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Part 3: 1950-1980 (Separate and Unequal)

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        Bilingual education initially started in the United States because of the rise in immigration. And among the immigrants would be children that needed to be enrolled in the public school system in order to obtain an education. The majority of those children, regardless of them being born in the US or abroad, were raised in a home where a language other than English was primarily spoken. So when it came time to go to class and learn from the teacher, there was an obstacle/barrier in regards to communication because they didn’t speak the same language; so the concept of providing bilingual education to these students started. It also has to do with trying to force these children to assimilate to the American way, in terms of speaking and mannerisms. It’s like they were trying to make it a negative thing that these kids spoke anything other than English like it made them somehow less American. The school/teachers did this by punishing the kids for speaking in the...
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Part 2 - 1900-1950: As American as Public School

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  A sentence that stuck out to me was “The critics complained that the life adjusters had watered down the curriculum for all students, not just the laggard few.” Page 69      In this excerpt, the critics of the ‘life adjustment education program’ expressed their dislike for the program and how it’s negatively impacting the students. The reason I chose this part from the text is that I personally noticed this happening in schools I had attended in the past, mainly in middle school and high school. I attended a bilingual school, where we received an education on par with that of a public school, but we just added the second language class as an essential course just like English literature. Over the years, the curriculum for this class became easier/simpler. The reasoning behind it was because they believed students wouldn’t really need to learn this language as intricately or fully and that the basics would need to be enough. Also because the students just did...
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Literacy Autobiography

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            Being raised by my parents, who are immigrants that had to flee their home country as a means to attain a better future, I was made aware of the importance of education and literacy from a young age. I saw what I would consider both sides of the spectrum (of literacy/illiteracy). My parents had both been able to receive a formal education. My father had gotten his Master’s degree in the ‘80s and worked as an educator and my mother completed her CDA certification later on in her life and now works as an early childhood educator. On the opposite end of the spectrum, I personally know of a few people that cannot read or write, because they never had access or opportunity in their country to learn; due to different life circumstances, like social class, poverty, social stigma, etc. I mention my parents because they have demonstrated through their own unique experiences why education is crucial and essential to my success and future. One of the ...
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