Foundations of Bilingual Education T tb k Bili l d ESL Cl Textbook: Bilingual and ESL Classrooms By Carlos J. Ovando and Mary Carol Combs
Chapter 2 Policy and Programs The Politics of Bilingual Education The English Only Movement Impact of Official English Changing Terms of Debate The Unz Era Historical Background U.S. Schooling in Languages Other Than English English as a Second Language Bilingual Instruction of the 1960s Historical Overview of Title VII Legislation, 1968 2001 Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act Provisions of the Original 1968 and 1974, 1978, 1984, and 1988 Title VII Reauthorizations Title VII of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994 and School Reform "No Child Left Behind" Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and English Language Learners Education Policy in the Obama Administration Court Decisions and the Office for Civil Rights Basic Rights of Language Minority Students U.S. Office for Civil Rights Federal Court Decisions after Lau v. Nichols State Policies State Legislation State Certification of Bilingual/ESL Teachers Leading School Reform at the Local Level
Chapter Objectives OBJECTIVES The objectives of this chapter are to enable students/readers to: understand the complexity of political pressures that affect policy formation in bilingual education provision; examine attitudes to language in U.S. society in general and to the English language g in particular; become familiar with the historical background of practices favoring the use of minority group languages in the educational context; develop connections between the civil rights movement in U.S. society and the rights of language minority groups with regard to maintenance of language and culture; establish a knowledge-base pertaining to relevant legislative provisions for bilingual education; critically evaluate the impact of various court decisions and state policies on the implementation of bilingual education programs; form judgments about the value and limitations of legislative mandates form judgments about the value and limitations of legislative mandates for reform of schooling at national and state levels; scrutinize provisions of No Child Left Behind legislation and its impact on the education of language minority students.
Policy and Programs The history of language minority education over the last two centuries has been contradictory. While the eighteenth and nineteenth Centuries were marked by a general tolerance toward the use of immigrant languages g for instruction in both private and public schooling, growing anti-immigrant sentiments and subsequent restrictive immigration legislation in the twentieth Century resulted in widespread "Americanization" efforts and English Only instruction as a national policy. American Indian students endured a repressive education in boarding schools located far from their families and homes. The result of this historical pattern was a severe loss of cultural and linguistic resources among immigrant and indigenous groups alike.
Policy and Programs Although the federal government increasingly acknowledged the growing need for linguistically competent military and civilian personnel, especially during World War II and the Cold War, it has never fully accepted the linguistic resources that new immigrants bring to our country. Most immigrant students still receive their education in English only, with some instruction in English as a second language. If bilingual education is available, it typically is transitional, designed as remedial instruction for only two or three years, after which students are expected to continue their education in English only. Unfortunately, reauthorizations of the federal Bilingual Education Act since 1968 have not addressed this contradiction. While early Title VII legislation was characterized by its promotion of compensatory, deficit models of bilingual education, the 1994 reauthorization encouraged the development of bilingualism and biliteracy. No Child Left Behind, the most recent authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, eliminated the Bilingual Education Act outright, replacing it with "Title III, Language Instruction for Limited English Proficient and Immigrant Students." The new legislation emphasizes English acquisition and achievement, not the development of bilingualism and biliteracy.
Adequate yearly progress A measure of year-to-year y student achievement on statewide assessments, required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Under NCLB, each state must develop yearly accountability plans that report the percentages of students scoring at "proficiency" levels of achievement in reading and language arts, mathematics, and science. These plans must report the AYP for all students, including designated subgroup categories: economically disadvantaged students, racial and ethnic minorities, students with disabilities, and English language learners. Schools whose students fail to make AYP for two consecutive years will be designated as needing improvement and targeted for assistance. Repeated failures in subsequent years would result in increasingly severe penalties.
Bilingual Education Act of 1968 Formerly Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson 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.)
Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 Originally passed by Congress as an antibusing statute, the EEOA also prohibits states from denying equal educational opportunity to individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, or national origin. This legislation requires school districts to "take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation by its students in instructional programs."
Lau plans Negotiated "consent agreements" between OCR and school districts found to be out-of-compliance with federal civil rights statutes Lau regulations Formal and federally mandated regulations for implementing bilingual and ESL programs (proposed by the Carter Administration in 1980 and later withdrawn by the Reagan Administration in 1981).
Lau remedies Guidelines developed after the Lau v. Nichols decision about the implementation of bilingual and ESL programs (concerning, for example, identification of students' language dominance, appropriate placement into programs, curriculum design, assessment, and analysis of achievement data).
National Defense Education Act of 1958 The Soviet Union's successful launching in late 1957 of Sputnik, the world's first space satellite spurred Congress to pass the NDEA, legislation that provided federal expenditures for education in science, engineering, technology, and the study of foreign languages.
No Child Left Behind Signed into law on January 8, 2002, this law reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. It significantly changed the federal requirements for schools and districts from previous reauthorizations of the ESEA, including greater "accountability for results" in the form of higher academic standards, required annual testing in grades three through eight, and increasingly severe sanctions for "failing schools."
Race to the Top A multi-billion dollar competitive grant program "designed to encourage and reward States that are creating the conditions for education innovation and reform, achieving significant achievement, closing achievement gaps, improving high school graduation rates, and ensuring student preparation for success in college and careers." The program was established by the Obama administration. A component of the Race to the Top program evaluates teachers based on their students' test scores. If states refuse to adopt this policy they are ineligible for funding from the grant program.
Reauthorization A process by the United States Congress and other p y g legislative bodies to review, renew, or extend legislation about to expire.
Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act This title, or the Bilingual Education Act (P. L. 90-247), was passed by Congress in 1968, and reflected a consensus that the then prevalent "sink-or-swim" approach to teaching English was both an educational failure and a denial of equal opportunity for language minority students.
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 This title serves as the basis for much civil rights litigation on behalf of language minority students, and bans discrimination on the basis of "race, color or national origin" in any "program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. "
U.S. Office for Civil Rights (OCR) This is an agency of the U.S. Department of Education that monitors school district delivery of services to language minority students in order to determine whether those districts are in compliance with the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, the Equal Educational Opportunity Act, and other civil rights statutes.
Reflection Question 1 Trace the historical evolution of bilingual education in the United States since the eighteenth century. What are some examples of early bilingual education programs in the United States? What political and social forces caused these programs to change? Discuss patterns that you perceive in the expansion and restriction of bilingual education in America. What do you think is the current political and social attitude about language minority students and bilingual education? Provide evidence for your response.
Reflection Question 2 Explore the development of the Bilingual Education Act since 1968. What social and educational changes resulted from each new reauthorization of the act? Describe how the legislation changed in 2001 and provide possible reasons for the change. Examine possible threats to the validity of the new NCLB requirements as they pertain to LEP learners.
Reflection Question 3 Summarize the Lau v. Nichols Supreme Court case. Why is this considered one of the landmark cases in the development of bilingual education in America? On what grounds did the Court rule that the students were not receiving an equal education? How did the Lau case impact subsequent events related to bilingual education?