Dual-Speaking: Growing Up In The Classroom

More young americans nowadays are being raised in homes speaking non-English, but these students are falling behind in schools where there is not a bilingual program available. According to the U.S. Department of Education, in schools without a bilingual education program, 71% of English speakers are at or above the basic requirements for fourth grade reading while merely 30% of non-English speakers reach this level. 35% of English and 8% of non-English speakers reach proficient reading levels while only 9% of English and 1% of non-English speakers perform at advanced levels. It’s evident that the availability of a bilingual program is crucial to the success of an individual who needs the resources that can be given to them through the use of bilingual education. The percentages of the non-English speaking students previously mentioned could undoubtedly be comparable to those percentages of the English speaking students if the education they were being provided with was cohesive to their comfortability, and the material being taught was in a language they could better understand.

To learn a second languages is very important because people have better opportunities in life. For children from ages five and under it is the best time to learn as many languages. Angele Sancho Passe, the author of “Dual-Language Learners (Birth to Grade 3)”, talks about techniques for teaching English in a multilingual classroom and how reading in english to dual-language learners helps teach them oral language skills. Patton O. Tabors, the author of “One Child, Two Languages”, talks about writing case studies of children displaying different second language abilities. In the article, “Ways to Introduce Your Kids to Foreign Languages” by Grace Hwang Lynch, believes two-way bilingual immersion is a helpful way to introduce foreign languages

Even though Brown v. Board of Education ruled segregation in schools unconstitutional, it exists in a different form today. While the most students in schools are in normal classes, English Language Learners are often separated from the rest of the student body. These students, mostly hispanic immigrants, are put in special classes separate from the main student body where they are given special English instruction. They rarely interact with the main student body, and it often seems that they go to a different school. Dual Language Education solves this problem. In Dual Language Education, all students are taught together. This benefits both the English Learners and the English speakers both academically and socially and better

Cultural Diversity has lead schools to promote dual language and bilingual programs for ELL students. However, raising bilingual children according to Marsha Rosenberg is not something that simply happens. Parents must carefully consider how they will raise their children in their new culture. Unfortunately, many parents often forget that neglecting their primary language in the process of raising their children will only hurt them in the long run. However, what they fail to understand is that our current society insists on developing diverse learners, who can speak two or more languages and are diverse (Gensee, n.d). Therefore, in order to raise bilingual students they parents must provide the children with rich experiences at home as well as in a variety of settings (Broekhuizen, n.d.). Furthermore, families need to maintain a close family unity and sense of belonging when dealing with the bilingual issue at home.

At that time, the teachers still taught bilingual classes, and I was able to understand and be understood. Most of my classmates spoke Spanish because they were also in the process of learning English; it is typical in a bilingual kindergarten classroom. Some of the students were much more advanced than others while a group of students at a time were taken apart in at little corner to be taught the numbers, the alphabet, and the sounds of each letter.

Bilingual Education where Supporters feel that students miss a great deal by not being taught in their family’s language. That children that retain their family’s language will retain a sense of individuality. Their ethnic heritage & cultural ties. Helping Students acquire the skills of a classroom crucial for public success. Rodriguez also discusses the use of teaching and using a single language.

The study found that bilingual students (in the bilingual school) spent 47% of class time speaking Spanish, the traditional schooling group only spent 25% of class time speaking Spanish, always to other Mexican American students. When looking at the students outside of the classroom bilingual schooled students 63% of their time speaking Spanish to their Mexican American peers. Traditionally schooled children spent 64% of their time speaking English to their Mexican American peers. Prior to the beginning of the study both groups of children reported themselves as speaking Spanish more than English, however according to parental reports Traditional schooled students were reported to use more English than Spanish at the end of the first grade while the Bilingual students were reported to be using more Spanish than English by the end of the first grade. The results of the study found that the language spoken by the parents does not have considerable statistical influence on which language the child uses more, or even whether or the child is in a bilingual or is traditionally schooled. Perhaps most surprising is the finding that traditionally schooled children still result in speaking more English than Spanish with their Mexican-American peers when compared to their counterparts in the bilingual programs. Perhaps because

For the past six years, I have had the privilege of sharing my first language, Spanish, and Spanish culture as a teacher at a small private elementary school in a small rural town where diversity is almost non-existent. It has been a pleasure to open up a window to the outside world in the classrooms of this school where the students and I get to explore Spanish culture and language without having to leave town. My experience sharing my culture as well as my bilingual skills, however, extends beyond the elementary school classroom. Prior to teaching Spanish at the elementary school level, I worked as a Spanish-English translator and interpreter at various companies, and I also taught Spanish to adults.

Introduction - Being a part of a bilingual speaking family, like with my mom and dad who are Chinese immigrants, is an experience that no one can imagine unless you are part of a bilingual speaking family. Experiences such as knowing a language that not many of our neighbors don't know can be frustrating for both sides. Being young in my early years, learning English was not only a struggle for me but for my family. I noticed that my parents struggled learning english and communicating with the outside world. From buying groceries to paying for the bills, I observed the painful experiences that my parents persevere through all these years. I was glad public schools gave me the opportunity to not only learn English but to help my family live in this English superior society.

Many Spanish students struggle because Spanish is not allowed in American schools. Luis Rodriguez discusses the importance of bilingual

Becoming an emerging bilingual was a scary experience since I recall my first year as an emerging bilingual. I became an emerging bilingual when I had to transfer elementary schools prior to starting 4th grade. My Kindergarten education through 3rd grade was given to me in Spanish, so when I had to transfer to Kettering Elementary school to start 4th grade I was terrified with the fear of not being able to communicate with my peers and teacher. I recall my first day in 4th grade, arriving to my classroom and realizing that my fear had become my reality. The majority of my peers were White I would say that about 90% of the entire school was white including the staff. There were about three to four Hispanic students in which I was introduced

Bilingualism is a very common trait in the Rio Grande Valley, but not in all parts of the United States. The need to learn other languages aside from English is often overlooked in other parts of the U.S. I often asked myself what is it that motivates people in this region to speak more that one language. I wanted to shed some light on my questions about raising bilingual children in today’s society. My interview subject has three children (now adults) that are all bilingual, and proficient in English and Spanish. We agreed that for the sake of the participant’s privacy I would give her a pseudo name to be used in this research. The family of five has a very typical Rio Grande Valley background. The parents are originally from Mexico, and came to live in the United States in their early teens. The Lopez’s

I first have to state that I am still developing my education; so for the most part I believe I am still developing my knowledge in every one of the Performance Areas. With that said, it is very clear that I have a lot more confidence in the Performance Area: Development of the Home Language and of English. Even though there are still some topics that I put need developing, there are also a lot of parts that have information in the building and integrating sections. This is probably because of my job. Since I work at an elementary school (kindergarten- fifth grade), I have the opportunity to have hands on experience with helping in situation regarding dual language learners. Even though it is very rare that I am helping with these types of situations, the few time that I did have some input or direction have really stuck with me.

For this investigative assignment, I interviewed three of my closest friends about their perspectives on bilingual education in the United States. One of my friends, who I will call “A,” said that bilingual education is important for students because it helps them broaden their perspectives on the world. Students are exposed to learn different cultures and respect them, promoting multiculturalism in our country. “A” said that if students were only exposed to English-only classroom setting, they would most likely be ignorant of other cultures. She also told me about her experience when she was in an ESL program during her middle school year. She described the program as useless because she and her classmates learned broken English from each other. She somehow managed to get out of the program and put herself into the mainstream English class. My other friend, who I will call “B,” stated that bilingual education is helpful in developing a wider cultural perspective and cultivating a person suitable for the globalized world. As a foreign-born American and working as an international student coordinator, she emphasizes the importance of acknowledging and respecting different cultures. She believes that bilingual education can help students to achieve better knowledge on growing multiculturalism in our country. My last interviewee, who I will call “C,” also believes that bilingual education is important to cultivate young minds by helping them to respect not only their own but

Two domains of human development that bilingualism has on the people of my town are social and emotional. There are children that fear schooling, because of not speaking fluently in English. Little do they know, for as long as I can remember, schools in California have accommodated those children with ESL (English as a second language) classes. I think that it affects