McKenna Greene

ED 291

04/24/2022

Week 3 Assignment

The debate over whether languages other than English should be used to teach students is

ongoing, has many different opinions and views, and continues to be a hurdle the education

system stumbles upon. Many Americans believe that students should be taught in English only;

they fear that other languages will confuse their children, that they will never become fully

American, or that they will not get the full education that other students get in only English.

Those who support bilingual education argue that learning multiple languages actually helps

students understand other cultures and students, helps them become more open minded and

accepting, that two or more languages actually improves learning, and it keeps alive heritage and

culture other than American culture. Politically, the debate is divided, and many voters do not

understand what bilingual instruction is.

When immigrants began moving into more of the US, “Political activists began pressing

the melting pot ideology, forming groups such as English Only and U.S. English. Many of them

also advocated restricting or banning immigration. Throughout the '80s and '90s, more than 20

states made English their official language,” (Oregonian Article). In reality, Americans are really

just scared of other languages being taught because they want assimilation of American culture.

Americans don’t like when they are the minority, when they don’t understand another language

being spoken, and aren’t a part of traditions of other cultures– so to fix this, they try to get rid of

all other cultures– the main way that they can do this is by having English only instruction in

schools. Xenophobia is real for a lot of Americans, and people can use the use of language to
control their fears. By taking away other languages in American schools, students will lose their

ability to speak their home languages, talk to family members who don’t know English, and

eventually forget traditions and customs specific to their nationality (other than American).

“So why is the anti-immigrant movement introducing “English as the official language”

initiatives? Because these initiatives incite fear of immigrants and generate popular support for

broader measures to exclude immigrants. They can also restrict non-English speakers’ access to

government services, and even prevent government agencies from reaching out to non-English

speaking communities,” (Recent Ballot Measure). I believe this quote is something that voters in

America (especially Oregon) should think about when making their opinion on bilingual/English

only education. What is the push for English only instruction? To exclude others who aren’t

lucky enough to be born and raised in America, or who’s second language is English, and they

might not be proficient. As well as the fact that, “Overall, the statistics show that the law - hailed

as a quicker way to teach students English - has not helped them gain ground on their English-

speaking peers, and in many cases may have left them even further behind,” (Boston Globe).

Although the debate to have only English instruction in school fights the fact that students will

learn English quicker and easier than in a bilingual program, ELL students actually fall behind

their peers who only speak English.

Lastly, “Numerous studies have reported that, for limited-English-proficient (LEP)

students, cultivating skills in the native tongue leads to superior academic achievement over the

long term,” (e.g., Portes and Hao, 1998). Being taught in another language also helps students

with their identity views, family values, career advantages, and feeling valid in your culture. It

can be easy to think that everybody in America should know and learn English, but there are

hundreds of other languages spoken just in Oregon. Why should we take those languages away
from others? Because of this research, I now know how important it is to research new laws

going into place so that we as voters can vote ethically and really see what the idea proposes. I

also now know how important it is that we keep other cultures and languages alive in Oregon by

having other languages be taught in schools.

 References:

Boston students struggle with English-only rule, many non-natives quit the system. James Vaznis

(2009).

Heritage languages- Crawford

Oregonian Article: Ballot Measure 58

Recent Ballot Measure initiative in Oregon