Studies have shown
that the more proficient one is in their native language, the easier it is for
them to learn a second language. It has
also been shown that bilingual students meet or outperform the standards of
English only students over time. Entire
school districts have undergone major changes because of this research. The Ysleta school district in Texas was
ranked at the very bottom on state tests of all school districts in the state
five years ago. This all changed after
they instituted a program of bilingual education. Now the Ysleta school district is ranked first among all major
urban school districts on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills. A similar situation occurred in the Calexico
school district in California. This
district instituted programs that allow their students with limited English
proficiency to receive as much as 80% of their instruction in their native
language. Because of this Calexico’s
dropout rate for Hispanic students is nearly half that of the state average. Calexico also has more than 90% of these
students continue on to four-year colleges and universities. With these examples of how much bilingual
education does for students, it makes sense to install some sort of system for
bilingual education the rest of the school districts throughout the nation.
The benefits of
bilingual education do not end there however.
They extend to after school and out into the workforce. Today proficiency in English is not always
enough. There are many jobs available
where having knowledge of a second language can be of great benefit. Many times the use of two languages can give
a worker an advantage over other workers trying to get the same job. With today’s expanding economy and better
and faster communications, the marketplace has become very global and being
bilingual has become a very desirable trait.
The best solution
to this problem is for the individual school districts to draw up programs that
will be tailored to their needs. Each
school district should implement a plan of bilingual education to help improve
their student’s academic work. A system
similar to the one used in the Calexico school district would be a great one to
base their systems on. This is a proven
system that has shown it helps keeps kids in school and improves their academic
progress. This system of bilingual education
gives students the tools they need to become successful in school.