Perhaps the biggest hurdle we face going into the public school system is the lack of bilingualism for student growth. Jose does not speak any Spanish at school and my site classroom does not have any Spanish books, posters, etc. Study after study proves that bilingual education is the most beneficial way of learning a new language as it strengthens the home language. Without a strong first language, it is harder to grasp a strong second language. The public school system is full immersion and assimilation into the new language. Since I cannot change public schools to bilingual schools, I can incorporate books, posters, and other resources in languages to foster all my ELLs. They can do the calendar routine with the class in their home language and teach us other vocabulary throughout the semester. We need to start using the second language to our class' benefit instead of hiding it.
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CategoriesAuthorHi I'm Felicia, a credential student at SSU. Archives |