Laws on Bilingual Education

LAWS ON BILINGUAL EDUCATION

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Educational Opportunity Act of 1974 (EEOA) established minimum standards for the education of LEP students in public schools. Title VI prohibited discrimination by schools on the basis of race, color, sex, or national origin. The EEOA declared that no state could deny educational opportunities to any student because of language barriers.

1. CONTROVERSY OVER BILINGUAL EDUCATION

Debate about bilingual education centers on whether it is legitimate for LEP students to receive a substantial amount of their instruction in their native language rather than in English. Supporters of bilingual instruction believe that students should gain confidence in using their native language before being introduced to the English curriculum. They believe that competency in one’s native language provides important cognitive and social foundations for second language learning and academic learning in general.

Opponents of bilingual education believe that if LEP students are taught English at an early stage in their education, they will gain an advantage in both learning and language. Opponents advocate minimal use of the minority student’s native language and introduction to the English curriculum at the onset of the student’s schooling experience.

During the 1980s, opposition to bilingual education was fueled by a political movement that became known as “English Only.” Support for this movement came from cultural conservatives who argued that social cohesion and the dissemination of a shared system of values required that citizens use a common language.