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Meyer v. Nebraska
This Supreme Court case states that, "restricting foreign-language education violated the Due Process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment." This case was the first law that established that states have the authority to choose the language of instruction in public schools. This law also will lead to more court cases and laws that bring bilingualism to the forefront of ESL education programs. -
Farrington v. Tokushige
This case gave parents the right to continue organizing after school and weekend heritage classes. Although some schools were not allowing bilingual education at this time, the Supreme Court believes that students have the right to education of their primary language. This court case made multilingualism to continue across all students outside of school. Soon, it will lead to bilingualism in our schools. -
Brown v. Board of Education
English Language Learners cannot be fully separated from other students throughout their education under the guise of helping them learn English. States are responsible for providing students with "equal educational opportunities." This case stopped segregation of learners and made sure that all students could learn in an equitable way. Without this law, there would not be high-quality bilingual programs. -
ESEA- The Elementary & Secondary Education Act
This national education law aims to improve educational equity for students from lower-income families by providing federal funds to school districts serving poor students. This law makes sure that all students, schools, and communities are protected and funded. This is the leading Education Act that has led to No Child Left Behind and the Every Student Succeeds Act. -
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Title VII- The Bilingual Education Act
This act provided grants to school districts and other eligible entities through a competitive grant process. This act didn't only supply funds, it also gave English Language Learners the right to be in a classroom environment that predominantly speaks English. -
Equal Educational Opportunities Act
"No state shall deny educational opportunities to an individual on account of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin." All students are in our care to learn. This law made sure that all students gain an equitable learning environment without prejudice. -
Lau v. Nichols
Chinese American students in San Francisco were placed in mainstream classrooms despite their lack of proficiency in English and left to sink or swim. This law proved that students should not be providing the same things as their peers. All students need and deserve a MEANINGFUL education. -
Castaneda v. Pickard
This case led to a three-pronged test to determine whether schools are taking "appropriate action" to address the needs of English Language Learners as required by the Equal Educational Opportunities Act. This law made sure that teaching is based on sound educational theory, implemented with resources and personnel, and evaluated for effectiveness. These three criteria have lead to finding shortcomings or adequacy of English as a Second Language Programs. -
Plyler v. Doe
Supreme Court case that found that withholding from local school districts any state funds for the education of children who were not "legally admitted" into the United States, and which authorizes local school districts to deny enrollment to such children, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This law made sure that all students in the United States had a right to an education and were not denied their right to the American Dream. -
Gomez v. Illinois State Board of Education
This Law says that school districts have a responsibility to serve ELL students and cannot allow children to just sit in classrooms where they cannot understand instruction. This law rectified problems with inadequate programs and made changes for English Language Learners. -
California Proposition 227
One of three propositions led to place severe restrictions on bilingual education programs. These initiatives were misleading and had no valid impact on ESL students. This bill showed states that bilingual education should not have been replaced and showed that it should be maintained and structured to help English Language Learners reach English Proficiency. -
Flores v. Arizona
This law showed that Castenada standard mandates had shortcomings. This led to decisions to uphold policies and programs of highly questionable quality. Without this law, districts, states, and the federal government would not be able to see which policies and programs needed to be fixed or upheld. -
Arizona Proposition 203
One of three propositions led to place severe restrictions on bilingual education programs. These initiatives were misleading and had no valid impact on ESL students. This bill showed states that bilingual education should not have been replaced and showed that it should be maintained and structured to help English Language Learners reach English Proficiency. -
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Title III
Title III provides formula grants to state education agencies and district agencies. This program has two requirements: teach English and academic content. Title III has put in place effective ways to show how schools are eligible for funds and has given two standards on how to make sure that all English Language Learners needs are met. The sole focus of Title III is English! -
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No Child Left Behind
No Child Left Behind broke apart the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. It took out bilingual education and replaced title VII with Title I and Title III. This new law gives language instruction for limited English proficient and immigrant students and measures students adequate yearly progress using standardized tests. This law also gave new ways to improve the achievement of the socioeconomically disadvantaged population. -
ESEA Flexibility
States could be granted flexibility from the Title I accountability requirements of No Child Left Behind. This flexibility act allowed schools to propose alternative school reform initiatives. This flexibility gave schools more time to reach their demographics needs and led to a differentiated approach to teaching English Learners. -
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Every Student Succeeds Act
This Act emphasizes the accountability for federal funds. This act also allows us to set goals and consequences for schools that don't reach their goals. This act emphasizes the need for student academic growth. We need to pay attention to our students as a whole. We cannot base students' English proficiency based off of their end of the year test scores. It is our job to see how a student grows from day to day, month by month. Not Year by Year.
