Summary Notes On The Current Problems in Bilingual Education
Summary Notes On The Current Problems in Bilingual Education
Summary Notes On The Current Problems in Bilingual Education
Students with the least oral language skills spend the most time in desk
oriented, non-verbal instructional activity.
Students with the most oral language skills spend the most time in verbal
instructional activities.
When asked what is the most pressing need of these students, teachers will
invariably respond, “Lack of oral language development.”
Extensive premature exiting from bilingual programs also results from the
use of a student’s facility with the English language in a social context rather
than English language facility in an academic context.
The length of time necessary in a bilingual program will vary from student to
student, but the fact that English speaking children spend four or five years
in English language acquisition in the home before facing academic tasks in
school should be recognized.
The same holds true for supplemental and reference materials. Aside from
basic reading materials and basic arithmetic, very little is commercially
available in support of bilingual education, especially for secondary students.
For the past twenty-five years, a significant part of a bilingual teacher’s time
has been spent scrounging for appropriate instructional materials in addition
to the normal hours teachers spend in instructional and other duties.
5. Lack of Bilingual Teacher Training
Although there has been such improvement in the pre-service and in-
service training of bilingual education personnel, needs assessment in
bilingual education still points to teacher training as a critical need.
Initial efforts were constrained, and are still constrained, by the lack of a
large pool of trained teachers competent in the student’s native language
and a virtual void of instructional materials in languages other than
English.
9. Low Expectations
https://www.idra.org/resource-center/current-problems-in-bilingual-education-
part-i/
https://www.idra.org/resource-center/current-problems-in-bilingual-education-
part-ii/