The Advantages of Bilingual Education Essay Example

Bilingual Education in the United States can be defined as “a program that seeks to permit non-English speaking children (many from lower-class homes) to use their ‘family language’ as the language of school” (Rodriguez 256). In other words, it is a method of education that suggests that a child whose native language is not English should learn English in institutions while being instructed in classes in his or her home language as well. This form of teaching has been a strong point of controversy in the United States for a very long time, and it is still debated today. On one side, there are brilliant scholars and educators who conclude that implementing a child’s home language in his or her school might ultimately be harmful to the child who learns under these conditions. On the other hand, various psychologists and pediatricians might suggest that instruction under a child’s native language is good and has certain qualities that provide children with a better understanding of the knowledge in the classroom. In this instance, the latter case is clearly supported by well grounded points; bilingual education is very efficient and should certainly be taught in schools in the United States. Throughout various human characteristics as well as in society, the evidence to support this viewpoint is pervasive. Firstly, it is certain that any child living in the United States absolutely “should be reminded of his difference from others in mass society, of his ‘heritage’,” as the antagonists of Richard Rodriguez’s “Aria” would describe it (264). Not to perform such necessary obligations is to deny where a person came from, something that should be avoided at all costs. Of course, there are some opponents of these ideas who suggest that by adhering to one’s language and culture, the minority-language speaker resists assimilation and avoids learning the dominant language, ultimately leading to a negative attitude towards learning. However,