Why Bilingual Education?

WHY BILINGUAL EDUCATION?

Over the course of the last ten months, quite a few people have asked me what the reason for bilingual education is. Shouldn't our government be looking for ways to assimilate immigrants instead of coddling them by giving them free education in their own language?

I understand the concern of all these people, but in fact I believe that offering bilingual education is the smartest thing we can do to advance Texas.

According to census data, the percentage of people in Texas who did not speak English at home between 2007 and 2011 was a whopping 34.4%, and it is growing rapidly. And let's face it, once they have established themselves, it is unlikely that they will leave. On a separate note, it is also known that, in general terms, the education in the state is not where we would want it to be. With these two facts in mind, one can figure that we need to help all those non-English speakers get educated to further the competitiveness of Texas in the marketplace. 

It has been proven by different studies that the "sink or swim" approach does not work in education. Putting non-English speakers in an English-speaking classroom will make them fall behind in their education, and this learning gap can be extremely difficult to overcome. 

Enter Bilingual Education. There are various models of Bilingual Ed in existence, but in each of them students are taught in both English and the foreign language. That way, we ensure that the student understands the educational content while learning the language. It has been observed that, by the time a non-English speaking student who started her schooling in a dual language class graduates elementary school, she has virtually the same language and content skills as native speakers. 

In addition, and particularly in schools that apply the two-way approach (native and non-English speakers in the same class), native English speakers get the benefit of acquiring a second language in a structured environment, which gives them an edge when they enter the workforce. It is also noteworthy to mention that, according to some scholars, bilingualism (or multilingualism) enhances brain function and enriches lives by providing opportunities to experiences not available otherwise.

In summary, Texas does what is in its best interest to increase its economic and cultural advantage by ensuring that as many Texans as possible are provided with a high-quality education, whether they acquire the language at home or at school.