#1 There are many things that I would like to do in my future classroom that I did not see while I was in school. However, the educational reform that I would be most excited about would affect far more than just the English classrooms! In my ideal world, literacy/language arts wouldn’t just cover English, but schools would be bilingual. I know that this is a huge, time-consuming, expensive jump forward, but it is one that I hope to see expand nonetheless. Although our texts barely covered teaching ELL’s, they did seem quite supportive, “We are advocates of the bilingual instruction, which offers instruction in both English and the students’ native language, and are strongly opposed to the ‘English only’ movement, which would limit bilingual education and reduce acceptance of multilingualism in society” (Tchudi & Tchudi, 1999, p. 129). (Fun fact: Iowa is a English only state).
In these bilingual schools, much like a few in Canada, students are in mixed classrooms from the very beginning of their school careers where the learn English and another …show more content…
Although it would be a huge leap forward when it comes to support and recognition that their native language holds value, the effect would be nation wide. The economy could benefit on the global market since American businesses will be able to have wider and more clear communication with other nations. Our workers would be more educated since research has proven that being bilingual can not only make you smarter but also “can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills not related to language and even shielding against dementia in old age” (Bhattacharjee, 2012). Many issues that are already pushing our country to change education policies could be drastically improved by bilingualism. Therefore, although it is extreme and idealistic, I think that is should be pursued far more vigorously that is has ever
In these bilingual schools, much like a few in Canada, students are in mixed classrooms from the very beginning of their school careers where the learn English and another …show more content…
Although it would be a huge leap forward when it comes to support and recognition that their native language holds value, the effect would be nation wide. The economy could benefit on the global market since American businesses will be able to have wider and more clear communication with other nations. Our workers would be more educated since research has proven that being bilingual can not only make you smarter but also “can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills not related to language and even shielding against dementia in old age” (Bhattacharjee, 2012). Many issues that are already pushing our country to change education policies could be drastically improved by bilingualism. Therefore, although it is extreme and idealistic, I think that is should be pursued far more vigorously that is has ever