Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Roles
· E
nglish Only
o M
egan Houlihan
o K
atie Roughan
· B
ilingual Education
o A
lex Altier
o C
hristina Rombousek
· M
oderator
o S
arah McCormick
Bilingual Education
· P
ros
o S
tays in the child’s comfort zone
o Validates their culture and helps to make them feel like it’s an adjustment and
not as though we are trying to change something about them (their language)
o C
an focus on learning content rather than learning a new language
· C
ons
o T
akes longer for the child to become fluent in English
o C
ould potentially segregate the English learner from their peers
o M
ore costly and unqualified teachers
· K
ey Points
· P
ros
o H
elps with classroom management
o H
elps them learn real life English, not just academic vocabulary in English
o More cost efficient for schools because a translator and/or additional teacher
would not be required
· C
ons
o O
utside of the child’s comfort zone
o S
trips them of their culture
o Focuses on learning a new language rather than the student learning the
education content
· K
ey Points
● Children are more likely to intermingle with each other leading to a well rounded
perspectives (education.findlaw)
● English-only instruction helps students to learn English more effectively than
bilingual education programs. (education.findlaw)
● More cost effective for the school district
Cross-Examination Questions
· E
nglish Only question for Bilingual Education
● Does letting students still speak their native language fully allow them to become
proficient in English?
● sIs the cost of a bilingual education worth it? Is there specific evidence that
shows a bilingual education is that much more efficient than English Only
approach?
● How do you know the teacher(s) are properly qualified to teach English
Language Learners?
· B
ilingual Education question for English Only
● How exactly does using an English Only approach help improve classroom
management?
● Is there evidence of students having higher success rates in a [restrictive] English
only environment?
● How does an English only education incorporate their (an English language
learner’s) culture into their learning/education? How would this address the
multicultural approach?
Closing Argument
Bilingual Education
● Allows students to be culturally aware and comfortable in their educational environment.
● Opens up career opportunities in the future
● The student(s) can focus on the academic content and not learning a new language
English Only
● Allows teachers to manage his or her classroom more efficiently.
● Allow schools to spend their money in ways that can benefit all of the students.
● Helps students assimilate into a predominantly english society.