability to think simultaneously in more than one language. Moreover, being bicultural means developing early on the capacity to see things from more than one perspective. I envy my bilingual children--their mental lives are so much richer than mine.
32
I received my Master's degree in TESOL ( teaching English to speakers of other language) about 10 years ago and during all my research dual- language immersion programs were always the most successful in integrating non-English speakers. Unfortunately it is very difficult to find highly qualified teachers that can speak two languages fluently enough to teach all subjects. But as these programs become more popular there should also be more qualified teachers. Anyone who is opposed to these programs has either not done the research or doesn't realized how important it is to speak more than one language in today's interconnected world.
In Canada, French/English language schools have existed for some time. Kids who graduate from these schools are some of the brightest and often get first pick at very well paying government jobs. A bilingual education in Canada is never questioned.
2
Our neighborhood has several dual-language elementary schools. Colorado has school choice, which means that you may enroll your child in any school that you wish, depending on availability. It is nearly impossible to enroll your English-speaking kid in one of these programs, as so many parents feel that learning two languages is necessary for their children's education. This is a wonderful thing. As a result of attending a Spanish-emersion preschool, my son now speaks and understands Spanish. He is now at a private school (no availability in the public dual-language programs) where one of his teachers speaks Spanish exclusively to the children. The children, none of whom speak Spanish at home, speak Spanish and English in the classroom. I am convinced, that as a result of his early language training, as he grows, my son will have empathy toward people of other cultures, races, and language traditions, be able to communicate with them in their own language, and -- as if this matters -- have a higher I.Q. than his monolingual peers.
2
Nice to see the Team Uhmerica bigot brigade out in full force on the NY Times comment board.
If you don't like it, don't enroll your kid. Let these participating kids reap the benefits of multilingualism & leave the monolinguals in the dust 20 years from now.
If these educators have found the solution to integrating ELL populations with native English speakers and both benefit, then our tax dollars are well-spent.
If you don't like it, don't enroll your kid. Let these participating kids reap the benefits of multilingualism & leave the monolinguals in the dust 20 years from now.
If these educators have found the solution to integrating ELL populations with native English speakers and both benefit, then our tax dollars are well-spent.
8
spanish is the key if you speak anglais. learn it and you have not only the western hemisphere, minus Quebec, but a path back in time to all the other
languages, including trailblazer Arabic(4th mil.Sea Age). if you own the Nauatl
Diccionario by Rémi Simeón, Siglo XXI, you have them all.
languages, including trailblazer Arabic(4th mil.Sea Age). if you own the Nauatl
Diccionario by Rémi Simeón, Siglo XXI, you have them all.
2
NO, English is the key and in a few thousand years will be the Galactic Standard language. Most Europeans and Asians learn English as their second language.
and the slow, incremental, disguised effort to dilute the cultural heritage of this country continues by the progressives and liberals.
I am not an Anglo American, but English is THE language of the US. It is as much a part of our cultural heritage as is freedom of speech. People are free to learn whatever languages they want, but when so many kids can't even read or write our nation's language properly, this component of the diversity experiment needs to take a back seat. I hope that one day kids here can be great in English and another language of their parent's choosing. There could be benefits to that. But right now is not the time. In order to successfully assimilate into this society, one MUST have a a firm grasp of our country's language. Right now, you have all too many kids in cities like NY who are in 9th grade but can't even read at a 2nd grade level.
I am not an Anglo American, but English is THE language of the US. It is as much a part of our cultural heritage as is freedom of speech. People are free to learn whatever languages they want, but when so many kids can't even read or write our nation's language properly, this component of the diversity experiment needs to take a back seat. I hope that one day kids here can be great in English and another language of their parent's choosing. There could be benefits to that. But right now is not the time. In order to successfully assimilate into this society, one MUST have a a firm grasp of our country's language. Right now, you have all too many kids in cities like NY who are in 9th grade but can't even read at a 2nd grade level.
2
I don't understand your point. Bilingualism does not mean Spanish-only. It means TWO languages. Why are Americans so opposed to learning a second language? Everyone else in the world doesn't seem to have any problem learning two languages -- but Americans? They only want to speak one language -- and they want everyone else to speak only one language.
2
Freedom of speech is a right guaranteed in our Constitution. It is enshrined in law. There is a big difference between that and a "cultural heritage," in a very literal sense.
When we moved to France we were concerned about the language barrier: our daughter spoke no French. But her French public school has an "anglophone" section that teaches English plus there's a dedicated teacher to bring non-French speakers up to speed. The school, by law, has to have half native French speakers, 25% native English speakers, and the rest can be either. The idea is that the French learn English from the English speakers and the English speakers learn French. Six hours a day are spent in French class, nine hours a week in English and the rest is activities that are also in French. On the playground kids speak both languages, mixing them up sometimes mid sentence; they don't think about it.
This creates a great blend of languages and culture. It's predominantly French, as it should be -- we're in France after all -- but it also allows the French kids to learn English, at an early age, from peers rather than only teachers.
I think it's healthy for kids to learn more than one language. Next year they'll start another language and our daughter wants to take Russian; by then she should be fluent in French and, of course, she retains her English. If we ever move back to the US, which we probably will (we're expats, not immigrants, though we do love living here) she'll be trilingual.
This creates a great blend of languages and culture. It's predominantly French, as it should be -- we're in France after all -- but it also allows the French kids to learn English, at an early age, from peers rather than only teachers.
I think it's healthy for kids to learn more than one language. Next year they'll start another language and our daughter wants to take Russian; by then she should be fluent in French and, of course, she retains her English. If we ever move back to the US, which we probably will (we're expats, not immigrants, though we do love living here) she'll be trilingual.
Perhaps someone has already made this comment, or will improve upon it. I have no personal experience with bilingual education, but have heard of two places where it clearly worked. One was Ontario. A generation ago the Canadian Civil Service was required to speak both French and English. This had been pushed for by Quebec, in the belief that this would mean Quebecois would get most of the jobs.
Acquaintances in Ontario told the response was that English speaking populations were taught school subjects in French from an early age. (They still spoke English at home, but until they were 12 or so they were not instructed in it.) This meant that they became fluent in French, as fluent as natives. High school subjects were taught in both French and English.
The other is from an English-speaking friend who moved to a part of Wales where Welsh was the school language of instruction. His children are fluent in both English and Welsh, and statistics show that their fellows have actually learnt the other subjects (maths and STEM for example) better than in English-only schools. Perhaps it is because you have to pay more attention to the teachers.
My own schooling in England had me learn French from age 6 until 15. I am not a competent speaker of French and could never read it for pleasure. There is a lot to be said for bilingual education, at least the total immersion method.
Acquaintances in Ontario told the response was that English speaking populations were taught school subjects in French from an early age. (They still spoke English at home, but until they were 12 or so they were not instructed in it.) This meant that they became fluent in French, as fluent as natives. High school subjects were taught in both French and English.
The other is from an English-speaking friend who moved to a part of Wales where Welsh was the school language of instruction. His children are fluent in both English and Welsh, and statistics show that their fellows have actually learnt the other subjects (maths and STEM for example) better than in English-only schools. Perhaps it is because you have to pay more attention to the teachers.
My own schooling in England had me learn French from age 6 until 15. I am not a competent speaker of French and could never read it for pleasure. There is a lot to be said for bilingual education, at least the total immersion method.
I chose to attend English classes after school in Russia in 3rd grade. English was a required subject in my school starting in 5th grade. I always liked English (unlike most of my classmates who thought foreign language will not ever be needed). Came to US at 18. My daughters were born here and I tried to speak with them Russian as much as possible. They went to Russian family daycare (for culture, language, and because it was somewhat more affordable). My older daughter started Globe program in the 1st grade where everything was taught in English and there were Russian language classes 4 times a week. So, after 5 years formal Russian lessons my daughter chose Italian as a foreign language during 3 years of middle school. She had higher scores in Italian, than kids from Italian families. She is currently a freshman (on a full scholarship) in one of the top 10 US boarding schools and is excitedly learning French there. By the way, her grades were always A s in everything, including math.
My other daughter was in the same Russian daycare, but different elementary school that did not offer a foreign language. Now in middle school she is taking Spanish. She is a solid B student. More languages equals better grades, in my opinio. I'm really toying with an idea of taking up another foreign language for fun. Can't decide between French, Italian, German, and Spanish!
P. S. My husband speaks Creole, but he is not a talkative person so kids did not pick Creole from him.
My other daughter was in the same Russian daycare, but different elementary school that did not offer a foreign language. Now in middle school she is taking Spanish. She is a solid B student. More languages equals better grades, in my opinio. I'm really toying with an idea of taking up another foreign language for fun. Can't decide between French, Italian, German, and Spanish!
P. S. My husband speaks Creole, but he is not a talkative person so kids did not pick Creole from him.
2
Fantastic! There should be more dual language programs options beginning in K and going through high school so that students can truly become bilingual-biliterate. For those harping about English only or exclusively, dual language programs teach students in both English and another language, which is not necessarily Spanish, but typically, effectively does represent a majority language of a particular community. I think it would be wonderful to have two or multiple dual language programs in a school.
3
Let's stop pandering to professional race-baiting politicians who want to mortgage the futures of the vulnerable children, monetize their failures as adults into "victimhood" and create a permanent underclass that'd always need government handouts. Which --you've guessed it -- would ensure a comfortable life for the so-called, reverend minority community leaders and activists.
Permit me to narrate an anecdote about my experience at the neighborhood Chinese fast food restaurant. The parents speak broken English with a Chinese accent, but their 15-year-old son who helps them out on weekends is fluently bilingual -- translates the parents' Mandarin for English-speaking customers and vice versa. His parents never asked that he be taught in the vernacular at the Chinatown school he attended. He learned Mandarin at home because that's what his parents speak to him, but outside the home, his language is English sans any accent. The same is my experience with the children of first-generation immigrants from India and Bangladesh, even families holding low-paying, menial jobs.
If I were to bet, the Chinese kid will make it. The pandered-to kids have a gloomy future -- a minimum-wage "career" because they'll graduate from high school as functionally illiterate young adults. They won't make it to college. Even if they do, they'd require remedial courses, and eventually forced to drop out of college as they'd fail to keep up with the coursework and lag behind white and Asian students.
Permit me to narrate an anecdote about my experience at the neighborhood Chinese fast food restaurant. The parents speak broken English with a Chinese accent, but their 15-year-old son who helps them out on weekends is fluently bilingual -- translates the parents' Mandarin for English-speaking customers and vice versa. His parents never asked that he be taught in the vernacular at the Chinatown school he attended. He learned Mandarin at home because that's what his parents speak to him, but outside the home, his language is English sans any accent. The same is my experience with the children of first-generation immigrants from India and Bangladesh, even families holding low-paying, menial jobs.
If I were to bet, the Chinese kid will make it. The pandered-to kids have a gloomy future -- a minimum-wage "career" because they'll graduate from high school as functionally illiterate young adults. They won't make it to college. Even if they do, they'd require remedial courses, and eventually forced to drop out of college as they'd fail to keep up with the coursework and lag behind white and Asian students.
3
Bilingualism does not mean that the student does not learn English. Spanish immigrants learn English. I teach freshman English in New York. The Asian students are the ones who have the most difficulty in speaking and writing English -- not the Spanish students who often speak and write better than students who are monolinguals.
4
Teaching in the native language reinforces the native language. The early wave of immigrants in this country were taught in English - to reinforce English, the official language of the United States (our framework makes no mention of the necessity for bilingualism). Further, targeting students by their native language discriminates.
2
There is no official language of the US, and there never has been. Go ahead, Google it. And there is nothing in the least bit discriminatory about these programs, which parents CHOOSE or don't choose.
3
WOW... I am impressed with how many comments dismiss a bilingual education as "something bad". I guess that if you never spoke any language but English you will never understand the incredible view of the world that speaking 2 or 3 languages can give you. The more languages you speak the more you understand other cultures. What is wrong with a society that thinks that speaking several languages can be bad for you? Ignorance is daring! Instead of being happy that a new generation will be able to manage different culturas easily, many Americans insist on keep on living in darkness. In Europe, is really strange to find someone who only speaks 1 language. But in US it seems to be something to be proud of. How odd and stupid to praise a lack of education!
30
In all my travels, the U.S. is probably the only place that holds so tightly to the mindset that it is everyone else's responsibility to learn English rather than our responsibility as a country to speak more than one language.
1
This is more of the same -- social engineering. Lets make it more difficult for one group who is perceived to be "privileged" so that the other group feels better .. with the hope that it all works out.
I travel outside of the USA 6 months of the year -- I'm doing fine. Would knowing a second language be fun .. sure ... would it help me earn a living ... no.
and what language ?
We are privileged in the USA ... most of the rest of the world speaks english to a degree that it's universal. Better to spend the time teaching math and science -- that is lacking.
I travel outside of the USA 6 months of the year -- I'm doing fine. Would knowing a second language be fun .. sure ... would it help me earn a living ... no.
and what language ?
We are privileged in the USA ... most of the rest of the world speaks english to a degree that it's universal. Better to spend the time teaching math and science -- that is lacking.
1
So, you want your children to be monolingual, fine. But many of us actually want our children to be multi-lingual. Most of the world is multi-lingual.
1
How do you know what you're missing if you speak only English?
2
It is already difficult to find teachers proficient in a subject. Our textbooks for Reading, Writing, and 'Rithmetic still have errors. Where are you going to find teachers who speak two languages and are proficient in a basic subject?
5
I think this is great and am surprised by the disparagement in many of the comments. It is a shame that so few Americans have even a passing knowledge of a second language. Commenters seem to think it is too hard or interferes with learning, yet millions around the world learn both their native language and English and manage to function in both. Are American children less capable than children from the rest of the world?! Children learn languages far more easily than do adults. The immigrant children will learn English both in school and out for children who grow up here generally do, even if it is not spoken at home. Their children will not even have an accent.
8
" It is a shame that so few Americans have even a passing knowledge of a second language."
And just what foreign language should Americans learn. A while back we were all supposed to learn Russian, today it is Mandarin, who knows what it will be tomorrow. I would think that learning Spanish would be of limited value only allowing one to communicate with a non-English speaking underclass.
And just what foreign language should Americans learn. A while back we were all supposed to learn Russian, today it is Mandarin, who knows what it will be tomorrow. I would think that learning Spanish would be of limited value only allowing one to communicate with a non-English speaking underclass.
4
This is what I attempted (unsuccessfully) to have them do in my son's headstart class 45 years ago. It's easy for 3 & 4 year olds to learn a second language. By the time you reach high school at 13 or 14, learning a second language is a struggle, unless you're exceptionally gifted in that regard. I'm glad that good sense is finally beginning to make headway.
6
I'm truly shocked by the ignorance of some of the comments, especially those found in the NYT PIcks section. This is a choice made by parents to expose their children to more than one language in the hopes of expanding their minds and learning capabilities. And yet to some, its a call to arms a la Donald Trump. How can anyone be worse off learning a second (or third or more) language? What is wrong with people that would call for the halt to that?
13
Why are you shocked? This is "exceptional" America.
Teaching children a dual language can be very important, especially while the child is at a very young age. Language learning occurs faster and comes more natural when a child is very young (elementary school). Language learning not only exposes children to new words, but includes lessons in that culture. There may be students in the classroom that may speak the language being learned, for example Spanish, and that child will be able to connect better with the students and teacher, but also feel more inclusive in the classroom. Learning a language that is widely used in the US which is not English can also be very beneficial to society and communicating with others.
5
The advantages of bilingualism and biliteracy are staggering. The obvious: the beauty of achieving common ground with another culture, and the potential economic advantage of being able to conduct business with people from multiple markets. Less obvious are the cognitive benefits of improved executive function, especially attention and memory. American children are at a grave disadvantage when so much of the world comes to the table with two or more languages, and many native English speakers in the U.S. never even acquire a rudimentary second language. Further, children from other language backgrounds given the opportunity to master the "3 Rs" in their native languages while acquiring English will be more successful in the end as well, which only benefits our entire community. These children working together will be a true powerhouse and I am delighted that my hometown is expanding its programming in this utterly sensible way.
14
As the parent of a trilingual child, and as someone who has earned a living translating and teaching ESL and foreign languages, I am shocked and dismayed by the Trump-style rhetoric expressed by so many NYT readers. Many suggest that Spanish is the low-class language of low-status immigrants and their marginal societies -- and therefore useless for educated Americans. But I get tons of job listings recruiting in every sector for bilingual-Spanish skills. From Barcelona to Miami to Buenos Aires, the language of Cervantes is a gateway to industry -- pharmaceuticals, tourism, education, sales, media.
A common attitude holds that French is for appreciating "culture" and that Chinese and Arabic are the business-savvy languages. There are plenty of low-status migrants from China and the Middle East too; here in the Americas, bilingualism in Spanish is a lot more marketable than Mandarin.
There are so many benefits to learning any foreign language, and the unquestionable best time is childhood. For those joyless types who value foreign-language knowledge for its impact on test scores, how about this: A large body of research confirms benefits for intellectual development and neural plasticity. Much better than drilling nouns and verbs is using the language in context -- studying math and science in Spanish is a terrific mental workout. As long as the schools themselves are quality, cultural and linguistic diversity is a terrific advantage for modern kids.
A common attitude holds that French is for appreciating "culture" and that Chinese and Arabic are the business-savvy languages. There are plenty of low-status migrants from China and the Middle East too; here in the Americas, bilingualism in Spanish is a lot more marketable than Mandarin.
There are so many benefits to learning any foreign language, and the unquestionable best time is childhood. For those joyless types who value foreign-language knowledge for its impact on test scores, how about this: A large body of research confirms benefits for intellectual development and neural plasticity. Much better than drilling nouns and verbs is using the language in context -- studying math and science in Spanish is a terrific mental workout. As long as the schools themselves are quality, cultural and linguistic diversity is a terrific advantage for modern kids.
23
Let's just admit that we are preparing these children for the United States of 50 years from now when 75% of the population will be Hispanic.
9
I'm truly perplexed by the amount of people that believe speaking or learning two languages is some sort of hinderance to the other. We used to regularly praise people that spoke multiple languages, now xenophobic racism has people acting as if language should be the only language spoken. Looks like not only are people rejecting science in this country but intellectualism too no wonder there aren't enough qualified Americans to fill the jobs available.
34
I am multi-lingual, and proud of it. It has helped me enormously in my life.
Speaking more than one language is a genuine, practical skill in the real world.
That said, there was a time when the political left supported a tower of babel approach to language education in parts of the US. Encouraging alternatives to teaching English language skills. The final leftist absurdity was when some in the white liberal educational establishment urged the adoption of "ebonics" as an alternative to "white" English.
That was a bigger farce than the Obama Administration's petulant foreign policy since the democrats lost control of both houses of Congess last November.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1997-01-14/news/9701140178_1_ebonics-...
Speaking more than one language is a genuine, practical skill in the real world.
That said, there was a time when the political left supported a tower of babel approach to language education in parts of the US. Encouraging alternatives to teaching English language skills. The final leftist absurdity was when some in the white liberal educational establishment urged the adoption of "ebonics" as an alternative to "white" English.
That was a bigger farce than the Obama Administration's petulant foreign policy since the democrats lost control of both houses of Congess last November.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1997-01-14/news/9701140178_1_ebonics-...
3
I grew up in Germany, am fully bilingual, and am reasonably fluent in a third language. I have never understood the recent American obsession with immersion classes and bilingual education. Almost all of my German peers are completely fluent in English, and often in at least one other language as well. Yet they only started to learn a foreign language in fifth grade, and often that first language was Latin. Other languages were added in seventh and ninth grade, and all were taught by non-native speakers.
I believe there are two reasons why most Americans do not speak any other language. First, I think that languages are not taught rigorously enough. It is almost as if schools approach them with the assumption that fluency is unachievable. Second, there is simply a lack of motivation because one can get by with English almost anywhere. I'm not sure why so many people featured in the article believe that they need a foreign language to succeed professionally. Unless you envision a career in the foreign service that simply (for better or worse) tends not to be true in this country.
I believe there are two reasons why most Americans do not speak any other language. First, I think that languages are not taught rigorously enough. It is almost as if schools approach them with the assumption that fluency is unachievable. Second, there is simply a lack of motivation because one can get by with English almost anywhere. I'm not sure why so many people featured in the article believe that they need a foreign language to succeed professionally. Unless you envision a career in the foreign service that simply (for better or worse) tends not to be true in this country.
6
I applaud the general goal of teaching an additional language to children when they are in the formative stage which enables them to readily absorb and learn the language.
I am of Italian descent and wish that I had such an opportunity to learn the language of my ancestors. I wish my children or grandchildren could ( Although I note, with irony, that Italian- the language of a tsunami of immigrants- is not even mentioned).
I would be very concerned , however, if this were a subtle attempt to develop a dual language society with a particular language as a target. If that is the real goal, the the presentation of this program is disingenuous.
So, please be honest. Which is it ?
Next, whether we like it or not, English is the dominant language in world wide commerce. Perhaps a Chinese dialect will someday loom as important.
Therefor, languages are not equal when it comes to the global economy. If our children are to function competitively in that economy, they must, first and foremost, be taught to express themselves in English. This applies to native English speakers as well as non native speakers. Virtually every other industrialized country mandates a thorough study of English by its students. There is a reason for that.
So, while proficiency in another language for English speaking students is a worthy goal, it must be a secondary goal to teaching all students functional English.
I am of Italian descent and wish that I had such an opportunity to learn the language of my ancestors. I wish my children or grandchildren could ( Although I note, with irony, that Italian- the language of a tsunami of immigrants- is not even mentioned).
I would be very concerned , however, if this were a subtle attempt to develop a dual language society with a particular language as a target. If that is the real goal, the the presentation of this program is disingenuous.
So, please be honest. Which is it ?
Next, whether we like it or not, English is the dominant language in world wide commerce. Perhaps a Chinese dialect will someday loom as important.
Therefor, languages are not equal when it comes to the global economy. If our children are to function competitively in that economy, they must, first and foremost, be taught to express themselves in English. This applies to native English speakers as well as non native speakers. Virtually every other industrialized country mandates a thorough study of English by its students. There is a reason for that.
So, while proficiency in another language for English speaking students is a worthy goal, it must be a secondary goal to teaching all students functional English.
4
And diversity is good why?
It seems that tribalism is desireable in some quarters and the reasons why are opaque. It seems to me that the idea of the melting pot is still the most viable and successful approach for all Americans.
It seems that tribalism is desireable in some quarters and the reasons why are opaque. It seems to me that the idea of the melting pot is still the most viable and successful approach for all Americans.
5
Exactly what I expected white people outraged that their children might learn the language of "those people". I wonder if there would be so much howling if they were learning French, Italian, German, or Hebrew.
2
As evidenced by several metrics, many Americans themselves do not speak proper English. Come on down to the South for ad nauseum examples of what I mean.
Too, the nation is awash in dialectal differences and in euphemisms that make learning English even more difficult.
But many people who are here and who cannot speak English are trying to learn. Who are we to judge where they are in the process? Is that how we would want to be treated if we were in a foreign country?
Honestly, the mean-spirited, nativist drivel that always accompanies these articles is so old and tiresome, particularly since many Americans go overseas and do not stop whining when things are not super-sized, suited up in armor, and otherwise Americanized.
Just positively tacky in every way. Grow up and learn to appreciate the stew that is the USA. Honestly...
Too, the nation is awash in dialectal differences and in euphemisms that make learning English even more difficult.
But many people who are here and who cannot speak English are trying to learn. Who are we to judge where they are in the process? Is that how we would want to be treated if we were in a foreign country?
Honestly, the mean-spirited, nativist drivel that always accompanies these articles is so old and tiresome, particularly since many Americans go overseas and do not stop whining when things are not super-sized, suited up in armor, and otherwise Americanized.
Just positively tacky in every way. Grow up and learn to appreciate the stew that is the USA. Honestly...
5
The title is curious.....since they are Dual Language Programs, they have always included Native English Speakers here in the US. A true Dual program includes, among many features, language exchange between the two student groups so they require English speakers in the class. What is on the rise, is the enrollment of these very sought after programs! My children got in their program 14 years ago by lottery and the wait list was huge. We have been only impressed by the language proficiency of ALL the kids in both languages. My college student has thanked me for enrolling her in such a program. I have never looked back!
1
The comments to this article certainly highlight a deficiency in English reading-comprehension among certain commentators. Many do not seem to know the meaning of the word "bilingual."
"Bilingual" means two languages. The objective of the bilingual education discussed in this article is to produce students who speak two languages, including English. Sure, there are going to be some ineffective programs. However, you can say that about any educational program, regardless of the subject.
So, to say "learn English" in response to this article makes no sense. It seems some folks need to brush up on their own English before telling immigrants to "learn English."
"Bilingual" means two languages. The objective of the bilingual education discussed in this article is to produce students who speak two languages, including English. Sure, there are going to be some ineffective programs. However, you can say that about any educational program, regardless of the subject.
So, to say "learn English" in response to this article makes no sense. It seems some folks need to brush up on their own English before telling immigrants to "learn English."
7
We say , Oui! for language programs. We don't speak French at all but since French is one of official languages of Canada and want to give the best learning and opportunity to our child we placed her in French Immersion. So far what a rich learning experience for her. ( At 9 years old, she enjoyed the original of Exupery's , " Le Petit Prince over the English version.) We find she puts extra effort in school work as we have little or no input as we don't know French language at all. At home we switch between our regional language and dialects : Hiligaynon, Tagalog and Cebuano and when outside we use English. Now ,we find she finds innate interests with other languages.
5
My kids attended a Spanish immersion program at a local public school starting in kindergarten. The standard school curriculum was taught, but with all the core subjects in Spanish rather than in English. In second grade five hours of weekly English were added to the program.
Admission to this program was by lottery. The only requirement was that students had to already be fluent in English.
The net result:
By the end of 5th grade, all students were fully bilingual, with their grammar being approximately the same as that of a native speaker of the same age. Both smart kids and slow kids spoke both English and Spanish at the same level.
Students who continued in the program into middle school maintained their fluency and improved both speaking and academic writing skills. Those who did not lost a significant amount of ground after they left the program, but not irretrievably.
All students were fully on-track in all subject areas, including math, science and English reading and writing.
Native Spanish speakers who were not in the program, and who had no classes in Spanish, were not able to catch up with their immersion-program peers. They didn't have the academic Spanish that program kids had. They would have been better served had they had five hours/week of Spanish instruction starting in second grade.
I'm not sure how this would compare to a dual language program, but my kids are very grateful for their Spanish immersion beginnings.
Admission to this program was by lottery. The only requirement was that students had to already be fluent in English.
The net result:
By the end of 5th grade, all students were fully bilingual, with their grammar being approximately the same as that of a native speaker of the same age. Both smart kids and slow kids spoke both English and Spanish at the same level.
Students who continued in the program into middle school maintained their fluency and improved both speaking and academic writing skills. Those who did not lost a significant amount of ground after they left the program, but not irretrievably.
All students were fully on-track in all subject areas, including math, science and English reading and writing.
Native Spanish speakers who were not in the program, and who had no classes in Spanish, were not able to catch up with their immersion-program peers. They didn't have the academic Spanish that program kids had. They would have been better served had they had five hours/week of Spanish instruction starting in second grade.
I'm not sure how this would compare to a dual language program, but my kids are very grateful for their Spanish immersion beginnings.
12
Your comment outlines what appears to be an effective way for any child to learn any language--presumably it would also work for children who speak little or no English.
Rather than speaking nothing but Spanish from kindergarten on, the child would speak nothing but English from kindergarten on
.
And in second grade, they would add 5 hours a week of the child's native language, in the way they added English to your child's schooling.
Presumably, by the end of 5th grade, all children would be fully bi-lingual, regardless of their primary language.
Rather than speaking nothing but Spanish from kindergarten on, the child would speak nothing but English from kindergarten on
.
And in second grade, they would add 5 hours a week of the child's native language, in the way they added English to your child's schooling.
Presumably, by the end of 5th grade, all children would be fully bi-lingual, regardless of their primary language.
4
I think that dual-language programs have earned a bad reputation for singling out English Language Learners. However, bilingualism certainly has its perks. For example, research has suggested that people who speak two or more languages tend to have higher executive brain functions. Bilingual school systems may also encourage teachers to be more culturally responsive in general, allowing for a more positive learning environment for all students. Finally, dual language education programs may help to bridge the gap between native English speakers and English Language Learners. Honestly, I can't see how learning a second language wouldn't be useful to any individual.
5
My mother (English American) went to elementary school in Milwaukee back when they started German in the third grade there; she taught me a few words when I was very young. My language in school was French. The US Army stationed me in Germany and gave a short, intensive course in conversational German. I'm very glad that I know a fair amount of French and some German; I think that people, and this country, can benefit in various ways from knowledge of languages other than English.
However, I think the idea of the United States becoming a bilingual, or multilingual, country is a bad idea. Countries that are divided linguistically tend to become divided politically in very serious ways. Yes, native English speakers will benefit from learning other languages, but non-native speakers should learn good American English, and the country should conduct its business in one language. E pluribus unum.
However, I think the idea of the United States becoming a bilingual, or multilingual, country is a bad idea. Countries that are divided linguistically tend to become divided politically in very serious ways. Yes, native English speakers will benefit from learning other languages, but non-native speakers should learn good American English, and the country should conduct its business in one language. E pluribus unum.
10
American schools need to teach English to American born students. From what I hear spoken by Anglo speaking Americans is a reflection of their poor schooling maybe because of regional/cultural differences and an equally substandard educational system. Learning a second language is rewarding because one learns how the world is viewed by other cultures. We learn different points of view and have access to information our media denies us. The folks who are so fear driven that they deny their children this wonderful enriching opportunity to learn and broaden their thinking skills, are only revealing their own ignorance.
1
But most nations in the world are multilingual. And, again, being bilingual does not mean that one does not learn English. Where did you get that idea?
There is no scientific evidence that students benefit from dual-language programs. This is another educational fad along with look-say reading, new math, group learning, computers in the classroom, teacher as coach, the open classroom, high stakes standardized testing and balanced literacy. We should have teachers teach all subject areas in a direct systematic way.
8
There is extensive research, Start with Virginia Rojas then move on to Stephen Krashen, Kenji Hakuta and Catherine Snow.
1
We have such richness of languages and cultures in our society. Why not benefit from them? There is no excuse for failing to integrate foreign language education early into school curricula. There are many benefits to learning another language, including better language skills in English and in the target language. There are benefits of bilingualism on attention, memory, and even learning. Failing to provide our children with these advantages and opportunities is merely based on racism and segregationist perspectives.
24
There are so many Hispanics in the US--and their number keeps increasing. I'm very glad I studied Spanish in grades 9-12, and wish I'd started in Kindergarten!
I can still read fairly simple books in French, though I only studied it 3 years in college.
I'd learn Chinese if I could, since many immigrants speak Chinese, but it's just too much at my age.
Languages are fun--the more the better and the earlier the better.
I can still read fairly simple books in French, though I only studied it 3 years in college.
I'd learn Chinese if I could, since many immigrants speak Chinese, but it's just too much at my age.
Languages are fun--the more the better and the earlier the better.
8
This seems pretty simple to me. First, English is the world language. Thus, you must learn English. Second, it is great if you can speak a second or third language. It can, in some instances, be quite beneficial and it can be fun. But, you will have trouble succeeding in the U.S. if you do not have a good command of English. We can argue if this is right or wrong or fair until we are blue in the face, but it is a fact.
15
And everybody knows that. Immigrants learn English. The older generation may not, but the young ones always learn English.
I have no problem with students becoming bilingual. I speak two languages myself.
However, it seems that something in the larger educational process would have to be sacrificed in order to accomplish this in the manner described in the story:
Time!
In my elementary school days, albeit a long time ago, foreign languages were taught after school, so no time was sacrificed during the school day (except recess).
My view is that the focus, particularly for children with families in which English is not the primary language, should be first on English then supplemental languages.
However, it seems that something in the larger educational process would have to be sacrificed in order to accomplish this in the manner described in the story:
Time!
In my elementary school days, albeit a long time ago, foreign languages were taught after school, so no time was sacrificed during the school day (except recess).
My view is that the focus, particularly for children with families in which English is not the primary language, should be first on English then supplemental languages.
13
I don't know when your "long time ago" was, but my six years of French in the 1960s were all very much during the school day. Learning a second language wasn't considered sacrificing time -- it was a basic part of one's education. It still should be.
For three years I taught to Masters candidates at a state university. Most of the papers I received and read were borderline incoherent. These were from native born Americans not foreign students. As a mater of fact the papers turned in by foreign born students were a pleasure to read, in English.
Let's teach our children to walk before trying to teach them to run. A solid grasp of the English language is much more important than learning a few phrases in a foreign language, any foreign language.
Let's teach our children to walk before trying to teach them to run. A solid grasp of the English language is much more important than learning a few phrases in a foreign language, any foreign language.
19
I, too, have graded papers. What you say is mainly true of Indians and Asians but unfortunately not of Hispanics who along with African Americans seem to have the greatest difficulty in school. I don't know what the solution to the problem is, but it certainly does not lie in painting an unrealistically rosy picture and pretending that most foreign students write better than most native speakers when such is simply not the case.
3
Are you able to read the contradiction in your statement. I learn English and Spanish as a kid. I only wish I had the opportunity to learn a third language at a much younger age.
I have heard the same thing from numerous friends who are college instructors.
The majority of students in bilingual education programs are Hispanic. If bilingual education programs produce more proficient students, why do Hispanic students get affirmative action preference in college admissions? Should we limit affirmative action to third-generation or fourth-generation Hispanic Americans. A recent study shows only about four precent of third-generation Mexican Americans speak Spanish at home.
4
A school I attended a long time ago, started teaching French in kindergarten. Unfortunately, I didn't start school there till I was in 6th grade. I've found my limited knowledge of French, German and Latin beneficial in learning.
Too many of us are turning into Ugly Americans.
Too many of us are turning into Ugly Americans.
4
One hopes that the children who are NOT native speakers of English receive intensive instruction in English. That's not listed among the languages. It's especially important these days that they do get formal and intensive instruction in English, given that so many live in homes and communities where the foreign language is dominant, and where even native speakers of that language may well be illiterate in it. You can't count on kids picking up English from family or friends or from the media.
8
My child is in a dual language program (Spanish/English). The benefits I think have more to do with culture and parent involvement. The parents who choose the dual language tend to be more involved, since it is an option you had to apply early to get. These parents are more likely to volunteer at school, help thier kids with homework, and read to them at night.
The second benefit is integration. We live in Queens where you are surrounded by other cultures, but can easily go without interacting with them.This allows a way for families with different backgrounds to have an avenue of interaction, which just makes life better. Who doesn't want to be closer with thier neighbors?
The second benefit is integration. We live in Queens where you are surrounded by other cultures, but can easily go without interacting with them.This allows a way for families with different backgrounds to have an avenue of interaction, which just makes life better. Who doesn't want to be closer with thier neighbors?
7
Wow, I can't believe the level of animosity expressed toward bilingualism in the comments here. I'm not bilingual (I speak the English dialect Kansan-New Jerseyan only) but our kids went to a bilingual school from kindergarten through 8th grade, and we're all glad they did.
I'm more than happy to have my tax dollars spent on bilingual education. If it was my choice everyone would be able to learn another language, early in life while there's a chance.
I'm more than happy to have my tax dollars spent on bilingual education. If it was my choice everyone would be able to learn another language, early in life while there's a chance.
12
The ongoing myth is that your first generation ancestor learned English when he arrived in America.
Unfortunately, that's rarely the case.
1st generation rarely learns the language. They slave away at the lowest rungs of the socioeconomic ladder in order to make a life for the next generation, which learns the language (in addition to the native language of their parents) and rises up the economic ladder.
Unfortunately, that's rarely the case.
1st generation rarely learns the language. They slave away at the lowest rungs of the socioeconomic ladder in order to make a life for the next generation, which learns the language (in addition to the native language of their parents) and rises up the economic ladder.
13
I am an immigrant and naturalized American citizen for whom English was a second language. My mother, likewise, is now a English-as-a-Second-Language teacher at a local city college. The idea that immigrants and coming to the US are failing to learn English is largely a Fox News-driven paranoid fantasy.
There are certainly some older immigrants for whom learning a second language is too difficult. But most immigrants of working age or younger do pick up varying degrees of English. It is simply a matter of survival and opportunity.
Conversely, the fact that so many Americans are mono-lingual is a severe liability in this global age. I recall reading an article in a Taiwanese newspaper, where several American expats complained about the lack of English information in Taiwan. One woman complained that the OBGYNs at her Taiwanese hospital did not have web site biographies in English. A man complained there was no sign in English about what time trash pick-up was in his neighborhood. I found their attitudes absolutely absurd.
Americans need to stop reveling in being so parochial in this age of rising global competition.
There are certainly some older immigrants for whom learning a second language is too difficult. But most immigrants of working age or younger do pick up varying degrees of English. It is simply a matter of survival and opportunity.
Conversely, the fact that so many Americans are mono-lingual is a severe liability in this global age. I recall reading an article in a Taiwanese newspaper, where several American expats complained about the lack of English information in Taiwan. One woman complained that the OBGYNs at her Taiwanese hospital did not have web site biographies in English. A man complained there was no sign in English about what time trash pick-up was in his neighborhood. I found their attitudes absolutely absurd.
Americans need to stop reveling in being so parochial in this age of rising global competition.
55
CityBumpkin, and yet the United States is expected to provide all the information and services you mention, and then some, in ANY language anyone might want. Why is it absurd for Americans in Taiwan to want English, since it is a global language? How dare the Taiwanese only provide services in Chinese.
3
@Ali
(1) Here is an article talking about bilingual education. How does that mean the United States is providing "all the information and services" I mean (not sure which you are referring to.) The US is not Canada, where French is mandated alongside English. Even here in California, where there is a huge Spanish-speaking population, most public signs are in English-only.
(2) Taiwan actually has many English signs, at least in the big cities. But there will always be a limit. Not speaking the language of the country is limiting, and will always be limiting. To this end, I would again note that the ultimate goal of bilingual education is to be fluent in TWO languages, INCLUDING ENGLISH! While the article points out there are better and worse ways to accomplish the goal, one only need to look around to see that the goal is far from impossible.
(1) Here is an article talking about bilingual education. How does that mean the United States is providing "all the information and services" I mean (not sure which you are referring to.) The US is not Canada, where French is mandated alongside English. Even here in California, where there is a huge Spanish-speaking population, most public signs are in English-only.
(2) Taiwan actually has many English signs, at least in the big cities. But there will always be a limit. Not speaking the language of the country is limiting, and will always be limiting. To this end, I would again note that the ultimate goal of bilingual education is to be fluent in TWO languages, INCLUDING ENGLISH! While the article points out there are better and worse ways to accomplish the goal, one only need to look around to see that the goal is far from impossible.
As someone who works in the less affluent areas of the Bronx and Brooklyn I assure you the lack of English skills is NOT a Fox news fantasy. I see people of all ages with little to no English at all and show little desire to learn it.
To your point about the people it Taiwan expecting everything in English, I agree that's idiotic. If you're living abroad, or even vacationing, you should have some basics of the local language. To that end though a lot of the immigrant population I deal with has the same attitude towards my inability to speak Spanish. They look at me as if I've done something wrong.
Seems like a lot of people relocate to other countries with no desire to assimilate to the new culture around them.
To your point about the people it Taiwan expecting everything in English, I agree that's idiotic. If you're living abroad, or even vacationing, you should have some basics of the local language. To that end though a lot of the immigrant population I deal with has the same attitude towards my inability to speak Spanish. They look at me as if I've done something wrong.
Seems like a lot of people relocate to other countries with no desire to assimilate to the new culture around them.
Learning a foreign language is a ridiculous waste of time for most people except those who are genuinely interested. Modern technology has now given us apps that can do real time translation to/from any language. We have come a long way from the days of Babelfish. The time/effort spent on learning a second language could be much better used on English and other subjects that students are much more interested. We need to stop wasting our kids' time and energy that could be better spent elsewhere, such as learning more math, science, English, history, music, art or sports.
Language could be the single biggest unifier or the single biggest divider. The reason the US has been a strong and united country so far instead of like fractious Europe is largely because we have one unifying language. Bi-lingual education is yet another brainchild of the liberal left that will further divide and weaken the country. Stop the madness!
Language could be the single biggest unifier or the single biggest divider. The reason the US has been a strong and united country so far instead of like fractious Europe is largely because we have one unifying language. Bi-lingual education is yet another brainchild of the liberal left that will further divide and weaken the country. Stop the madness!
8
The USA has always been multilingual, multicultural. Always. The bilingual person will be hired before the monolingual. This is a global economy, remember?
7
Not really. The US has mostly been an English speaking nation.
1
as long as your "bilingual" skills are those sought by the employer. I am fluent in three foreign languages, but since none of them is Spanish or Mandarin, I am not able to put them to use.
“There is great value in having a kid grow up to be bilingual, and even if your kid didn’t do quite as well on the standardized math test, maybe that’s worth it,”
Gee, I'm always glad to hear the radiologist, engineer, electrician and pilot explain that although their skills aren't what they might be, they do speak a second language. Arrogance off the charts.
Gee, I'm always glad to hear the radiologist, engineer, electrician and pilot explain that although their skills aren't what they might be, they do speak a second language. Arrogance off the charts.
15
how is this good in a PRACTICAL way? How does knowing Spanish help people move up the corporate ladder in the way that learning, say, Hebrew, Mandarin, or even Arabic would help? I myself prefer French writers to Spanish writers. I'd rather learn French or German than Spanish.
Anyhow, the main focus should be on achieving high proficiency in English.
Things like tis strengthen my resolve to send my kids to private school.
Anyhow, the main focus should be on achieving high proficiency in English.
Things like tis strengthen my resolve to send my kids to private school.
8
And most private schools that I know about have foreign language programs. i just cannot imagine why someone would not want to learn a second language. I travel frequently, to Europe and South America, and use both my Spanish and my French. I read literature in English, Spanish, and French. I want to learn German and Russian.
4
I try to read French to learn a second langauge. I just have zero interest in Spanish.
This education initiate is not about learning a second language. It's about learning Spanish. Not Vietnamese. It's about only one other language: Spanish.
I love Dostoevsky and Gogol. I'd love to learn Russian.
Just not Spanish.
This education initiate is not about learning a second language. It's about learning Spanish. Not Vietnamese. It's about only one other language: Spanish.
I love Dostoevsky and Gogol. I'd love to learn Russian.
Just not Spanish.
How would Hebrew help someone move up the corporate ladder more than Spanish? Mandarin may be more useful, but Hebrew???
This is insane. I'll bet that in most districts it's a cover to push us toward a bilingual (read Spanish) nation. Learn English, speak English. This America.
13
So being bilingual is insane? Maybe being monolingual in a global economy is insane.
And yet, you can not even write in proper English. Where did you grow up and go to school?
My daughter attends a Mandarin-English dual language program in Queens, and my son graduated from the program this past summer. He's now in middle school. I'm grateful that such a wonderful opportunity exists for them. However, after spending 6 years honing his Mandarin skills, there were no continuing programs in his choice of middle schools. I have to find an individual solution in order not to let his Mandarin skills atrophy. But how about his former classmates? Clearly there needs to be opportunities for graduates of these dual language programs to continue to develop their language skills. Six years only takes you half way there.
5
Am not opposed to this as long as the students come away with the same command of English they would have via the traditional English only route. If they know a second language too, that's icing on the cake. But what people don't realize is that while children can pick up a language easily, they can forget it just as fast. Unless they continue past the point where the brain shuts down language learning (around 12 years) and through high school and college, this pointless. As small children, we used to visit my grandparents in as Germany every year. By the end of 42 days (cheapest ticket was 21-42 days) we were fluent. The next year it was almost like starting over. They told me more than once that my sister spoke better German. As we got into middle school and stopped going, we took it in school but she stopped after a few years and I continued up to basically a minor in college. Her German sucks, I'm practically bi-lingual. Ah revenge!
3
Learn and practice correct English. If you live here, and want to work here, you have to speak English.
14
But immigrants do learn English.Most people in the world are bilingual. Americans who only speak English are in the minority.
2
Zejee: Only 18% of Americans speak a language other than English. 53% of Europeans speak a second language.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2012/08/27/americas-foreign-lan...
http://www.forbes.com/sites/collegeprose/2012/08/27/americas-foreign-lan...
8
I meant monolingual Americans are in the minority in the world. I should have been clearer.
2
According to NPR, during the next decade the largest immigrants coming to America will be Asians, should we teach in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Hindi etc? Where do you draw the line?
Learn to speak English, like the rest of us immigrants.
Learn to speak English, like the rest of us immigrants.
12
Yes, we should! The more languages the better, and research has shown that those who learn a second language early, are more likely to grasp a 3rd and 4th.
My kids are on their 3rd language, having two since birth and a 3rd beginning in kinder. Both love the idea of learning more.
My kids are on their 3rd language, having two since birth and a 3rd beginning in kinder. Both love the idea of learning more.
It seems many of the readers here who thinks this means students will not learn English needs to brush up on their own English, because they seem to be failing at reading and comprehending this article.
The program is BILINGUAL. That means the children lean both English and another language, and they do so at an age when learning languages is easier than at a later age.
Most students around the world learn more than one language. Being multi-lingual is an advantage in this global age.
The program is BILINGUAL. That means the children lean both English and another language, and they do so at an age when learning languages is easier than at a later age.
Most students around the world learn more than one language. Being multi-lingual is an advantage in this global age.
15
There are only so many hours in the school day. Learning English well, including reading and writing, takes time. When it has to be split to accommodate Spanish, then both are given short shrift and the proficiency will not be the same.
1
In France, one started taking English as a first second language at age 11, and as an American child growing up in Paris, I started off well by writing 'the mouses did a job on the camembert'. English has always been my language of preference and I remember at 16, being slightly worried that I was going to forget how to speak it.
An avid reader, I have just started to self-teach myself grammar, vocabulary and phrase construction; a long way to go and taking pauses to admire the style of some favorite, or new British authors.
On a first visit to New York, a friend was astonished that the hotel staff did not speak French. Spanish, I replied, is a necessity here. A second language is most helpful. For those of us, who feel it is a waste of time and that there should be an emphasis on Calculus, I would recommend instead teaching Latin in schools. We had it for two years, and some basic knowledge of the above, leads to the roots of quite a few languages.
We also had to take a second language in France, also mandatory and there was a choice between Spanish or German. Some of my friends at the U.N. speak five languages. But before going any further, let's start teaching our children English.
We can begin by getting rid of Slang in the Classroom, which should be relegated to the literary trash bin, and learn to 'Write it Right', a little blacklist of literary faults pointed out by an American, Mr. Ambrose Bierce.
Con amore y pesetas.
An avid reader, I have just started to self-teach myself grammar, vocabulary and phrase construction; a long way to go and taking pauses to admire the style of some favorite, or new British authors.
On a first visit to New York, a friend was astonished that the hotel staff did not speak French. Spanish, I replied, is a necessity here. A second language is most helpful. For those of us, who feel it is a waste of time and that there should be an emphasis on Calculus, I would recommend instead teaching Latin in schools. We had it for two years, and some basic knowledge of the above, leads to the roots of quite a few languages.
We also had to take a second language in France, also mandatory and there was a choice between Spanish or German. Some of my friends at the U.N. speak five languages. But before going any further, let's start teaching our children English.
We can begin by getting rid of Slang in the Classroom, which should be relegated to the literary trash bin, and learn to 'Write it Right', a little blacklist of literary faults pointed out by an American, Mr. Ambrose Bierce.
Con amore y pesetas.
3
The teaser on the home page says "increased diversity is an added benefit".
Why? What benefits? I've heard for years how diversity is supposed to help improve schools, yet school performance drops year after year. So please detail just exactly what these "benefits" are?
Why? What benefits? I've heard for years how diversity is supposed to help improve schools, yet school performance drops year after year. So please detail just exactly what these "benefits" are?
12
It is a global economy. Everyone all over the world -- except Americans -- speak at least two languages.
1
This was very common in parochial schools when I was a child. The Polish Catholic church had a school that taught in both English and Polish; the French- Canadian Catholic school (where I was lucky enough to attend for one year) taught in both French and English. Some students came to school primarily speaking French and some primarily English, and both groups learned from each other. Those students excelled in high school and beyond. Everything old is new again!
6
An admirable and lofty goal to reach.
However, I'm finding that fewer Americans of any origin are speaking grammatically correct English. I'm hearing things like, "Him and I," "I should of went," and all manner of mismatched horror show construction in both written and spoken English. This speaks volumes for how poorly regard our communication skills -- both written and oral, and while English is evolving, more and more people can neither write it well, or speak it well. Sad.
However, I'm finding that fewer Americans of any origin are speaking grammatically correct English. I'm hearing things like, "Him and I," "I should of went," and all manner of mismatched horror show construction in both written and spoken English. This speaks volumes for how poorly regard our communication skills -- both written and oral, and while English is evolving, more and more people can neither write it well, or speak it well. Sad.
18
correcting typo above.
".... for how poorly we regard our..."
sorry. thinking faster than fingers typing.
".... for how poorly we regard our..."
sorry. thinking faster than fingers typing.
"If someone is teaching you ‘A, A, Apple,’ and you’re thinking ‘A, A, Manzana,’ you’re not building on the knowledge you already bring to the table."
In my mind, one of the most important aspects of going to school, especially early on, is realizing your own ability to make connections and build on the knowledge that you already have. For kids who are learning English for the first time when they start kindergarten, a dual-language program might give them a lot more opportunities to have their own "a-ha!" moments, which can keep them excited about learning in the years to come. Faced with a growing amount of busywork and fewer outlets for creative expression, kids can get turned off to learning so easily. Whatever keeps the lights on has to be a good thing.
In my mind, one of the most important aspects of going to school, especially early on, is realizing your own ability to make connections and build on the knowledge that you already have. For kids who are learning English for the first time when they start kindergarten, a dual-language program might give them a lot more opportunities to have their own "a-ha!" moments, which can keep them excited about learning in the years to come. Faced with a growing amount of busywork and fewer outlets for creative expression, kids can get turned off to learning so easily. Whatever keeps the lights on has to be a good thing.
2
There is no legal requirement by the Constitution for English to be the official language.
Let's not forget that the speaking of English is here is by conquest, and that the country still belongs to those who want to make it their own, just like our European ancestors did.
As such, we should instead adopt pictographs for things like road signs, emergency exits, hospitals, restrooms, and others that are necessary to navigating the public space. Then, we can teach English for those who would like to learn it, and learn the language of those who are learning.
All languages are beautiful and we deprive ourselves of those joyful tongues when we allow our nativist impulses to take over.
How I pity this country for what it could be but instead, is: narrow-minded, selfish, territorial, and as un-curious as a box of rocks about anyone other than ourselves.
Let's not forget that the speaking of English is here is by conquest, and that the country still belongs to those who want to make it their own, just like our European ancestors did.
As such, we should instead adopt pictographs for things like road signs, emergency exits, hospitals, restrooms, and others that are necessary to navigating the public space. Then, we can teach English for those who would like to learn it, and learn the language of those who are learning.
All languages are beautiful and we deprive ourselves of those joyful tongues when we allow our nativist impulses to take over.
How I pity this country for what it could be but instead, is: narrow-minded, selfish, territorial, and as un-curious as a box of rocks about anyone other than ourselves.
4
Yes indeed, those narrow minded nit wits who introduced the first modern democratic state. What a bunch of cretins!
1
My children are in a public school Spanish dual immersion program that runs from K to 12th grade. The immersion program is a 90/10 program, meaning that 90% of the instruction is in Spanish and 10% is in English when you start elementary school. By fifth grade it has shifted to 50/50. The program has not put my children behind in their education – they both scored advanced in Math and English on their Common Core tests. My daughter is now a freshman in high school taking honors classes. Both kids read and write in Spanish at an advanced level. In addition to the academic benefits they went to a school that was truly diverse - kids of all colors and socioeconomic backgrounds attend Edison Language Academy. It has made a difference in how they view others.
40
Lean English. You know, the language of Europe. All Europe, not just Great Britan. The language of the Middle East. The language of world-wide business.
12
New immigrants from India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Phillipines all want their kids to be fluent in English immediately. Learning a second language is great (I studied two to proficiency) but English is the international language and they know very well that their children will only succeed academically and economically if they are fluent at the highest levels. Studying a second language is enriching but let's not lose sight of English as the real path to advancement.
17
I don't think that people and their ideas should be judged based on their skin color, how funny their name sounds, their sexual preference, or the language they speak. Granted I believe bilingualism is a wonderful thing for a person's mind and development, but I don't see how increasing "diversity" in schools is going to help kids' education. What it really does is encourage children to believe if they belong to a minority group, they can get special privileges, but if they are white then they have a handicap.
Instead of "teaching" diversity by forcing children with little in common to interact with one another, why not teach them *why* accepting and respecting people who are different from you is a good thing? Why not have programs to help bring kids from poor homes to kids from rich homes? Connect single parent homes to "traditional" ones? Disadvantaged social classes to the elite?
You'd think that the ideal is to have all minorities from the upper middle class spouting the same ideology. You like, like the USSR. Ironic it is that Russia is so against that sort of thing now but the US is trying it out.
Instead of "teaching" diversity by forcing children with little in common to interact with one another, why not teach them *why* accepting and respecting people who are different from you is a good thing? Why not have programs to help bring kids from poor homes to kids from rich homes? Connect single parent homes to "traditional" ones? Disadvantaged social classes to the elite?
You'd think that the ideal is to have all minorities from the upper middle class spouting the same ideology. You like, like the USSR. Ironic it is that Russia is so against that sort of thing now but the US is trying it out.
5
Many people here with typical knee-jerk "grrr 'murican; english only!" comments, needs to get a grip. They neither have sufficient proficiency in English themselves, nor have basic reading & comprehension skills, because they entirely missed the part that highlights "dual" language, meaning two languages, not one, or the other, or one at the sacrifice of another.
As the old joke goes: if someone who speaks 3 languages is trilingual, 2 languages, bilingual, what do you call someone who only speaks one language? American.
As the old joke goes: if someone who speaks 3 languages is trilingual, 2 languages, bilingual, what do you call someone who only speaks one language? American.
10
"increased diversity is an added benefit"
This continues the NYT's relentless campaign to justify the tidal wave of immigrants who do not speak english and whose presence in the classroom does not improve education for the english-speaking American kids whose families are footing the school bills and deserve first-rate schools. How does a classroom where 40% of the students don't speak english--common in many communities--enhance learning? Those who can afford the best schools are aware that they require extensive english tests and recommendations from english teachers---and for very good reason. Want to learn a second language? that's an elective that shouldn't interfere with STEM and core learning.
This continues the NYT's relentless campaign to justify the tidal wave of immigrants who do not speak english and whose presence in the classroom does not improve education for the english-speaking American kids whose families are footing the school bills and deserve first-rate schools. How does a classroom where 40% of the students don't speak english--common in many communities--enhance learning? Those who can afford the best schools are aware that they require extensive english tests and recommendations from english teachers---and for very good reason. Want to learn a second language? that's an elective that shouldn't interfere with STEM and core learning.
12
Learn to speak English is the way to go for whoever chooses to come to this beautiful country. When in rome do as the romans do! This is a thousand-year tested human experience as is also proved true by a very similar Chinese saying passed down from thousands of years ago. One country, one language! Second language is a good tool to have to deal with this so-called global world.
5
Wow- I can't even wrap my mind around some of the comments here. Most astonished by those that suggest that it's fine for (white) US citizens to learn other languages but that Latinos/Chinese/Vietnamese should just learn English. How do you think those English speakers will learn other languages? Not just from their teachers but from their PEERS in these programs. That is, from those kids who have the advantage of speaking Spanish, Mandarin, etc. at home. In the process, immigrant children adapt and thrive in the US because they do not associate school with feeling inadequate and less intelligent. So you see, people who claim to just want the best for immigrant Latinos but hate these programs, you're just wrong. These are programs of MUTUAL benefit- Anglo kids learn other languages, and immigrant children use their existing knowledge to become good students. Win Win. And finally, this article fails to note that MANY of these kids are not "Spanish speakers" or "English speakers" but genuinely bilingual. True multilingualism does exist- I know because my four year old is entirely bilingual and loves her dual language school.
13
On the one hand, these programs sound excellent--teach new languages at the prime language-learning ages (adolescence is NOT a prime language-learning age) and make the kids literate in both languages. On the other hand, Gigismum raises the issue of how many languages many Europeans speak. Consider the sizes of those countries (not Russia): now imagine that NY, NJ, PA, CT, MA, and RI all spoke different languages. No wonder Europeans speak several--if going from NYC to Boston or Philadelphia involved encountering 2 or 3 languages, we would too!
3
A country's language is a center, something all its citizens share. What else in the sprawling nations - of all nations - do we share? While learning other languages is a great thing for kids (and adults) and we should never belittle those from other places who don't come here being able to speak English, I fear that the loss of a central language is another step in turning nations into nothing more than shopping malls. We should welcome others here but they, too, have a responsibility once they get here: i.e. assimilate. A country's language isn't an accessory. It says much about the nation itself.
8
How about the best of both worlds for those who come from families where English in not the native language:
100% English at school
100% native language of family at home.
100% English at school
100% native language of family at home.
1
OK, but in your experience, those two worlds do not meet, ever? Is it not useful, when a child can explain to his mother what they did in school? Can someone truly go through 12+ years of schooling without once having her father involved? And how exactly is a child supposed to learn mathematics without understanding the language it is taught in, for, say, the first 2 years?
Yes, Europeans usually speak a second language, which, nowadays, is usually English, the de facto language of international communications.
Nowadays many study Chinese in addition.
You will not find many who pick Spanish as a second or third language.
Nowadays many study Chinese in addition.
You will not find many who pick Spanish as a second or third language.
5
That's just plain wrong. Cite facts. Most commonly studied languages in Europe: English, German, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, in that order. Most well-educated Europeans study two to three languages, so if you subtract their native language, you find plenty of them studying the others. Spanish is the 4th most spoken language worldwide--way ahead of French and German.
Hmm no. English is taught to virtually all children. Almost every European pupil learns a second foreign language in school. Spanish is the second most common second foreign language taught in France, Norway and Sweden (almost 50% of Swedish kids learn Spanish at school...). The other two commonly taught languages are French (esp. in Italy, Spain and Germany) and German (esp. in France and Eastern Europe).
Europeans have no stereotypes whatsoever about Spanish speakers, it's just a beautiful language spoken by about 400 million people, and it's really easy to learn for the French and Italians. Chinese is almost never offered in schools; it does not really matter that a billion of people speak it on the other side of the world, when you cannot speak with your neighbor.
Of course, the only holdouts are the British...
Europeans have no stereotypes whatsoever about Spanish speakers, it's just a beautiful language spoken by about 400 million people, and it's really easy to learn for the French and Italians. Chinese is almost never offered in schools; it does not really matter that a billion of people speak it on the other side of the world, when you cannot speak with your neighbor.
Of course, the only holdouts are the British...
In certain parts of the country it is rapidly becoming a necessity to be bilingual if you want a job that deals with the public, and that will only increase as the Latino population expands. I was browsing job openings at the University of Miami's health system recently and being bilingual in English & Spanish was listed as an "important advantage." I'm sure if you're the nation's top neurologist, they don't mind having a translator follow you around, but a nurse? Not so much.
It's not just Miami - I would imagine it is an important advantage in much of CA, TX, AZ, etc.
If I had young children, I would enroll them in programs like this. It will never be a disadvantage to be bilingual in the US, and it is far easier to learn a language as a child, when you're less self-conscious about mistakes.
It's not just Miami - I would imagine it is an important advantage in much of CA, TX, AZ, etc.
If I had young children, I would enroll them in programs like this. It will never be a disadvantage to be bilingual in the US, and it is far easier to learn a language as a child, when you're less self-conscious about mistakes.
2
So many of these comments show a very troubling undercurrent of racism and ignorance among readers of the NY Times. I am ashamed.
In dual immersion schools, native Spanish speakers become more proficient in English by middle school than they would in English-only programs.
Knowing two languages is a good thing. It allows you to broaden your perspective of the world and communicate with more people.
In dual immersion schools, native Spanish speakers become more proficient in English by middle school than they would in English-only programs.
Knowing two languages is a good thing. It allows you to broaden your perspective of the world and communicate with more people.
10
It's so tiresome and inane for people to immediately condemn as "racist" others who have the temerity to have another opinion. I hate to break this to you, but for most people this is nothing more than a cultural thing, not a racial one. You will no doubt scoff, but regardless, it's true.
1
“The limits of your language are the limits of your world.” - Ludwig Wittgenstein
8
when i was in school, "foreign languages" wasn't introduced until junior high school. and it was a requirement, although we didn't get a choice of which language to take -- it depended on where they "placed" you once in junior high. how i wish i had gotten more grounding in another language while still in grammar school, when my brain was more pliable. i learned spanish enough to win a scholarship as a foreign exchange student to mexico but once there, i realized how limited my language skills really were. i always try, before travelling, to pickup useful phrases in the language of that country, but wish i were fluent in at least one or two. i work for someone who is fluent in 4 languages, semi-fluent in two others... she is one of the most valued people in the firm, because she is able to make our international clients feel at home. obviously, schools no longer require learning another language. too bad. learning another language does not make you *forget* your native tongue all you xeonophobes... it expands your world. is that what you're afraid of?
4
Here in Culver City, California we have been blessed with a tri language school El Marino Elementary School. The have two programs English-Spanish and English-Japanese. The school is highly sought after by Culver City residents who get priority and out of district students who get on a long waiting list.
Coincidentally, just last night my Uber driver (native Spansh speaker) told me his child is enrolled in the Spanish-English track, and is now dabbling in Japanese because so many of the classmates can speak it. At home the mother speaks to child in English and the father speaks in Spanish. According to my driver the child is strongest in English.
Coincidentally, just last night my Uber driver (native Spansh speaker) told me his child is enrolled in the Spanish-English track, and is now dabbling in Japanese because so many of the classmates can speak it. At home the mother speaks to child in English and the father speaks in Spanish. According to my driver the child is strongest in English.
26
Like a hydra-headed monster, the idea of public schools forcing children to speak two languages is back. No doubt a product of aggressive multi-culturists in the education establishment. It is hard enough to get children from first generation households properly to learn English, so they can do well on the inevitable tests they will face through ACT or SAT, and the reading loads they will have in high school and college -- if they get there. Old pedagogy is right: teach foreign languages separately in language classes. If culturally advanced families wish to send the children, at their own expense, to the Lycee or similar language emersion schools, that is for them, not for us to support in public education. Keep in touch with a family's cultural heritage, be it Spanish, Greek, Asian, Jewish, in your spare time and on weekends. I have known, for example, Italian Americans who couldn't speak a word of that rich language and had never been to an opera by Verdi or Puccini -- that is sad too, so somewhere along the way through the Ivy League or other great universities/colleges, perhaps they should have paused to reflect and enjoy. The issue here, however, is upward mobility, literacy in our lingua franca. Stay with it.
5
You write, "I have known, for example, Italian Americans who couldn't speak a word of that rich language and had never been to an opera by Verdi or Puccini -- that is sad too"
I agree, that is sad, but the fact of the matter is that any Italian who immigrated to the US prior to 1970 or 1980 spoke a regional language (some people refer to them as dialects, but they are in fact languages that are not mutually intelligible) and came from a traditional, agrarian society that had no exposure to high, bourgeois culture of Verdi or Puccini. Even so, most Italian Americans who are more than two generations removed probably don't know their ancestral language, but that has less to do with the desire to assimilate than with the basic fact that it takes a lot to maintain a language, especially a regional one that will never be taught in schools and in a community that is less immigrant and more native born. For those reasons, I laugh at people who think any of this "foreign" languages will gain traction in the US, because they won't, not will learning them or being taught in them hinder English, because it won't. English is a great wave, a giant sea that engulfs everyone, sooner or later.
I agree, that is sad, but the fact of the matter is that any Italian who immigrated to the US prior to 1970 or 1980 spoke a regional language (some people refer to them as dialects, but they are in fact languages that are not mutually intelligible) and came from a traditional, agrarian society that had no exposure to high, bourgeois culture of Verdi or Puccini. Even so, most Italian Americans who are more than two generations removed probably don't know their ancestral language, but that has less to do with the desire to assimilate than with the basic fact that it takes a lot to maintain a language, especially a regional one that will never be taught in schools and in a community that is less immigrant and more native born. For those reasons, I laugh at people who think any of this "foreign" languages will gain traction in the US, because they won't, not will learning them or being taught in them hinder English, because it won't. English is a great wave, a giant sea that engulfs everyone, sooner or later.
I remember traveling in Iquitos and a guide asking me if I was up for a riddle.
I said sure.
The questions went like this:
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es multilingüe?
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es trilingüe?
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es bilingüe?
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es monolingüe?
Answer : Un norteamericano
I said sure.
The questions went like this:
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es multilingüe?
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es trilingüe?
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es bilingüe?
¿Cómo se llama a alguien que es monolingüe?
Answer : Un norteamericano
6
This is a real step forward. American education traditionally teaches foreign languages beginning only when students are teenagers, but languages are easiest to learn for students who are four, five and six years old.
Not only are bi-lingual and multi-lingual people more likely to succeed in a global economy, but studies have shown that people who learned a second language as children have superior learning ability throughout their lives. The ability to communicate in more than one language substantially increases our access to information, our open-mindedness, and our ability to engage in critical thinking.
politicsbyeccehomo.wordpress.com
Not only are bi-lingual and multi-lingual people more likely to succeed in a global economy, but studies have shown that people who learned a second language as children have superior learning ability throughout their lives. The ability to communicate in more than one language substantially increases our access to information, our open-mindedness, and our ability to engage in critical thinking.
politicsbyeccehomo.wordpress.com
16
As a master of education student, it still surprises me about some of the comments I've read. There are so many benefits to bilingual education. So many countries are taking advantage of this type of education. Having students who know multiple languages tend to have more opportunity than those who do not. This is a a GREAT thing. I wish I were in an elementary school like this one.
16
Provided the students are proficient in those languages! 'Knowing' additional languages without proficiency will be most useful in everyday setting and while traveling, but will rarely lead to professional advancement.
You got the kid for 6 hrs a day. What are you willing to give up to teach the second language?
1
Perhaps we should focus more on teaching proper English speaking and writing to all of these students rather than teaching them two languages in a half-hearted manner. The quality of writing by many young people, even at the college level, is often dreadful, far worse than it was years ago (just ask any employer about language skills of their young hires). Further, as some other commenters have already pointed out, many of these students speak Spanish at home. We should be doing everything we can to ensure that they learn proper English in school, not reinforcing their Spanish skills.
19
I think you are likely to find that bilingual young people are actually better with grammar, spelling and sentence structure than their monolingual counterparts because they have had to confront directly the reality of more than one grammar system. BTW that isn't really a new problem; many of the new hires at my Big 8 firm were horrible writers in the 1970s. As accounting majors most of them had little or no foreign language exposure. Those of us who were bilingual could usually put sentences together and form them into paragraphs that reported what we had seen and done.
3
I learned more grammar in my Spanish and Latin than I did from my English teachers. I still remember what direct and indirect objects are. I also know that there is something called subject verb agreement. Unlike George W Bush, I don't pair is and learning when the subject is children. Is my child (singular) learning? Are (plural) our children learning?
1
Yuck. This is political correctness disguised as education policy.
22
Many would be reluctant to admit that you are right, but I'm right there with you. Thank you.
1
Would you be saying the same thing is the language were French? German? Finnish? Russian?
Political correctness? Are you Aryan sensibilities offended?
I grew up trilingual (English, Spanish and Italian) and that definitely gave me an advantage over other students at school. Not only that, it enabled me to travel and communicate with people all over the world, and was a great starting point for picking up a 4th and 5th language.
14
I think we should put more emphasis on learning a second or third language. I've enrolled my children in after school private foreign language study since 1st grade. It's a language I am proficient since it was my minor as an undergraduate, so we also practice daily at home.
However, I wouldn't want my child learning math or science in a foreign language until a significant level of proficiency is reached, probably college level. Math is too important, and too cumulative to have to rely on translation at such a young age.
However, I wouldn't want my child learning math or science in a foreign language until a significant level of proficiency is reached, probably college level. Math is too important, and too cumulative to have to rely on translation at such a young age.
28
I was with you until the bit about translation. If someone really learns a second language they begin to think in that language - no need for translation. My French isn't nearly as good as it once was, but when I read French newspapers on-line I'm not translating, I'm just reading.
5
carol goldstein
People on occasion used to ask when I was growing up at school in France whether I 'thought' in English, or French. This was decades ago and I still have not given any thought to it.
It is only recently on reading a copy of Lord Dunsany's 'The King of Elfland's Daughter' in French, that I understood how well French lends itself to poetry, while helping to clarify why my sentences in English tend to go on a ramble.
In view of learning to write, or comment with brevity, it is one of the many reasons I subscribe to the NYT.
People on occasion used to ask when I was growing up at school in France whether I 'thought' in English, or French. This was decades ago and I still have not given any thought to it.
It is only recently on reading a copy of Lord Dunsany's 'The King of Elfland's Daughter' in French, that I understood how well French lends itself to poetry, while helping to clarify why my sentences in English tend to go on a ramble.
In view of learning to write, or comment with brevity, it is one of the many reasons I subscribe to the NYT.
When you are 7 years old, like my son, you are still translating in your head. By my junior yer in college, I was dreaming in another language. I'm not going to leave math to chance!
Dual language programs can very much benefit native English speakers. Catholic schools in New England once taught academic classes in French and English and these kids were well educated, including my mom!
8
I am all in favor or learning a second or - multiple languages. It is beneficial when traveling or in doing business with other countries. What I object to is mandatory Spanish. Young people should have the option to choose which foreign language they choose to study.
my son is a senior in a International Baccalaureate program. he has French every day and took the French Baccalaureat last June. he is also pretty fluent in spanish with IB level daily spanish class. beyond the actual teaching of languages, the benefit is the general culture that follows. this enrichment is priceless.
12
hiflo
This is excellent, and congratulations to your son for passing his French Baccaulaureat last June. Have you asked him if he has a favorite language and is he able to give English classes to others who may need these?
This is excellent, and congratulations to your son for passing his French Baccaulaureat last June. Have you asked him if he has a favorite language and is he able to give English classes to others who may need these?
1
My family and I came to America without a word or English, like other many immigrants before us and we ALL learned english. Why are we dumbing down for this new group of immigrants?
It's time for tough love and for them to put on big boys pants and grow up.
Learn to speak English, this is your new country!!!
It's time for tough love and for them to put on big boys pants and grow up.
Learn to speak English, this is your new country!!!
39
Where some see dumbing down, others see quality education. Congratulations on your pants, though.
3
I agree! When my husband emigrated to this country from Greece, he learned English to assimilate into the American Culture he had dreamed of living in for so many years. We live in The United States of America - not South America.
3
My dad too,had to learn American English,he came from Italy.
2
If the student in a dual language classroom is a native English speaker, then learning a second language at a young age is great. But if the student is a non-native English speaker and speaks the second language at home, then the dual language classroom is a crutch that will only delay or even prevent the student’s assimilation into American culture.
50
Good observation that points out an important distinction.
1
False. Academic research shows that native Spanish speakers who learn English in a dual-immersion setting become as or more proficient in English than those who learn English in an English-only setting. Additionally, they maintain their home language (sadly I have to include that this is a good thing), and English speakers learn another language. What's the problem?
4
dual language programs don't act as a crutch. these programs allow the student to continue to develop language skills in both languages. the benefits of high levels of facility in two languages (that means developing sophisticated academic language) on cognition and long term achievement have been found in the research mentioned by dr. steele in this very article.
3
In Wisconsin, dual language programs have enrollments that are almost exclusively middle class white children and Latino children. African American children are almost non-existent in these classes. What has happened in Madison is that there is segregation within the schools, with African American, Hmong, and poor white children in half the rooms, and Latino and white children in the others. This further creates a gap in the ability of minority kids to access the same educational choices available to families who are either the target group or savvy middle class parents.
22
There are schools that are doing it right. Although that problem does exist in many dual immersion schools, there are many schools in Oakland doing it right; at my school, there are many African-American students who speak Spanish.
My daughter attends a fourth grade class in a English/Spanish two-way immersion program in Berkeley. Her class includes two African-American students. All the other classes in her school also reflect the racial and economic diversity in Berkeley. This diversity comes at the cost of busing many students. The school where the Spanish two-way immersion was offered is the farthest from our house of any school. I am, however, very glad we chose two-way immersion. The program legitimized Spanish as a language for her, made it easy for her to gain fluency, and exposed her to the children of other parents who value language ability. I do not see any of this coming at the expense of STEM or any other academic subjects. She is also taking Mandarin in an after school program. I think she will be ready for the California of the future.
when my grand parent came here from Italy - they wanted their children to learn American ways and English - at home they spoke Italian but in public only English was spoken - when I've traveled to Chile, Ecuador, Peru, & other South American counties - suggesting school programs be in dual languages Spanish & --- they told me I was nuts - but the language they thought i meant was the native Indian language - you are in our country Spanish is it - they presently are accepting refugees from several regions - there is no dual language
7
How strange. I did my freshman year of high school in Colombia and English was mandatory, and all my classmates spoke very good English.
2
My parents were from Italy, they did not learn English when they came here and couldn't care less about it. And, the American ways?! Oh, no! Never (especially not for my sisters, lest they lose their desirability). Anyway, I learned English quite well and so did my siblings. And we continue to speak our parents' dialect/regional language (Italian be damned!). I'm sorry you've lost your ancestral language, culture, cuisine, and the like. Why do you want us to be as poor as you? And, frankly, who cares what they told you in South America. We should be looking to the, how can I put it... more successful parts of the world for our models (no disrespect to my many family members who emigrated to Paraguay).
2
Diversity to me means admiration of all cultures and reverence for none. In practice, diversity often means exchanging one group of chauvinists, who want to impose their culture on others, for another.
32
Not all cultures are equally admirable.
Yeah, like the colonizers did in the Americas... horrible, isn't it?
In meeting at a small international workshop open to the public, we have representatives of Africa, America, Asia, Europe and everywhere on Earth. English is the language that brings us together, while we learn cultural differences from our friends and colleagues in the short topic they wish to bring to the table.
'Bollywood' was a splendid presentation given yesterday in English by an Indian, and then she and I walked back to our office and discussed the Trick-or-Treat Halloween party at the end of this month.
'Bollywood' was a splendid presentation given yesterday in English by an Indian, and then she and I walked back to our office and discussed the Trick-or-Treat Halloween party at the end of this month.
1
Forget differences in race, religion, ethnic origin, whether you are a democrat, republican, independent conservative, liberal, or whether you believe northern Brooklyn is nicer than southern Brooklyn, unless you are facing that other gal or guy on the other side of a tennis net, if you are not speaking the same language as the other, you are dealing with mucho problems! All those other differences become essentially meaningless! As someone once said and I paraphrase, I think we have a failure to communicate here, and Zeppelin said Communication Breakdown! It's amazing that our schools function as well as they do, with the Tower of Babel that exists in many of them! And our teachers and the communities should get the credit! Yes, our ancestors assimilated and learning English was a significant if overriding key to that! Push for One Language and that is ENGLISH! E Pluribus Unum! In other words, From Many One, for those who have forgotten...
16
speak for yourself. my ancestors never assimilated, never learned English, and were not any worse for it. but, their children learned English and (more or less) assimilated. i see no difference in the people around me, nor do i see any harm in building a bridge through bilingual programs for immigrant children. and, i am heartened to know that dual language programs attract native speakers who may not have any ancestral connections to those languages.
i frankly don't understand the knee jerk reaction of so many Americans to the very notion of learning in two languages or speaking more than one language. in many countries around the world kids learn English from day one at school right along with their national language. why can't Americans improve themselves? i grew up with two languages. i'm fluent in both and all the richer for it. rumors of a tower of babel are greatly exaggerated and always have been. you can rest easy now. trust me.
i frankly don't understand the knee jerk reaction of so many Americans to the very notion of learning in two languages or speaking more than one language. in many countries around the world kids learn English from day one at school right along with their national language. why can't Americans improve themselves? i grew up with two languages. i'm fluent in both and all the richer for it. rumors of a tower of babel are greatly exaggerated and always have been. you can rest easy now. trust me.
1
Listening to a friend speak of her visit to Italy this spring last, she mentioned attending an early morning Mass in Rome given by the Pope in Latin, and added 'It was curious but I felt as if I understood everything he was saying'.
Umm, most of us don't speak Latin.
I am often embarassed by my lack of bilingual skills compared to my friends born and raised in Europe. I have Dutch friends who speak German and French. Italian friends who speak Spanish and German. We as a nation are poorer indeed when we can only see the world in terms of English only. Imagine the jobs and adventures our children could have globally if they spoke more than one language.
115
Luckily most of the first world speaks English, which is the dominant language.
10
The European friends you forget to mention are the British, who probably don't speak anything other than English. English speakers the world over can't seem to learn any other languages. It's like some Anglo-Saxon defect. It should be investigated by scientists.
Remember, the old joke: we call a person who speaks two languages bilingual; a person who speaks three is called tri-lingual. What do we call a person who speaks only one language? (Drum Roll) ENGLISH!
Remember, the old joke: we call a person who speaks two languages bilingual; a person who speaks three is called tri-lingual. What do we call a person who speaks only one language? (Drum Roll) ENGLISH!
3
Funny you should mention German and French. Why not Navajo or Tagalog, Xosa or Sanskrit? Why is knowing other European languages equated with globalism? Children in the US need to master reading English and with that firm basis they can later go on to explore other languages and cultures, European and others.
2
I rue the fact that there are no bilingual educational options for my children where I live. Strong knowledge of a foreign language will be an increasingly valuable skill for today's children. We should not let the narrow-minded parochialism of the English-Only crowd keep young people from becoming able to engage a world more widely and deeply than their parents and older neighbors can.
4
Wonderful and long overdue. I requested this as a native English speaking HS student in the 80s and was denied participation. That's one of the reasons I don't speak Spanish well today notwithstanding many years as a consumer of bilingual media. We need real opportunities to immerse without having to leave the country to do it and there is no better place to do that than at school.
3
As a trilingual adult who teaches music at the college level I can attest to the value of learning and teaching in more than one language. Brain development is enhanced with a second language, and if we combine this with regular, mandatory arts curriculum, every kid in the country would improve academically. Those who insist that their tax money be spent on only reading, writing, math, history, and science don't see the big picture. All those subjects are made more meaningful with language instruction and arts education.
13
From what I see, the English speakers learn a smattering of a foreign language, and the non-English speakers continue to be held back by not getting a sound-grounding in English.
I have witnessed first-hand the so-called "benefits" of bilingual education in its various incarnations. I have come to the conclusion that it keeps immigrants/non-English speakers segregated throughout their educational experience and keeps them from learning English. A far better approach, in my opinion, would be to have non-English speakers go through six months to a year of total English immersion to obtain fluency, and then put them put them into mainstream classes.
I won't go as far as Bobby Jindahl to say that "immigration without assimilation is an invasion" but I do agree that you need immigration with assimilation. All of my grandparents immigrated here and didn't speak a word of English. After their days working on the sweatshop floors they went to the settlement houses and learned English. Speaking it was a point of pride for them and they went on to become active in their communities. Hence my belief in English immersion first, followed by mainstreaming.
I have witnessed first-hand the so-called "benefits" of bilingual education in its various incarnations. I have come to the conclusion that it keeps immigrants/non-English speakers segregated throughout their educational experience and keeps them from learning English. A far better approach, in my opinion, would be to have non-English speakers go through six months to a year of total English immersion to obtain fluency, and then put them put them into mainstream classes.
I won't go as far as Bobby Jindahl to say that "immigration without assimilation is an invasion" but I do agree that you need immigration with assimilation. All of my grandparents immigrated here and didn't speak a word of English. After their days working on the sweatshop floors they went to the settlement houses and learned English. Speaking it was a point of pride for them and they went on to become active in their communities. Hence my belief in English immersion first, followed by mainstreaming.
47
False. Most academic research will show that students learning English and Spanish in a dual-immersion setting will more proficiently speak English than if they were in an English-only classroom.
1
You are confusing a bilingual education with a Dual Immersion program, but that is not your fault, the article does not explain it thoroughly. My daughter did not learn a smattering of her second language. She speaks her 2nd language like a native. It was amazing to watch happen. The classes require students who speak both languages to be in the classroom so it actually reduces their segregation because they now have the esteemed roll of helping their English speaking classmates learn their language, and the rolls reverse as they learn English. It is very different from basic bilingual education.
2
It worked well enough for my daughter. Her Spanish is good.
And her Spanish-dominant classmates did very well as well.
Doesn't putting children in classes where they don't understand anything going on have a cost? How far behind can we let them get in science and math while they learn a language?
And her Spanish-dominant classmates did very well as well.
Doesn't putting children in classes where they don't understand anything going on have a cost? How far behind can we let them get in science and math while they learn a language?
2
Proficiency increases for students enrolled in dual-language education programs increases as they advance in grade levels because the astronomically high dropout rate eliminates the non-proficient. Meanwhile, bi-lingual education programs are not making the United States linguistically diverse. A report just released by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicines reveals that most immigrant already speak English. It also shows that only four percent of third-generation Mexican Americans speak Spanish at home, even in Southern California.
3
This is fantastic. As an American living abroad and teaching English I can tell you without a doubt that bi-lingual children are the smartest kids on Earth. I have 12-year-old students who speak their native Hungarian and are already fluent in German, Latin (yes, Latin!) and are quickly learning English. Studies show that bilingualism staves off dementia and Alzheimers.
As I read through the comments how sad that so many people (ie - Republicans) feel so threatened or xenophobic that even the thought of their children being bilingual is incomprehensible. Imagine that teaching children a second language is characterized as PC! But hey. You want your kids to be less smart than most other kids around the world be my guest. More room in the bi-lingual classrooms for the smarter, "PC" crowd.
As I read through the comments how sad that so many people (ie - Republicans) feel so threatened or xenophobic that even the thought of their children being bilingual is incomprehensible. Imagine that teaching children a second language is characterized as PC! But hey. You want your kids to be less smart than most other kids around the world be my guest. More room in the bi-lingual classrooms for the smarter, "PC" crowd.
68
Bilingual is fine. My kids are learning French. Having Spanish shoved down our throats to Hispander to racist Latinos who cannot be bothered to learn English even after moving here voluntarily is an entirely different matter.
16
Between Latin and German, they probably have an excellent grasp of language structure, parts of speech and grammar. They could probably learn almost any language!
2
So will children in Hungary be taught both Hungarian and Farsi then?
If I'm reading this correctly (Ms. Harris was unclear on this point), most if not all of these dual language programs are in schools where a substantial portion of the students speak the second language at home.
I'd be more impressed if there were English-Chinese, English-Arabic, or English-Russian programs in classrooms where none of the students spoke those other languages at home. Then it might truly be said that we were equipping our kids to compete in the global economy.
I'd be more impressed if there were English-Chinese, English-Arabic, or English-Russian programs in classrooms where none of the students spoke those other languages at home. Then it might truly be said that we were equipping our kids to compete in the global economy.
50
I'm guessing that most all of the English-Ivrit (Hebrew) students don't speak Hebrew at home.
The whole point of these programs is that the students who live in families where the language is spoken can bring this as an asset to the classroom. But they also need to learn an academic register of the home language: the aim is biliteracy, not just a bilingualism that centers around informal speech registers.
I was just at a meeting of the German Chemical Society, and the language of the meeting was English. This means all the presentations and talks were in English, not German. This surprised me at first until I got to the meeting and realized that there were Germans, Italians, Americans, Japanese, Chinese etc. participating. Everyone there has some kind of passable English, because it is the international language. This allowed us all to interact. It seems amazing that in the USA we wouldn't encourage children of other cultures to immediately master English, as a pathway to integration with their fellow US citizens, who may have come from all over the world, as well as a path to interaction with the international community.
65
That is an incredibly short-sighted view. It assumes that English will be the international language forever and always. Only a century ago, French was the lingua franca. We live in an age of change and transition, and should not take the status quo for granted.
Even if English remains the dominant international language, learning a second language teaches valuable perspectives and gives the next generation the tools to access other countries directly.
Even if English remains the dominant international language, learning a second language teaches valuable perspectives and gives the next generation the tools to access other countries directly.
1
Did it say in the article that students in bilingual schools were not encouraged to read and write in English? Do you have trouble understanding the word "bilingual"?
The folks at that conference had a major advantage over you. They all spoke at least two, and probably more, languages while you were stuck with only one. This means they interacted much better than you were able. Don't you want to know what people speaking different languages were saying to each other?
As the article states, there is research showing that speaking more than one language and being able to switch from one to the other at the drop of a hat wards off Alzheimer because it is thought it strengthens the command center in your brain. (you can find other more detailed studies on line but obviously you're limited to only those written up in English! And by now we all know that Google or other translation programs are useless). If you have doubts, try a program to translate one paragraph in English into any other languages and then retranslate it back into English. I guarantee you some laugh!)
The folks at that conference had a major advantage over you. They all spoke at least two, and probably more, languages while you were stuck with only one. This means they interacted much better than you were able. Don't you want to know what people speaking different languages were saying to each other?
As the article states, there is research showing that speaking more than one language and being able to switch from one to the other at the drop of a hat wards off Alzheimer because it is thought it strengthens the command center in your brain. (you can find other more detailed studies on line but obviously you're limited to only those written up in English! And by now we all know that Google or other translation programs are useless). If you have doubts, try a program to translate one paragraph in English into any other languages and then retranslate it back into English. I guarantee you some laugh!)
2
English actually is encouraged, but what harm does it do to encourage bilteracy and bilingualism? Maybe if you're part of the Aryan Brotherhood you might be offended by the idea.
1
English is the international professional language because it has a large percies vocabulary. It borrows readily. Consider two employees. One communicates at the basic level in English and a second language of your choice. The second is articulate in English. Envision their respective jobs. I see the two language speaker doing basic customer service, and second one at a higher level. Dual-language programs as a path to income inequality.
9
The two aren't mutually exclusive.
If the goal is impart to English speaking children the intellectual benefits of learning foreign languages, why don't we teach them Latin, Greek, French, or German. Research has shown that exposure to Latin and Greek has substantial benefits in terms of better grammar, a larger vocabulary, and higher test scores. French or German give one access to many cultural treasures.
If the goal is to develop in the children economic capital with which to better compete in the job market, then you can do better than Spanish. Most educated Latin American businesspeople already speak excellent English. There are certainly advantages to learning Spanish, but not to the extent of learning Chinese, Japanese, etc.
Learning foreign languages allows us to live richer, more meaningful lives. However, allowing foreign language acquisition to get in the way of mastery of STEM subjects would be a bad outcome for most people.
If the goal is to develop in the children economic capital with which to better compete in the job market, then you can do better than Spanish. Most educated Latin American businesspeople already speak excellent English. There are certainly advantages to learning Spanish, but not to the extent of learning Chinese, Japanese, etc.
Learning foreign languages allows us to live richer, more meaningful lives. However, allowing foreign language acquisition to get in the way of mastery of STEM subjects would be a bad outcome for most people.
43
We need diplomats just as much as we need engineers.
Pshaw.
There are a lot of people who studied French in High School for a couple years but who could ask where the bathroom is because they've had no opportunity to use the language in real life. Most Americans will have far more opportunities to communicate in Spanish than in any other language for the simple reason that about 10% of us already speak it as their first language.
By all means teach kids Latin, Greek, Chinese, Urdu, Swahili and Serbo-Croatian. Its all good. But most kids aren't learning ANY other language and we are uniquely well positioned to teach large numbers of them Spanish in a way that actually results in their becoming bilingual. To fail to do so is a crime.
There are a lot of people who studied French in High School for a couple years but who could ask where the bathroom is because they've had no opportunity to use the language in real life. Most Americans will have far more opportunities to communicate in Spanish than in any other language for the simple reason that about 10% of us already speak it as their first language.
By all means teach kids Latin, Greek, Chinese, Urdu, Swahili and Serbo-Croatian. Its all good. But most kids aren't learning ANY other language and we are uniquely well positioned to teach large numbers of them Spanish in a way that actually results in their becoming bilingual. To fail to do so is a crime.
3
French and German give access to cultural treasures? But Spanish doesn't? What about Cervantes? Macchu Pichu? Tenochtitlan? Gaudi? Only fossils think that "culture" begins and ends in France and Germany.
What a sad, prosaic life it must be to learn foreign languages in order boost test scores or make business deals with the Chinese; better reasons are to gain perspective and have fun studying, living or vacationing abroad. And check out the U.S. job listings sometime -- bilingual professionals in Spanish are in hot demand (Greek and even Chinese and French, not so much). I know; I'm one of them.
What a sad, prosaic life it must be to learn foreign languages in order boost test scores or make business deals with the Chinese; better reasons are to gain perspective and have fun studying, living or vacationing abroad. And check out the U.S. job listings sometime -- bilingual professionals in Spanish are in hot demand (Greek and even Chinese and French, not so much). I know; I'm one of them.
Is this the beginning of turning the US into an officially bilingual country in the manner of Canada?ihope not but fear it is.
I find it interesting that for over a century, immigrant children quickly picked up English. It took their parents a bit longer, but they also did it. Only grandma might have never learned English. Now, we make so many accommodations to non-English student, that they rarely learn it well.
We are an English speaking country and should stay that way.
I find it interesting that for over a century, immigrant children quickly picked up English. It took their parents a bit longer, but they also did it. Only grandma might have never learned English. Now, we make so many accommodations to non-English student, that they rarely learn it well.
We are an English speaking country and should stay that way.
29
No we aren't. There is no official language in the United States. Plus, the constitution of many states (California and Texas for example), are written in English AND Spanish.
2
Your comment belies an ignorant, racist attitude about language and the cultural history of the United States.
Your offhand remark that "children quickly picked up English" is irrelevant; research shows that children who learn in their first language while learning a new language become more proficient in English. You want kids to learn English? Give them English-speaking examples in a dual-immersion school.
Your offhand remark that "children quickly picked up English" is irrelevant; research shows that children who learn in their first language while learning a new language become more proficient in English. You want kids to learn English? Give them English-speaking examples in a dual-immersion school.
3
Those darn pale faces came here and spoke English, German and Welsh. They refused to learn Lenape.
5
The other day my bilingual son asked me about the difference between "know, now, and no". He is in K and noticed the difference in spelling.
It was so easy to explain by simply translating the words into another language.
I wish we had a good quality Spanish immersion program around here, and my first language is not Spanish.
It was so easy to explain by simply translating the words into another language.
I wish we had a good quality Spanish immersion program around here, and my first language is not Spanish.
11
It's good to know that K-12 schools have rediscovered what so many colleges and universities have forgotten: tha5 speaking more than Han one language is a vital skill in a globalized economy, and perhaps even mor important, that speaking two languages gives a child a much clearer understanding of how language functions, and improves verbal skills. Unfortunately, it's not surprising to read comments from people who can't see the point of being bilingual. This is, after all, a country in which a candidate for President was once ridiculed for speaking French, or in which President Bush threw a temper tantrum at a reporter for addressing a q_question to President Mitterrand in French -- at a news conference in France!
15
Learn English. It's that simple. I did, my lady did, my family did.
Stop cuddling these kids, now. Otherwise, when they leave the little safe bubble you made for them, they will fall on their face.
You cannot show up at a job interview speaking (insert foreign language here), and assume that, because your teacher gave you a gold star, the interviewer will understand what you're saying. If you cannot communicate with coworkers and clients, you cannot do that job, it's that simple. So learn the language now, before you realize you're unemployable because you can't speak English.
Stop cuddling these kids, now. Otherwise, when they leave the little safe bubble you made for them, they will fall on their face.
You cannot show up at a job interview speaking (insert foreign language here), and assume that, because your teacher gave you a gold star, the interviewer will understand what you're saying. If you cannot communicate with coworkers and clients, you cannot do that job, it's that simple. So learn the language now, before you realize you're unemployable because you can't speak English.
62
Learn English or you might as well be handed a broom at graduation, a fact that the politically correct amongst us do not seem to grasp.
18
The point of these DUAL language programs is that they teach non-native speakers English while exposing English-speakers to a foreign language. I've seen kids walk into dual-language programs without a word of English, In one school year they're fluent and even correcting the native English-speakers' spelling!
13
These children will eventually be bilingual, which is a plus in any country and in any job. In Europe most children learn how to speak English from at school. Being multilingual opens your mind and makes you smarter. I couldn't imagine being monolingual.
4
There is a lot of research showing that bilingual children are smarter than their mono-lingual counterparts. Being bilingual in a global world is a great advantage. I know many people who grew up in bilingual families - all of them are highly successful professionals.
62
That's not the point. You can speak whatever language you want at home, but our public funds shouldn't have to pay duo language classes.
If bilingual is important I suggest chines since they are the largest population and they are the second largest economy, will be first soon. Would that be wiser?
If bilingual is important I suggest chines since they are the largest population and they are the second largest economy, will be first soon. Would that be wiser?
3
I guess being bilingual is why Hispanics need affirmative action in college admissions.
1
Waste of effort. None of them will be able to speak Spanish unless they use it in everyday life. I have met graduates from francophone schools in Ontario, none of them can speak French.
25
It all depends on the curriculum and how language is taught and why. Don't give upon the idea of bilingualism or bilingual curriculum. The advantages of becoming bilingual at an early age as well as bicultural throughout schooling has been well documented,
4
I had a terrific French teacher in HS and I can still speak, read, etc. pretty well 50 years on. She made it a French-only classroom by the end of our second month. I still lapse into thinking in French if I'm hearing or seeing it. I suspect the key is to get to that point and then, yes, seek out opportunities to use that language.
My other experience is with Swedish, which I learned more or less in self-defense as I spent the first two and a half years of my work in NYC for a Swedish firm with six co-workers all of whom were Swedish. It is much harder to practice speaking than French as every Swede under the age of 70 has learned English starting in second grade or earlier. On the other hand it is easier to learn a third language because the fact that not all grammars are the same is not new news.
However, to me the point of becoming multilingual is that it promotes critical thinking and nuanced evaluation of information. The child who learns to process information in two (or more) languages learns that there is more than one way to think about basic things, e.g. there is no word in French that expresses fully the concept of "home" in its fullest sense. "Chez moi" is just a place.
My other experience is with Swedish, which I learned more or less in self-defense as I spent the first two and a half years of my work in NYC for a Swedish firm with six co-workers all of whom were Swedish. It is much harder to practice speaking than French as every Swede under the age of 70 has learned English starting in second grade or earlier. On the other hand it is easier to learn a third language because the fact that not all grammars are the same is not new news.
However, to me the point of becoming multilingual is that it promotes critical thinking and nuanced evaluation of information. The child who learns to process information in two (or more) languages learns that there is more than one way to think about basic things, e.g. there is no word in French that expresses fully the concept of "home" in its fullest sense. "Chez moi" is just a place.
I teach at a dual-immersion school where native English speakers--African American and European American--speak Spanish with reasonable proficiency by 5th grade. My anecdotal experience supports the academic research. Does yours?
5
So native English speakers should learn Spanish? I would think we should encourage Spanish speakers to speak English?
45
It works both ways. ¡Tenga un buen dia!
4
DUAL language programs do both.
4
What a narrow, selfish view of the world. The more languages we understand, the more we typically learn about other cultures. And the more we CAN learn about them in their native languages, the better off we all will be.
6
While this is only a partial guide, because their programs do not usually contain native speakers, the results of Canadian French Immersion programs may be of interest to Anglophone parents. The programs are largely popular and successful. The areas to worry about, as I understand it, are lack of retention when children do not continue with intensive foreign language study at secondary level, and the popularity of the programs as a form of enrichment for smart kids (something some American dual language programs use as a recruitment tool). The flip side is that the programs are a challenge or inaccessible to some children with special educational needs. In addition, if a child switches during the earliest years of the program, they may be behind in ELA due to the high proportion of time spent on the target language in those years, though scores catch up over time.
There are bad ideas and there are really bad ideas. This is a really bad idea.
Anything that diminishes the essential ingredients of education - you know, reading, writing, math, history, science - stuff like that - is a bad idea. But the pc armies march on, diversity is king and who cares if the students actually learn anything worthwhile.
The private sector can do whatever it wants, but I don't want any of my tax money used to promote bi-lingual education.
Anything that diminishes the essential ingredients of education - you know, reading, writing, math, history, science - stuff like that - is a bad idea. But the pc armies march on, diversity is king and who cares if the students actually learn anything worthwhile.
The private sector can do whatever it wants, but I don't want any of my tax money used to promote bi-lingual education.
55
You know, because there's no such thing as reading, writing, math, history, science - stuff like that - in other languages.
4
Yes, English was the original language. Too bad about that Tower of Babel situation.
There are other areas of the world, Europe for example, where it's common for educated people to master two or more languages plus have some proficiency in others. An additional language helps one understand more deeply his or her own primary language.
Nonetheless, to the extent the US retains its economic and currency hegemony, English insularity can continue to work. That way it won't fade as French did after France slipped off the empire pedestal.
There are other areas of the world, Europe for example, where it's common for educated people to master two or more languages plus have some proficiency in others. An additional language helps one understand more deeply his or her own primary language.
Nonetheless, to the extent the US retains its economic and currency hegemony, English insularity can continue to work. That way it won't fade as French did after France slipped off the empire pedestal.
4
Let me explain the programs as a parent whose child is in them, which might help you to appreciate them. In a sense, each child in a dual language program learns to read, write, define and use two vocabulary words for every one a mono-lingual student learns, because they learn every word in two languages. This makes their brains more agile and helps their concentration. So in the long run they are better able to learn reading, writing, math, history, science, etc. Also, consider that an ESL students in an English-only class spends the first year or two learning to identify and understand the individual words a teacher says. He can't focus on or absorb the content of the lessons. In a dual-language class he can focus on acquiring English vocabulary on his English days while learning the content of the lessons on his native language days, so he is better able to keep up. Additionally his is surrounded by kids fluent in both his native language and english to help him along. English-speakers learn the content of the lessons on their English days and focus on language acquisition on the other days. By the 3rd year theyknow both languages enough to increasingly absorb vocabulary and content at the same time. It IS challenging to learn this way. But for kids who are up to it, it enhances their educational experience and better prepares them to participate in a global workforce. It does not not diminish from those other subjects at all.
17
"Performance" increases in which area(s)? How about a bilingual Korean/Lakota program? That should work.
12
The hyperbole is unnecessary.
The reality of globalization and emigration make it a necessity to integrate English Language Learners and monolingual American children in an era of budgetary constraints. This is an experiment in that vein.
The reality of globalization and emigration make it a necessity to integrate English Language Learners and monolingual American children in an era of budgetary constraints. This is an experiment in that vein.
I attended a public high school that taught Lakota and Swahili. I took French and Mandarin instead. I don't speak either, but the exposure made it easier for me to do my doctoral research in Spanish. There were a couple Korean kids there. I don't know if they availed themselves of the opportunity to learn Lakota in addition to the English and Korean they already spoke, but I don't doubt for a minute that if they did they don't regret it.
I understand that you were making a joke, but the last laugh is on those who miss these opportunities.
I understand that you were making a joke, but the last laugh is on those who miss these opportunities.
2
"...performance increases...in some grades and certain subjects once they reached late elementary school."
I wish there were more solid evidence of the academic benefit. This sounds like a stretch.
I wish there were more solid evidence of the academic benefit. This sounds like a stretch.
37
It's real. My daughter in now in middle school, perfect state test score for the 4th time, straight A+ in her first year of middle school, moved up a year in one subject, up 2 years in another. And she's proficient enough in Spanish to read all of the childhood classics in that language. She finished the last of the Harry Potter series this summer, also Hunger Games, multiple EB White, Roald Dahl, Wizard of Oz, etc. Early foreign language teaching helped her brain to develop more connections and excel in music and listening. The English only students in her classes are struggling, despite going to an all white magnet school with "high test scores". And the disadvantaged kids in her Spanish classes all plan to go to college. Isn't this what we want from public education, not segregation and dooming poor, non-English speaking kids to failure?
8
It's really great that kids deficient in reading and writing English, in addition to abysmal math performance, must now learn a second language.
58
The problem lies with cultural attitudes, educational policy made by politicians, corporatization of education and especially educational materials, etc. You are showing your ignorance of the benefits of second language acquisition and bilingual or dual language education, which indicates that you are able to function only in English. Education has become a profit center for books, materials, uniforms, and food services. It is there to benefit Scott-Foresman, Pearson Longman, Sysco, and to buffer it from the fresh winds of change by a beefy layer of poorly trained and eduated EDD's and PhD's at the ever thickening, better paying administration level. They know everything about getting their financial bread buttered and absolutely nothing about being an educator.
7
As is pointed out in the article, the kids wind up doing better overall, including in English, after their brain adjusts to learning a second language.
Yeah, it takes some work.
Yeah, it takes some work.
32
Maybe learning an additional language might help them in improving their reading and writing and math performance?
7
"Diversity" is not a "benefit."
"Respect for diversity" is.
"Respect for diversity" is.
41
Diversity is most certainly a benefit, and nothing to be afraid of. Respect for diversity - actually, respect for the people and cultures who comprise "diversity" is essential.
6
You mean that if a person is around people different than from themselves, like *diverse* languages and socioeconomic strata, then there is no benefit to the individual?
2
Why is diversity a good thing for only white majority nations? Why not encourage China, Saudi Arabia or Kenya to diversify? Let them reap the benefits of having different languages, religions and cultures bloom within their countries. Let's build synagogues and churches in Mecca, import a few million Arab refugees to Mexico, establish a colony of Finns in the Congo. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. Why should we get all the benefits?
27
in terms of hours of instruction, quality of the teachers, appropriateness of the course material and money spent.
The course material ought to be designed to be just as appropriate for the native-English speakers as for the non-native English speakers.
If experts say that dual language instruction needs to be different depending on which language is the initial native language, then there will need to be two different classes, with two different sets of students and two different sets of course materials, one for native English speakers to learn in the other language and one for native speakers of the other language to learn in English -- and equal time and resources needs to be devoted to each.
Furthermore, equal opportunity (and equal resources) should be available for dual language programs involving not only English and Spanish, but also English and any other official United Nations language (Russian, French, Chinese and Arabic), as well as any additional languages requested by a significant number of parents.