“Bilingual Education: a Root Cause for Failing Students”
by Donna Garner
8.18.12
California reporter Jill Stewart wrote “Krashen Burn” (link posted at bottom of this page) on May 29, 1998. This was written to expose Stephen Krashen and bilingual education, and Jill Stewart wrote this article the week before California’s voters passed Proposition 227 61% to 39% on June 2, 1998.
Prop. 227 was meant to end the mandatory assignment of California students to Spanish language bilingual education programs just because the student had a Hispanic family name. Prop. 227 required that non-English speaking students were to be placed in special one-year classes where Sheltered English Immersion instruction was to occur, except in cases where the parents had filled out a specific, written request to keep their children in bilingual education classes.
During the four years that followed (1998 to 2002), students taught in English doubled their scores in reading and language on California’s state standardized tests while the bilingual students’ scores did not improve.
Unfortunately, the bilingual education/whole language establishment in California did not sit quietly by, following the intent of Prop. 227, but instead eventually managed to subvert the provisions until children in Sheltered English Immersion classes were once again being taught to read and write in Spanish.
To see the unfortunate drift in California back to Spanish instruction in English classes, please read “The Near End of Bilingual Education” by Dr. Christine H. Rossell, Education Next, Fall 2003: http://educationnext.org/the-near-end-of-bilingual-education/
In Texas, Gail Lowe of the Texas State Board of Education led the way for a public debate on bilingual education to be conducted on Feb. 9, 2006; and sure enough, here came Stephen Krashen to Texas from California to testify. He was supported by Hispanic members on the SBOE and also the bilingual education crowd who nipped in the bud any possibility that Texas voters would get to vote on a Prop. 227 look-alike.
Dr. Rossell tried to help Texas and studied the scores of Texas students on the state-mandated tests (TAKS). Rossell published her report in 2009 (http://www.texaspolicy.com/center/education-policy/reports/does-bil...) in which she stated, “Texas students in bilingual education are not required to be tested on the English TAKS for the first three years…Bilingual education is more expensive than other programs and is the least educationally effective…The goal of any type of program teaching English to non-English speaking children should be learning English…”
I still have hope that at some time in the future, Texas Legislators will finally realize that the dropout problem and lack of academic achievement in our Texas public schools relates directly back to our failed bilingual education programs.
This was sent to me by a Texas teacher on 8.16.12:
Donna,
This report is one of the gloomiest so far. Let me plunge right into the utter darkness of this bottomless abyss.
Today I met a fourth-grade bilingual teacher friend of mine (a.k.a., Maria). We taught together for five years at a local school. I taught first and second grade bilingual. She taught my second grade bilingual students when they got to fourth-grade; therefore, she is very familiar with success in teaching English and Spanish.
I even had Maria’s oldest son in my class. Once at a teachers’ meeting when I was being attacked for teaching so much English, Maria defended me, mentioning specifically how her son had benefitted from my powerful English phonics program.
I asked Maria how school was going. She confirmed earlier reports I had received that the district [a Texas school district] has told them to "quit exiting bilingual students prematurely." Maria has been told that no one was to exit a bilingual student before seventh-grade. Maria said that they were told the bilingual kids were entering junior high unprepared for the academics because they were not being taught sufficiently in Spanish.
Isn't it interesting to see how two groups of people interpret the same data differently? I would think the low academic performance is better explained by the failure to teach English early, not "premature exiting from Spanish."
I asked Maria how her fourth-graders were performing in English. She said they were doing very poorly, especially compared with the students she got from me. She mentioned specifically that they were ONLY to teach 45 minutes of ESL (English as a Second Language) per day in elementary. That is a SURE DESIGN for disaster! I then said, "Well, at least the students you get can read Spanish." She looked at me a second to see if I was joking and then quipped, "Not really."
The news gets even worse. My friend told me that the district has adopted a new Spanish academic curriculum that they are supposed to teach. They will be teaching all subjects in Spanish with just 45 minutes per day dedicated to ESL in elementary classes. They cannot really be interested in "superior academic performance in English.
Concerning 45 minutes of English instruction: When I taught 2nd grade, I taught pretty closely to 50% of the time in each language. A mere 45 minutes is not enough time to accomplish any substantial English instruction.
I get emotional about this, Donna, because I went through the enormous task of teaching myself Spanish and going through all the long process of becoming certified to teach bilingual classes. I not only learned the language but the finer aspects of the Hispanic culture became my adopted culture. I spent over a decade of a highly productive period of my life in the service of helping these wonderful children.
I thought bilingual education was a civil rights issue to provide equal opportunity to disadvantaged children. I think it a good idea that has been hijacked by unscrupulous educators who are hell bent on their own social agenda no matter how much it hurts the people they claim to be helping.
The critical questions is "What is the advantage of a boy or girl coming out of one of our bilingual elementary classes (45 minutes per day of English) over a boy or girl immigrating to the USA in seventh grade?" I wouldn't be surprised but that the boy or girl from Mexico these days might have received more English instruction in Mexican schools than in our American schools.
Please read “Let’s Get It Right This Time: School Funding Issue” dated 12.14.11 in which I uncovered the damaging influence that bilingual education has done to our Texas public school students: http://libertylinked.com/posts/9091/lets-get-it-right-this-time/Vie...
Donna Garner
=======================
“Krashen Burn”
by Jill Stewart
New Times Los Angeles
May 29, 1998
http://www.angelfire.com/az/english4thechildren/krashen.html
Comment
Comment by Meg from Arizona on August 21, 2012 at 8:23pm Absolutely agree with not enough English instruction in "bilingual" schools. About a year ago 2 sisters came to the math tutoring place where I work. They were both students in an all-Spanish elementary school, Thank God their parents were concerned because they were way below grade level in math and the parents thought math instruction in English would benefit them. Well in a short period of time, having never been taught in English until now, both girls began excelling in their math skills. Not only did our instruction help them in math but spilled over into their other subjects since they were just soaking up all the vocabulary they could get. This school year the older sister entered 7th grade at an all-English instruction school and was placed in the honors math program. Classic example of supposed "bilingual" instruction holding students back instead of helping them to succeed.
I favor teaching a second language in the public schools. But English should be our one and only official language. In my book, "E" is for English, the plan to implement six years of a second language in the public schools is introduced. I am not anti-Spanish. I love Spanish and speak it! But, until Congress passes legislation, making it an official language, it isn't fair to include it as an option, anymore than it is to include German, Chinese or Begali as optional languages!
There are those who would seek to "Balkanize America" in the name of diversity. This is a foolish if not dangerous perception! We must take these people on with fury and zeal! 87% of the nation favors English as the official language in the United States.
Of course, there will never be proper incentive to make people learn English until we "raise the bar." This is the subject of "E" is for English. Please visit www.eisforenglish.net if you are interested.
Comment by Gloria Fontana on August 20, 2012 at 11:21pm Follow the money .... the Teacher's Union is at the bottom of this fiasco ... Bi-lingual teachers get PAID MORE MONEY. That's why the teachers in Oakland, CA tried to get "Ebonics" classified as a legitimate 2nd language so that the teachers could be classified as bilingual teachers. It's criminal what the unions and folks like La Raza are doing to the children. Now, if the law stated that one had to be proficient in English to become a citizen (and therefore to vote ---- grrrrrrrrrrr ---- ballots here in CA in seven languages!!!) then you would see bi-lingual education go the way of the dodo bird in a nanosecond!
Comment by Jamie Lynn Kirk on August 20, 2012 at 1:50pm 
Comment by Torimom on August 20, 2012 at 12:42pm With all due respect ... WAKE UP, everyone. We all know what SHOULD be done, but it isn't being done, and the intention is DELIBERATE.
The "system" we have in place right now has been deliberately designed to FAIL. That is why LaRaza and the NEA insists upon teaching bilingual classes. They don't WANT the ESL kids to get better at English. They don't WANT our kids to be the smartest in the world, like they used to be.
Our country is being undermined from within, and a large part of it is happening within our educational systems (both primary and secondary). I have done a ton of research on the subject, and based upon my research, I can sum it all up for you ... the educational system in the US is DESIGNED to make our kids stupid, and it is no accident. It's been designed to make sure that America is no longer a leader on the world stage. It's been designed to "level the playing field." It's been designed to bring America to its knees.
Both NCLB and Common Core set impossible standards that we can never hope to attain ... classic Cloward-Piven strategy, and classic Saul Alinsky strategy. Common Core is a backdoor implementation of part of the UN's Agenda 21 (UN Convention on the Rights of the Child).
We are in serious trouble, folks.
Comment by Brenda Choate on August 20, 2012 at 9:36am While being able to speak several languages is a perk, every student, regardless of their heritage should be able to speak the language of the country in which they live. There are students, born and raised in the U.S. who do not have a working knowledge of english. American schools are more concerned with being politically correct at the expense of their students. Instead of bilingual and social issues education in elementary education, they should be focused on providing firm basis in english, math, and science. Offering electives in language and other nonessential classes should be introduced after students are proficient in the basic classes.
Comment by David J Edwards on August 20, 2012 at 9:15am Timothy Brink and Shirley A. Smith-Rhodes have the right idea. Mastery of the basic skills and curriculum is vital; paramount. That must not be sacrificed or inhibited by the pursuit of a politically motivated, lesser goal like bilingual studies. Distraction from the essentials of survival leads to incompetence and failure - the lack of survival.
How can anything be more obvious, or dangerous to a society?
Comment by Vern Shotwell on August 20, 2012 at 6:39am Bilingual or multilingual publication of laws remain a problem...English Only!
Why? Because inflections, nuances often do not translate easily or precisely between languages.
Our International, Intercontinental contracts always define the "Language of Contract."
Assuming English, I could assist as well as possible in the native language, immediately, with site personnel.
Otherwise, a highly capable translator would be required. A translator whose word, in actuality, might equal or exceed that of the legal entity being represented! It takes much extra time, and could result in somewhat differing meanings in the texts of record. It just is inefficient...and doesn't work, in the final analysis.
Comment by Timothy Brink on August 19, 2012 at 9:20pm Half the kids now can't do simple math without a calculator let alone learn a second language!!! this should not happen !!
Comment by Torimom on August 19, 2012 at 8:10pm Donna, I am an author for a conservative website, and I am in the process of writing a series of blogs as an investigation into the Communist infiltration of the US educational system (both primary and secondary schools). The last one I wrote has a part in it about LaRaza. Our federal government has given untold MILLIONS of dollars to LaRaza, and among other things (such as promoting bilingual education), they are using our taxpayer dollars to open charter schools in the U.S. that teach Hispanic children to hate white people, as well as promote the takeover of the Southwestern US by the Hispanic race and the Mexican government (its "rightful" owners).
The piece is long, and has many links back to supporting documentation, so I will post a link to it if you would like to read it. The part about LaRaza is about 3/4 of the way down the page.
"The Matrix, Part 4: The Agents"
© 2013 Created by Judson Phillips.
You need to be a member of Tea Party Nation to add comments!
Join Tea Party Nation