Returning to ELLs

So last we talked about ELLs I was on a soapbox and citing the seminal court case that brought (then known as) Limited English Proficient students to the attention of K - 12 educators. That was in 1974.

Of course, that did not speak to the actual practices, curricula and general implementation of, or inclusion/integration/monitoring of LEP students.

And so it was that, 4 years later, in 1978, a lawsuit was first filed against a Texas school district, this time by the parent of Mexican-American children. The case centered on the accusation that these children were being racially discriminated against because the school district failed to implement bilingual education programs which the father claimed would allow their children to learn the English skills to not have been segregated in the first place. The court sided with the school district.

However, in 1981, a U.S. District Court picked up the case, this time ruling in favor of the Castanedas. And for the first time, a legal precedent would be set as to 1) the establishment of "bilingual programs" in schools and 2) basic criteria for these. The criteria established by the court was

• The bilingual education program must be “based on sound educational theory.”
• The program must be “implemented effectively with resources for personnel, instructional materials, and space.”
• After a trial period, the program must be proven effective in overcoming language barriers/handicaps.

Although the questions of how to implement and the funding sources schools/ districts would draw upon (we can discuss this topic at a later date) would still need answers, there was now an expectation that LEP students would be in programs that would meet their linguistic needs and allow them to overcome language barriers, presumably, to enter the "mainstream" curriculum.

During the '90s we had a major movement of creating academic content standards (that was preceded by a major push for a "national framework" for specific subject areas- math, most notably). However, very much the afterthought, most states did not even conceive of English Language Development as a separate content area for K - 12. In fact, here in California (seen as a leader in this realm) we did not have a final set of ELD standards on the books until the late 1990s.

All so important, and sadly, so recent.

And of course given the federal nature of our government and the sacred cow of "local control," each individual state has been given the power/ responsibility of creating systems to ensure that ELLs have what they need, are monitored for progress, are challenged with appropriate but high rigor curricula and have "highly qualified" teachers, all now codified in the lengthy NCLB document.

Anyhow- that's a quick history lesson on LEP/ELL students. I think it's important to understand where we've been so we know not only where we're headed but also why we are where we are. This is especially true if you find yourself in a district where there is little on the ground or there is a lot of resistance to teaching ELD/ ELLs despite the fact that the infrastructure exists or you feel that these students get little "air time" at PD or staff development days.

You are their voice.

And thanks, as always, for that!