Additive Bilingualism

In response to my colleague, I have been looking into research as to why some students have the advantage of being exposed to both English and Spanish through their parents and teachers, yet are refusing to practice their native language at home. Additive bilingualism refers to creating “an environment in which the addition of a second language and culture does not replace the first language and culture; rather, the first language/culture are promoted and developed” (Bilingual/Bicultural Family Network). This idea really stuck out for me and I think it is exactly the kind of mindset that we need to better adopt in the American classroom, especially in diverse settings.

http://www.multicsd.org/doku.php?id=frequently_used_terminology

The reason I became interested in bilingualism in education was due to an experience I had at my internship in which a student was scolded for speaking in his native tongue. The more I read about bilingualism in the American school system, the more adamant I become about this notion of additive bilingualism and the fact that there is no need to outwardly and offensively dismiss a non-English language in the classroom. Actively depriving a student of his or her native language in the classroom is detrimental to academic development as well an entire way of life. Thinking back to my Linguistics class, Whorf, a linguist, suggested that a person’s language determines their worldview (Whorf, 1940). By undermining and blatantly prohibiting the use of a minority language in the classroom, this would mean schools are encouraging the loss of a language and therefore, according to Whorf, the loss of an entire worldview.

If schools begin to better encourage diversity in the classroom, whether linguistically, culturally, or both, I believe that there will be a huge shift in mindset among both parents and students. Students will no longer feel the need to choose one language or another and will begin to understand the importance and huge advantage they have being bilingual. Parents who resent the English-only school systems (this insight is based on past interviews) will begin to feel more comfortable getting involved in their child’s education and will feel less threatened and offended. While CABE’s Inspire Campaign offers a preliminary approach to encouraging evolvement, there needs to be more initiatives following these same steps.

 

 

Sources:

“Bilingual/Bicultural Family Network.” Bilingual/Bicultural Family Network. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://www.biculturalfamily.org/ofthedaysItem.php?type=word&gt;.

Whorf, B. L. (1940): ‘Science and Linguistics’, Technology Review 42(6): 229-31, 247-8. Also in B. L. Whorf (1956): Language, Thought and Reality (ed. J. B. Carroll). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Parent and Teacher Collaboration

Identifying ways to improve the success of ELLs is crucial, especially because of the huge achievement gaps among ELLs and native English speaking students. ELLs are faced with an enormous task in America to learn all of the content that other students are learning while, at the same time, also being responsible for mastering the English language. Most ELLs have the odds stacked against them from the very beginning due to socioeconomic factors coupled with language barriers. If standardized testing scores aren’t high enough, this often leads to budget cuts and lack of funding which, in turn, leads to less resources- and the cycle continues.

With California schools having such a high population of language minority students, this issue is exasperated. In fact, “From 2004-2005 in California, 42% of public school students fit the broad definition of linguistic minority and 25% were classified as English learners. Further, 78% of language minority students and 85% of English learners in California speak Spanish” (Gandara, 2006). Pinpointing areas to support ELLs is key to their present and future academic success. This support must come from teachers AND parents.

http://www.good.is/post/parents-empowered-to-take-over-schools/

Projects like the Inspire Campaign need to have a clear agenda and objective to encourage California schools to create a safe and welcoming environment for students AND parents so as to foster more parent/teacher meetings and interactions. Parents must feel safe coming to the school and there should be incentives to do so. During my internship at an international high school, teachers throughout the school had their students plan, organize and promote a “cultural night.”  Parents and the surrounding community were invited to come to the school to see artistic creations that the students were showcasing which were representative of their heritage and cultural background. The event was a huge success because of the diversity of the event and the welcoming atmosphere of the school. After talking to many of the parents, they felt as though they were more “in tune” with what was happening in the school and in their child’s education, and many set up subsequent teacher conferences to talk more about their child’s academic journey.

I believe that bringing people together around a common theme or through a community event can have a profound impact in creating a sense of security and belonging, which may not otherwise exist. This case was a huge success and began to break down barriers between “minority language” parents and this (technically) English-only high school.

By funding, or even just encouraging California schools to hold more community based events, I think there would be a huge increase in parent involvement and collaboration with teachers and staff.

 

 

 

 

Sources:

Gandara, P. and Russell Rumberger. (2006). Resource needs for California’s English Learners. Santa Barbara, CA: UC Linguistic Minority Research Institute.

The Importance of Organizations Like CABE

I think it is extremely important to examine the role of the parents in shaping the literacy development of an ELL child. Having a parent be involved and invested in a child’s learning can certainly help both the student and the parent in multiple ways. Literacy is more than reading and writing, and involves an understanding of culture and how people relate to one another. This realization and understanding can, and should, be done in cooperation with the parents or another guardian. However, it is often difficult for parents, immigrant or American born, to deeply invest in a child’s educational journey. This can be due to several reasons, including working multiple jobs, and isn’t limited to immigrant parents.

http://www.bilingualeducation.org/conferences.php

There is sometimes a disconnect between students and their parents when the child becomes integrated into “American culture,” while the parents may still encourage the native culture and native language to be used at home. This could lead to tension between parent and child. Programs like CABE’s Inspire Campaign aim to abolish or prevent this tension by teaching parents about the U.S school system and the expectations of parents in a student’s development.

I came across a foundation in my research called the Foundation for Educational Choice. Basically, their ideology revolves around this idea that where you live shouldn’t determine the quality of your child’s public education. They strive to give parents and children the right to choose which school the student will attend, regardless of where they were born or where they currently reside. This pro-choice approach has supposedly led to more racially and ethnically integrated schools by breaking down “neighborhood barriers” and promoting wholesome and quality education to all students.

Another initiative, the Intergenerational Literacy Project, offers a great concept similar to CABE’s Inspire Campaign. It is sometimes the case that parents are unable or hesitant to take part in their child’s education and learning development because of cultural reasons. There are often language barriers preventing the parents from helping their child in English, as I have mentioned in previous posts. ILP and CABE are both aimed at diminishing this barrier and supporting parents by teaching English and providing a collaborative effort with their children. CABE and Boston University are in perfect locations to network and start a nationwide movement toward promoting more adequate support for immigrant parents, bilingual students, and successful collaboration between both.

A Comprehensive Approach

I’ve been thinking a lot about the importance of successfully educating our bilingual youth- especially in places like New York and California (where CABE is focused).

I was initially attracted to CABE’s Inspire Campaign because of its unique focus on the impact and influence of parents on a bilingual student’s success. It is, however, not only up to the parents to foster this potential and growth throughout primary education. While CABE certainly has  a strong network of affiliate groups, business partnerships and leverage in shaping policy decisions, it seems as though there is a lack of focus on the personal experience and preference of the bilingual student (See “About CABE“).

In a previous post, I mentioned that my undergraduate thesis consisted of interviews with Dominican students in an English-only classroom setting. Before conducting my research, my hypothesis was that an English-only curriculum would leave these native Spanish speaking students feeling ashamed and their culture undermined. However, I found quite the opposite. Since the majority of the students in this school were, in fact, Dominican, they felt a sense of security and belonging despite the English-only policies. I found that the environment and demographics of a school strongly influenced the sense of pride, or lack thereof, among the native Spanish speakers.

California schools are heavily populated with Spanish speaking students, among other minority groups. However, this is not to say that my findings and conclusions apply to all native Spanish speaking populations in a given school. Since some parents, according to my colleague,  are noticing a resistance by their children to use or learn their native Spanish language, it seems as though this could also be a product of the school environment which they are attending.

http://www.bilingualeducation.org

There needs to be a comprehensive approach to fostering this incredibly advantageous asset of bilingualism by offering equal and simultaneous support to both parents and students, especially in areas with high populations of Spanish speakers.

Organizations like CABE and the Inspire Campaign should partner with, or create, groups that specifically focus on support for bilingual students throughout their educational journeys. By approaching bilingualism from both ends and recognizing the necessary collaboration and support needed for parents and students, success in bilingualism can only flourish.

Parents Helping Parents

I came across an informative video sponsored by Reading and Beyond that highlights ways in which parents can effectively get involved in their child’s education. This video is especially helpful because it offers first hand experiences of native Spanish speaking parents who were interested in having a stronger role in their child’s educational experience. Suggestions range from having conversations with their child about the school day, to attending workshops sponsored by the school, to getting involved in the board of education.

While all of this advice is certainly helpful for Spanish speaking parents and follows the mission of the CABE Inspire Campaign, my colleague brought up an interesting “reverse effect” phenomenon in which children are refusing to practice their native language despite strong parent involvement and encouragement.

http://www.demockratees.com/

This could be due to a lack of willingness, support or commitment by schools across the country, or could be a result of in-school pressures to “fit in” with the English only speakers etc. There are numerous possibilities as to why cases like this may come up, but surely there are also ways to address these obstacles.

While resistance or hesitation by children to practice their native language is not an issue specifically addressed by CABE’s Inspire Campaign, the organization does hold workshops which could potentially assist parents in their efforts to promote both languages in school and at home.

There are a number of workshops designed to address issues ranging  from school accountability, to open healthy lines of parent/student communication. These workshop modules are very well organized and comprehensive, outlining clear objectives, key concepts and outcomes.

Crowd Funding for Bilingual Parent Involvement

In a Global Civil Society class at New York University this past week, my colleagues and I were fortunate enough to hear from two of the founders/CEOs of a crowd funding organization that is pioneering a new field to fund creative, small project initiatives. According to the founders of this organization, crowd funding is an event “that harnesses a network of supporters for funds, awareness and feedback” (Meece, 2012).

2002 Mount Holyoke College, Margaret Scott

Upon listening to this presentation by the RocketHub founders, one of three major crowd funding organizations, I couldn’t help but think of ways in which the CABE Inspire Campaign could utilize this platform for innovative parent outreach techniques.

Based on interviews during my undergraduate career, two major obstacles hindering the involvement of many Hispanic parents in their bilingual child’s education are:

1. Language barriers between parents and staff

2. A fear of legal status and citizenship related concerns

RocketHub could be the perfect platform for teachers and administrators in California schools to to raise money and create resources to better harness parent involvement. For example, a project could be funded to create picture books of what students are doing on a daily basis to be distributed to parents.

Since parent/teacher conferences are mostly held to discuss a student’s progress and allow parents to get a feel for what is happening in the classroom, these books could do the same thing but in a less intimidating way- with pictures, rather than words. Students could then go home and narrate the books to their parents in their native language so as to foster parent involvement and interest in classroom activities and progress. By getting parents interested and involved, it is likely to establish a gradual comfortability for them in the school despite possible citizenship concerns.

 

 

References:

Meece, Brian, and Alon Hillel-Tuch. “RocketHub.” New York University, New York. 19 Mar. 2012. Speech.