Bilingual: Sophia Marlow English Only: Emily MacMillan Moderator: Kayla Masterson

Three key points for opening of bilingual education

● Intellect and motivation
○ Bilinguals students often have the intellect and motivation to take on a
complicated school assignment, and maintains the relative balance
between two languages
● Interest of ell students
○ The bilingual education approach to teaching is in the best interest of
English language learners. Not only is this teaching method a more
effective way for ELLs, but they also deserve to be taught in the native
language, they should not have to give up their native language in order to
learn English.
● Working memories
○ Bilinguals usually have stronger working memories and attention spans.
These skills alone can lead to both academic and behavioral gains as well
as a stronger learning environment
■ https://ateze.medium.com/bilingual-education-for-english-language-
learners-55d60fe1a3f7

Benefits (3 pros) of Bi-Lingual Education

● Language brokers for parents
○ Dr. Nava says bilingual classrooms help students strengthen and enhance
the home language they bring to the classroom. When this happens, ELL
and fluent-English-proficient (FEP) students can become language
brokers for their families. By doing this, students connect their families
and home life to the classroom, which increases learning outcomes.
● Higher cognitive function
○ bilingual learning can mean higher cognitive function, better grades,
increased language proficiency, and higher graduation rates and college
enrollment. Acquiring a language is an active skill, and students benefit
from active classroom participation.
● Achievement gap
○ Language-marginalized students stand to benefit the most from dual-
language initiatives. Insights from the National Academies of Science,
Engineering, Medicines demonstrate that bilingual classrooms promote
equity in education and help narrow the achievement gap between native
English speakers and English learners.
■ https://online.mills.edu/blog/benefits-of-bilingual-education/

Cons of Bi-Lingual Education:

Bilingual: Sophia Marlow English Only: Emily MacMillan Moderator: Kayla Masterson

● -Not cheap
○ A bilingual education/ foreign language programs are being cut around the
world due to their high cost. Schools that teach one language is easier
and cheaper to operate.
● -Can shift student’s focus
○ If the bilingual education is split 50/50, students may focus a lot on
learning the second language rather than focusing on learning essential
life skills.
● -Difficulty learning in bilingual education
○ Learning a second language can be hard if there are difficult concepts
being taught at the same time. Going back and forth to first and second
language every day could be confusing and have a negative impact on
student’s education.
■ https://vittana.org/14-pros-and-cons-of-bilingual-education

Questions for english learners:

● Why do you believe your strategy is a better ELL teaching technique?
● Do you believe teaching only in English takes away the students cultural identity?
● Do you believe their native language is being suppressed only teaching in
english?

Three closing points for Bi-Lingual education :

● Offers cultural diversity
○ Students are able to feel as if they are embarrassing their native and
english culture. This allows them to feel comfortable in both their native
and english language
● Makes students feel more comfortable in classroom
○ Students feel as if their needs and personal cultures are being looked at,
respected, and honored in the classroom. It does not feel as if their
language is being placed on the back burner
● Easier transition
○ It is a smooth transition starting to learn English as they can have the
English words translated at the beginning of learning the language. This
allows them to have a sense of understanding for what they are learning
and know what is being said to them.
Bilingual: Sophia Marlow English Only: Emily MacMillan Moderator: Kayla Masterson

Benefits of English Only:

https://www.teachertrainingasia.com/blog/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-an-english-
only-policy-in-a-tefl-in-class-course/

1. Develops students to express themselves in English

As the educator makes the students to express their thoughts in English in the class,
the students gradually get acquainted with the language more and also learn the ways
to use English effectively. This caters to a significant increase in confidence of the
learners and eases the educator’s task.
2. Stronger listening skills
The implementation of English in the class helps the learners to build their listening
skills on a strong base. This caters to the development of communication skills among
the learners in the class.
3. Helps in better Problem Solving
The implementation of English as the only medium of communication in the classroom
encourages the growth of problem solving skills among the students. This enables the
learners to find newer ways of communication with the educators and the trainers in a
TEFL in-class course. Thus they can find more feasible solutions to deliver their
questions to the educator, who in turn, helps to solve their queries.
4. Easier to manage
An “English only” classroom may be easier to manage for the educator as the students
communicate with each other. This is also applicable for the ease of conversations
between the teacher and the students as well.
5. Makes socialising easier
A classroom where students use only one language to socialise with each other, i.e.,
English, helps them to socialise with each other better and in a more fluent way. A
classroom which involves the use of more than one language as the medium of
Bilingual: Sophia Marlow English Only: Emily MacMillan Moderator: Kayla Masterson

communication might not have the same impact on the learners and the classroom
atmosphere.
From the aforementioned points, we can get a clear picture of the advantages that a
learner can derive from an “English only” policy in TEFL in class course. However, there
are certain disadvantages that the learners can get affected from due to the
implementation of an “English only” policy in a classroom, which are depicted in the
following lines.

Cons of English Only:

https://www.teachertrainingasia.com/blog/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-an-english-
only-policy-in-a-tefl-in-class-course/

1. Slows the educational process down: At times, it becomes difficult for the
learners to get in-depth analysis about the course and its curriculum if the
educator uses only English as the medium of communication. The use of
native language, while explaining the nuances of a comprehensive course,
can help the students to understand and speed through the course
content, which is an utmost necessity for the timely and successful
completion of the course. (Asian college of teachers, 2019)
2. Class management is affected: The teacher has to spend more time being a
“language cop” rather than an educator. This not only affects the
attentiveness of the students but also makes classroom management
difficult for the educator. This is something that should be avoided for a
better classroom environment. (Asian college of teachers, 2019)

3. Students with lower English skills get demotivated: It is the primary

responsibility of an educator to help the students get motivated. However,
the implementation of an “English only” policy in a classroom might affect
the confidence of the students who have lesser knowledge in English. This
might get them demotivated in an in-class situation where the only
language to communicate is English. From the aforementioned points, it is
clear that the implementation of an “English only” policy has both merits
and demerits. So, it is up to the teacher and the institution to take a feasible
decision regarding such a policy and to see that it caters to the
development of the learners who are indulging in a TEFL in-class course.
(Asian college of teachers, 2019)

3 Main Points of the English side:

Bilingual: Sophia Marlow English Only: Emily MacMillan Moderator: Kayla Masterson

1. Learning English broadens their minds.

● Language learning helps improve people's thinking skills and memory abilities.
Bilingual students concentrate better, ignoring distractions more effectively than
those who only speak one language. “Because the language centers in the brain
are so flexible, learning a second language can develop new areas of your mind
and strengthen your brain's natural ability to focus."
● https://www.whitbyschool.org/passionforlearning/learning-a-new-
language-helps-brain-development

2. Develops emotional and communication skills

● One suggestion for promoting SEL in these classrooms is to help ELs take pride
in their cultures. Teachers can do this by integrating cultural aspects into
curricula, labeling classroom objects in other languages, and encouraging
parents to promote cultural affirmation at home. These techniques can reduce
the sense of “otherness” that English learners often feel in classrooms. Another
effective technique is to pair ELs with non-ELs in a buddy system. This
encourages collaboration, mutual respect, and teamwork. Finally, and perhaps
most crucially, teachers must provide realistic practice for students to test out
acquired social and emotional skills. Providing opportunities for ELs to manage
stressful situations using their learned skills prepares students to tackle them in
the real world.
○ https://www.newamerica.org/education-policy/edcentral/english-learners-
social-emotional-learning/
3. Improving their quality of life by making them eligible for more job
opportunities.
- Opens the door for more job opportunities.
- Makes it easier for them to communicate with friends and the teacher.
- Bilingual people get jobs easier but jobs prefer those with strong english
skills

3 Questions for the Bilingual side:

1. Do you believe utilizing different languages in the classroom affects how
well the students are learning english? Such as, if one student speaks
Spanish and one speaks French, how do you communicate with them let
alone them communicating with each other?
2. Wouldn’t teaching students in a bilingual classroom actually allow them to
cling to their native language, therefore prolonging learning the English
language?
3. How do you think working in a bilingual classroom affects the teacher and
their workload? Will this cause more stress on the teacher, having to
spend more time worrying about the language aspect of the classroom
Bilingual: Sophia Marlow English Only: Emily MacMillan Moderator: Kayla Masterson

rather than the actual lessons? Wouldn’t the teacher need to create more
worksheets for every individual language spoken in the classroom?

Identify 3 Key Points: Closing BOTH Bilingual and English Only

1. Discuss how it affects the teacher.

2. Discuss how it affects the students.
3. Discuss how it affects the parents and family at home.

EXTRA RESOURCES:
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1170951.pdf