Bilingual Education: a Life-Long Advantage
Bili
Bilingual Education: A Life-Long Advantage
Alexa Adams
It is concerning to see the U.S. continue to academically fall behind countries like China and Finland. The Program for International Student Assessment or PISA, is an international standardized test taken by 15 year-olds in developing countries. The U.S.‘s Secretary of State, Arne Duncan (2010), was disappointed in the results, “The United States came in 23rd or 24th in most subjects. We can quibble, or we can face the brutal truth that we’re being out-educated,” (paragraph 10). Requiring United States schools to teach students a second language should be a mandate, especially since students in many countries of the developed world are ahead of us academically. This academic separation is occurring because other countries are making an effort to require students to be fluent in more than one language. It would be extremely beneficial for the U.S. to require it’s educational system to teach students a second language. Acquiring the skill of bilingualism will greatly increase students’ cognitive skills.
Understanding Bilingualism It is necessary to be aware of the difference between a foreign language and a second language. A foreign language is any language spoken in a country other than it’s official language, or one that is learned mainly with intentions of cultural insight. A second language, however, is one which is learned fluently after already acquiring a native or mother tongue. With a second language one becomes immersed into the culture. A second language is what would be taught in schools when striving for bilingualism of students. The goal would be that students could effectively communicate in at least two languages -- making them bilingual. This difference is important to note because being bilingual produces more educational benefits than studying a foreign language would. Although foreign language may build some cognitive skill, a second language continuously
Bilingual Education: A Life-Long Advantage
Alexa Adams
It is concerning to see the U.S. continue to academically fall behind countries like China and Finland. The Program for International Student Assessment or PISA, is an international standardized test taken by 15 year-olds in developing countries. The U.S.‘s Secretary of State, Arne Duncan (2010), was disappointed in the results, “The United States came in 23rd or 24th in most subjects. We can quibble, or we can face the brutal truth that we’re being out-educated,” (paragraph 10). Requiring United States schools to teach students a second language should be a mandate, especially since students in many countries of the developed world are ahead of us academically. This academic separation is occurring because other countries are making an effort to require students to be fluent in more than one language. It would be extremely beneficial for the U.S. to require it’s educational system to teach students a second language. Acquiring the skill of bilingualism will greatly increase students’ cognitive skills.
Understanding Bilingualism It is necessary to be aware of the difference between a foreign language and a second language. A foreign language is any language spoken in a country other than it’s official language, or one that is learned mainly with intentions of cultural insight. A second language, however, is one which is learned fluently after already acquiring a native or mother tongue. With a second language one becomes immersed into the culture. A second language is what would be taught in schools when striving for bilingualism of students. The goal would be that students could effectively communicate in at least two languages -- making them bilingual. This difference is important to note because being bilingual produces more educational benefits than studying a foreign language would. Although foreign language may build some cognitive skill, a second language continuously
References: Abudarham, S. (1998). ‘Bilinguality’ in dual language schoolchildren and its implications. Language & Communication Disorders. 33, 494-499. Barratt-Pugh, C. & Rohl, M. (2001). Learning in two languages: A bilingual program in Western Australia. Reading Teacher. Dillon, S. (2010). Top test scores from Shanghai stun educators. The New York Times. Haenni Hoti, A., Heinzmann, S., Müller, M., Oliveira, M., Wicki, W., and Werlen, E. (2011). Introducing a second foreign language in Swiss primary schools effect of L2 listening and reading skills on L3 acquisition. International Journal of Multilingualism. 8(2), 98-116. Johnson, E. (2010). Bilingualism. In Encyclopedia of American Studies. Retrieved from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/jhueas/bilingualism Myers-Scotton, C. (2000). Why Bilingualism Matters. American Speech. 290-292. Salais, L. (2009). Saying "Adios" to Spanglish. Language Awareness. 545-47. Stewart, J. (2005). Foreign language study in elementary schools: benefits and implications for achievement in reading and math. Early Child Education Journal. 33(1), 11-16. Zelasko, N. (2003). Bilingual education. Encyclopedia of Education. 1(2), 175-181.