Foundations of Bilingual Education

Textbook: Textbook: Bilingual and ESL ClassroomBilingual and ESL Classroom

Authors: Authors: Carlos J. Carlos J. OvandoOvando and Mary Carol Combsand Mary Carol Combs

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Chapter 1 StudentsChapter 1 StudentsOUTLINEWhat Do We Mean by Bilingual Education and ESL?What Do We Mean by Bilingual Education and ESL?

Bilingual EducationEnglish as a Second Language

DemographicsTypes of Language Minority StudentsStudents and Family Background

The Role of CultureThe Social ContextPrevious Schooling Experience

What Happens at SchoolWhat Happens at School The Emotional IssuesThe Linguistic IssuesThe Academic IssuesDiscovering the StudentgProgram Models

Use of the Primary Language of Language Minority StudentsEnrichment or Remediation?ESL or ESOL

ESL P ll t

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ESL PulloutNewcomer Programs

Bilingual EducationStructured Immersion

StudentsStudents

This chapter focuses on the importance of getting to know p p g gthe lived experiences of our language minority students as a sine qua non for creating exciting and academically promising teaching and learning classroompromising teaching and learning classroom environments. Because the essence of life is often captured through personal narratives, the chapter

Copened with Carmen's story as a way to invite the reader to partake vicariously in the complex set of geographic, social, economic, religious, linguistic, academic, and , , g , g , ,emotional experiences surrounding her life.

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StudentsStudents

• Since the mid-twentieth century, U.S. society has become increasingly multicultural and multilingual. Before 1965, when Congress terminated the national-origins quota system, Europe was the major source of immigrants to the United States. By the 1980s, h 85 t f i i t t thi t i fhowever, 85 percent of immigrants to this country were coming from Third World countries (Crawford, 1992b, p. 3). These population changes—or "demographic imperative"—have produced large numbers of students whose first language is not English Yet mostnumbers of students whose first language is not English. Yet most teachers unfortunately tend not to be well prepared to work effectively with these students. Hence, a challenge in the preparation of teachers for this millennium will be to address thepreparation of teachers for this millennium will be to address the "growing mismatch between the background of teachers and the students they will be teaching" (Applebome, 1966, p. 22).

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StudentsStudents

• Language minority students represent a huge variety of g g y p g ysociocultural, economic, political, linguistic, and academic experiences. Thus educators need to become familiar with the push and pull forces that have producedfamiliar with the push and pull forces that have produced these migration patterns to the United States. Equally important, however, language minority educators need to

funderstand the historical facts and events that have shaped the attitudes and behaviors of indigenous populations towards assimilation and schooling practices p p g pin the United States. Too often stigmatized indigenous languages and cultures are seen as problems in school and society rather than as resources or as rights in our

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and society rather than as resources or as rights in our democratic and pluralistic society.

Chapter ObjectivesChapter ObjectivesOBJECTIVESThe objectives of this chapter are to enable students/readers to:

develop insights into the social and psychological facets of the immigration experience of language minority students using case study material;

formulate a historical perspective on the development of U.S. society from being assimilative to culturally pluralistic;

become aware of social and cultural change in U.S. society through examination of relevant d hidemographics;

identify various characteristics of language minority students from a variety of perspectives;

enhance teacher sensitivity to the needs of language minority students by emphasizing their educational, cultural, and family experiences;

assist teachers in planning and developing appropriate educational programs for language minority t d t b i i th i d t di f th lif d i ti f th i it it

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students by improving their understanding of the life and aspirations of the minority community;

be sensitized to the challenges and frustrations language minority students may experience at school

Key TermsKey Terms

Bilingual Education ActgFormerly Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary

Education Act (ESEA) signed by President Lyndon B. J h J 2 1968 Th h thi t thJohnson on January 2, 1968. Through this act, the federal government made its first attempt at addressing the educational needs of language minority student. (See James Crawford's Bilingual Education: History, Politics, Theory and Practice, 1999, for a detailed explanation of its genesis and further developments )explanation of its genesis and further developments.)

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Key TermsKey Terms

Developmental bilingual education p gAn additive or enrichment model designed to preserve and

enhance students' primary language skills while they are i i E li h I l t d t ti i ti iacquiring English. In general, students participating in

this program come from language minority backgrounds, although some may already be fluent in English. There is less emphasis on exiting students into an all-English classroom and more emphasis on academic development in the home language In the United Statesdevelopment in the home language. In the United States, this model is relatively uncommon.

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Key TermsKey Terms

English as a second language (ESL) g g g ( )A system of instruction that enables students who are not

proficient in English (English language learners) to i b th i t l i ti kill dacquire both interpersonal communication skills and

academic proficiency in spoken and written English. ESL is an essential component of all bilingual education programs in the United States.

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Key TermsKey TermsEnglish language learner (ELL) A term favored over limited English proficiency, for it

conveys that the student is in the process of learning English without having the connotation that the student isEnglish without having the connotation that the student is in some way defective until full English proficiency is attained. Like the term LEP, however, the ELL designation is still somewhat problematic in that itdesignation is still somewhat problematic in that it focuses on the need to learn English without acknowledging the value of the child's proficiency in L1. The term is superficially less offensive, but it is also less precise. It conveys the single-minded focus on learning English that tends to restrict discussion about the

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English that tends to restrict discussion about the student's pedagogical needs.

Key TermsKey Terms

Limited English proficient (LEP) g p ( )A controversial term used to describe children with limited

English language skills due to their mother tongue b k d Th t h tl b iti i d f itbackground. The term has recently been criticized for its negative connotations. It has been argued that it defines children in terms of what they "lack" rather than what they already possess, namely valuable skills in a language other than English. The terms is favored over "limited English speaking" (LES) for it encompasseslimited English speaking (LES), for it encompasses proficiencies in reading, writing, and listening (for a more detailed explanation, see James Crawford, 1999, p. 17).

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Key TermsKey Terms

National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) g ( )A nonprofit professional development and advocacy

membership association working to ensure educational ll d it f l i it A iexcellence and equity for language minority Americans.

NABE is the only national organization exclusively concerned with the education of language minority students in American schools. It promotes educational excellence and equity through bilingual education. (For detailed information log on to "www nabe org")detailed information log on to www.nabe.org )

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Key TermsKey Terms

ESL content (or sheltered) classes ( )An instructional approach used to make academic instruction in English

understandable to language minority students. Its aim is to help such students develop academic competence while also developing p p p gEnglish proficiency. Students in these classes are "sheltered" in that they do not compete academically with native English speakers since the class includes only nonmajority-language students. In the regular classroom, English fluency is assumed. In contrast, in the sheltered English classroom, teachers use physical activities, visual aids, and the environment to teach important new words for concept d l t i th ti i hi t h idevelopment in mathematics, science, history, home economics, and other subjects.

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Key TermsKey Terms

Indigenous or heritage language g g g gA term used to designate non-English languages spoken in

the United States that are not spoken by the dominant lt (S K h T & M Q ill 1998 3culture. (See Krashen, Tse, & McQuillan, 1998, p.3; see

also "www.cal.org/heritage/".)

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Key TermsKey Terms

Structured English immersion gA model typically promoted by English Only supporters, in

which subject matter instruction is provided in English, l ith di ti i E li h Thi halong with direction in English grammar. This approach

also allows for some instruction in the students' first language for clarification or explanation. Ideally, sheltered/structured English immersion teachers have specialized training in instructional strategies designed to meet the linguistic and cultural needs of Englishmeet the linguistic and cultural needs of English language learners.

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Key TermsKey Terms

Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages g p g g(TESOL)

An international and professional education association. Its mission is to develop the expertise of is members and others involved into develop the expertise of is members and others involved in teaching English to speakers of other languages to help them foster effective communication in diverse settings while respecting individuals' language rights. In English-speaking countries, ESL g g g g p g ,teachers work with immigrants and refugees at all levels of the education system--in primary, secondary, and higher education. According to the TESOL organization, ESL should be part of a larger bilingual program that also involves instruction in the student's L1 (for detailed information log on to "www.tesol.org").

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Key TermsKey Terms

Transitional bilingual education (early-exit bilingual g ( y geducation)

A compensatory or remedial model designed to prepare li i ti i it t d t t t i t ( lllinguistic minority students to enter mainstream (all English) classes. A portion of the overall instruction is in the child's first language. After a period of time, generally two or three years, students are "transitioned" into the mainstream curriculum. TBE is the most common bilingual education model in the United Statesbilingual education model in the United States.

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Key TermsKey TermsTwo-way, dual-language, or bilingual immersion

d tieducationAn additive or enrichment model that is designed to

achieve bilingualism in both the minority and majorityachieve bilingualism in both the minority and majority language. In general, it serves two linguistically diverse population groups: speakers of the minority language and speakers of the majority language It is designed toand speakers of the majority language. It is designed to cultivate the native language skills of both groups. These programs provide content area instruction and language development in both languages. In order to achieve the full benefits of two-way bilingual education, students from the two language backgrounds are in each class,

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from the two language backgrounds are in each class, and they are integrated for most or all of their content instruction.

Reflection Question 1Reflection Question 1

Identify three problems that language minority y p g g ystudents encounter in the classroom and describe strategies that you, as a teacher, would use to help alleviate these issues Which of these problems arealleviate these issues. Which of these problems are the most challenging, in your view, and why?

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Reflection Question 2Reflection Question 2

The authors describe strong connections among a g gstudent's culture, language, self-esteem, and academic performance. Given time and curriculum restraints how can teachers integrate historical andrestraints, how can teachers integrate historical and cultural content into everyday experiences in the classroom? In addition to curriculum, what are other

fways that teachers recognize the importance of students' cultural and social contexts?

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Reflection Question 3Reflection Question 3

Parental support plays a critical role in the overall pp p yacademic performance of students. What can language minority parents do to facilitate their children's English language learning? How canchildren s English language learning? How can teachers enlist the support of these families? Examine further the ways that teachers can bridge home and school to reduce the home-school mismatch.

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