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Congress Rejects Bilingual Proposal
Congress rejected a proposal to make the US officially bilingual (English and German) -
Ohio Passes Law Allowing Bilingual Education
Ohio passes the first law to officially allow Bilingual Education, the law permitted German-English instruction upon request of the parent, and Cincinnati’s first bilingual school was founded (large German population) -
Louisiana passes a law allowing French-English instruction
Louisiana passes a law allowing French-English instruction -
New Mexico passes a law permitting Spanish instruction
New Mexico passes a law recognizing and permitting Spanish instruction in public elementary schools -
Bennett Act (Wisconsin) and Edwards Act (Illinois) Passed
Bennett Act (Wisconsin) and Edwards Act (Illinois): Children ages 8-14 in both public and private schools must be instructed in English in reading, writing, arithmetic, and American history -
Nationality Act
Nationality Act: Congress’ first federal language law which required that all immigrants seeking naturalization speak English (this meant to solve the Bilingual Education issue) -
By 1923, 34 states had laws mandating English-only instruction
By 1923, 34 states had laws mandating English-only instruction -
National Defense Education Act
National Defense Education Act (covered in class last week): Act providing aid to public and private schools to improve education in the sciences, math, and foreign languages – and provided aid to English as a Second Language programs -
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA): The act provided funding for what were considered “essential areas” for children in public education and bilingual education received funding -
Bilingual Education Act
Bilingual Education Act: The act mandated that schools provide Bilingual Education programs (passed on the cusp of the Civil Rights movement and during an era of rising immigration) – act provided federal funding for native-language instruction (first time U.S. Congress endorsed funding for Bilingual Education) – in the first year, the act provided funding for 76 Bilingual Education programs and served students speaking 14 different languages -
Lau vs. Nichols
Lau vs. Nichols: A school district receiving federal aid must provide special instruction for non-English speaking students whose education is severely hampered by the language barrier. -
Civil Rights Language Minority Regulations
Civil Rights Language Minority Regulations 1980 - Regulations including four basic components: Identification, assessment, services and exit - Requirement that bilingual instruction be given by qualified teachers -
Castaneda v. Pickard
Castaneda v. Pickard: the court decision established a three-part assessment for determining how bilingual education programs would be held accountable: (1) The bilingual education program must be “based on sound educational theory,” (2) the program must be “implemented effectively with resources for personnel, instructional materials, and space,” and (3) after a trial period, the program must be proven effective in overcoming language barriers/handicaps. -
Amendment to the Bilingual Education Act of 1968
Amendment to the Bilingual Education Act of 1968: Amended the act, offering Title VII programs an option of using English-only instruction -
Oakland, CA School Board "Ebonics" Resolution
An Oakland, CA school board passes a resolution legitimizing “ebonics” (“African American Vernacular English – preferred linguistic term) and mandated instruction in this vernacular, creating a national controversy and debate -
Proposition 227
Proposition 227 (California): Idea was to get students who do not speak English to speak English as quickly as possible using short-term immersion classes – the results have not been promising -
No Child Left Behind
No Child Left Behind: Originally ESEA of 1965 - gives parents an option to enroll students in a 3 year Bilingual Education program, but after 3 years English-only learning must begin regardless of the student’s level of English language competence -
Santorum says Puerto Rico should adopt English as official language
March, 2012: Rep. Pres. Candidate Rick Santorum says Puerto Rico (Spanish speaking territory) should adopt English as official language as a condition of statehood causing controversy
