Bi-lingual & Language Programs

(Above artwork: 'Lesson' by Pablo Picasso)


The following was written for a class: Educational Equity in Class, Race & Schooling in the United States, taught by an amazing professor, Dr. Jeffrey Duncan-Andrade. I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading!
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Paula Mak
April 13, 2009
RAZA 580
Analyses Paper #8

Socratic Question: Why does the perception and application of language learning differ between class and racial lines in the United States?

In our world, to be able to speak more than one language has long been held as an asset, not only for a person’s viability in the job market but also for a quality of life rich in culture and diversity. A public figure who defined linguistic ability was former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy who was fluent in English, Spanish, Italian and French. Her access to language learning could have been attributed to her wealthy, white, and elite socio-economic background. Language studies when carried out by upper and middle-class communities are generally perceived as a sophisticated, valuable and worthwhile endeavor. On the other hand, when bi-lingual education programs, very much related to language learning, knowledge, literacy and acquisition, are carried out in immigrant populated communities that are racially diverse, carry a negative connotation as misguided and ineffective. Why does the perception and application of language learning differ between class and racial lines in the United States and how could we, as educators change that?
School districts responsible for carrying out language learning and acquisition programs such as bi-lingual education are often clouded with covert racism. As seen in the historical struggle for bi-lingual education in the case of Lau vs. Nichols in 1974 in San Francisco, the multi-ethnic communities came together as a Task Force in order to monitor the school district’s compliance with the court ruling of a master plan for bi-lingual education. According to Wang, “SFUSD has no commitment to provide bi-lingual bicultural education for students of limited English speaking ability.” These students deemed ‘limited English speakers’ have no value to the school district. Attinasi (1997) argues that:

The term limited English makes no reference to a speaker’s prior
linguistic resources and fuels the devaluation that reduces
the language, culture, ability to think, and thus the humanity
of vernacular and ethnolinguistic groups to zero (p.297).

Zero value is often accorded to students in school and to people in the larger society who are non-Native English speakers. Those who possess power and control maintain the status quo. Therefore, whereas white, wealthy individuals such as Jacqueline Kennedy are perceived as possessing beautiful language abilities, the students and adults who are marginalized and also possess language abilities other than English, are seen as ‘limited’ English speakers. Even though, rich language and culture are living and breathing in ethnic communities, without English, they are still seen as deficient human beings by the dominant society. This kind of racist perception informs the lack of commitment by school districts to give bilingual bicultural education to those who need it the most.

To not duly carry out English learning and acquisition programs effectively to students in need of it is not only legally unjust, it is inhumane. Attinasi says that ‘keeping marginalized people at the periphery is the essence of racism and language often facilitates it” (1997, p.286). When I was a student teacher, I took over a Senior English Literature Class from an old guard Master Teacher. She was white, elderly. ethnocentric and kept herself at a distance from her diverse class of students. She warned me her students wrote like ESL students even though they were in a regular English class. She told me to go over the Shakespeare passages to them more than once since they may not grasp the English Language. How fair of an assessment did she have on her class? I doubt the average student could read and comprehend convoluted Shakesperean language? Transitional ESL students need more support in contextual meaning of language, not just the mechanics of grammar and syntax. Her perception lacked a depth of understanding to her students’ socio-linguistic background which added to their disengagement to the subject and language of English.

Attisani argues that “Standard English elitism and English-only movement discriminate against bilingual persons for both of their languages…”(1997, p.291). English teachers in public schools are prone to elitism because of the economical power behind the function of English. Both languages of a bi-lingual speaker must be embraced and perceived as equally valuable. Therefore, I brought in multiple writers for the class to study with text written in Chinese by Li Po and in Spanish by Pablo Neruda. Those texts were published in the States after being translated into English. In language translation, textual meaning and authenticity are issues in language that students can explore which is not limited to the written form, but also in oral form. The way our communities and people have been ‘translated’ by the dominant society and how Shakespearean English and culture could be compared to modern forms and narratives are possible ways to engage students’ knowledge on language and enable them to gain language literacy in the process.

Understanding our perception of language learning and acquisition is important for educators to dismantle the political and administrative structure that dehumanize marginalized students. I advocate for students and I call on students to advocate not only for themselves but for others who are similarly silenced by covert racism and prejudice. All teachers, not just language teachers, should have a basic understanding of the English language informed by complex socio-political dynamics in society. Furthermore, all bi-lingual teachers should have a complex understanding of their role in their students’ success in second language acquisition. It is not how well we speak two languages that will ensure how well bi-lingual programs are carried out. Instead, it is how committed we are in understanding our students’ language needs in relationship to our subject content. It is also checking our perceptions, often affected by covert racism and power dynamics in our roles as teachers. In fact, according to Krashen, “when schools provide children quality education in their primary language, they give them two things: knowledge and literacy” (1997, p.3). Those are the kinds of things that former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy have been given by her school community and those must be given to all students. We must as educators recognize that all children and youth are entitled to a good, solid language learning acquisition program such as bi-lingual education. Students ought to be valued and our commitment must reflect that in their ability to be language learners and speakers because this world is so much more than the United States of America.


Works Cited:

Wang, L. (1995). Lau v. Nichols: History of struggle for equal and quality
education. In D. T. Nakanishi, & T Y. Nishida (Eds.), The Asian American educational experience: A source book for teachers and students (pp. 58-94). New York: Routledge.

Attinasi, J. J. (1997). Racism, language variety, and urban minorities: Issues in
bilingualism and bidialectalism. In A. Darder, R. D. Torres, & H. Gutíerrez (Eds.), Latinos and education: A critical reader (pp. 279-301).

Krashen, S. (1997). Why bilingual education? ERIC Digest.

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