Thread: Just found out my daughter is in an ESL

Yes.....I was serious. It happened when my youngest was in 2nd and 3rd grade. Then in Jr High they had this deal where you could pick among alot of different things and the classes were only a semester long. Photography, agriculture, dance etc. but they all had to take Spanish. There wasn't a choice of another language. Which I thought ok but wasn't happy about it. Then they had parents day and I went. We went to all the classes and met the teachers and heard what their objectives were etc. The spanish teacher said spanish was the most spoken language around the world and felt it was vital for the students to have a basic understanding of it in order to become prepared for a global economy. That's when I got peeved because I knew that wasn't true.

No, I don't think Spanish is the most spoken language around the world - but it doesn't surprise me that she would tell say that.

Now, I will say, if you child has a chance to learn Spanish without loosing out on other education - by all means - encourage it. Our children are not being taught Spanish and it will be vital to be bilingual when they go out into the workforce. It isn't right - but it is just the facts.

It would be much easier and better for the kids to learn a language at an early age. If they wait to try to teach them when they are in high school, it is harder for them.

Personally, I have always thought kids could teach each other the languages and there would be little need to spend all the money on ESL teachers.

Just start in kindergarten and have one day that only English is spoken during recess, lunch, non classrom time. The English speaking kids could teach the Spanish speaking kids and next day the opposite. By the end of the kindergarten year, the kids would probably all be bilingual. Kids learn from each other and quickly and they learn quickly at that age.

Whether we like it or not, unless we leave this country or form communes around the country, the next generation will most certainly be left in the dust if they can't speak Spanish - they may be left in the dust anyway.

sunsetincali, I think you need to contact the school and follow-up. I would imagine she's not being taught at the level she should be if the teacher is having to take all the extra time to teach Spanish speakers English. Demand that they give her a proper education!

In response to the direct issue "my daughter is in ESL"...


People argue with me when I explain this to them...slowly or eventually agree with me when later they do more digging as to why...

Teacher myself here...

Usually when someone ends up in ESL - who by all indications should not - it is because someone somewhere - Mom, Dad, Aunt, Uncle, Brother, Sister, Grandparent - received the language survey questionnaire that gets sent around every year or so - and marked that a language other than English is spoken at home.

Doesn't matter if the other language is indicated as secondary - this provides the justification necessary for the district and school project specialists to put a child into ESL or Bilingual Education.

Reason? Follow the dollar...

The child becomes a "categorical project qualified" chld meaning additional money is received on top of ADA (Average Daily Attendence).

Now since this kind of thing falls under "a misunderstanding" no testing should be necessary to remove the child from ESL. Don't allow it.

Also, do not waste your time with the school front office OR the principal. The principal is not in charge in these cases...

The district and school project specialists are. Go to the school's project specialists office first - usually office because many school principals try to avoid approving a hire - so they are often staffed by just clerks only. Demand your child's removal - fill out a new questionnaire if necessary to correct the official record.

Should serious resistance be encountered, head to the district's project specialist office. They have to have one - or else categorical funds cannot be spent. Push the issue there.

Do not allow the excuse - "well all the regular classes are full"...it is not your concern - they have to place the child.

If you are wondering why the principal is not in charge here, it is because categorical funds must be approved and spent by the categorically specified personel - Project Specialists and Librarians typically.

Many principals are insecure about having folks on campus who on some levels are their equals authority-wise - and when vacancies occur - don't hire the project specialist or librarian. Money gets spent anyway come April/May with signatures from the district level person.

If you are wondering why incidientally you are seeing Media Specialists (Teacher) and not Librarian (Categorically Oriented State/Fed Level Personal Teacher/Admin) - now you know.

The funding for each school by law here in California budgets a librarian, they are just rarely hired. They 40-50 something thousand dollars per year beginning salary just sits there unspent.

In your state - the title may not be project specialist. Well, roses are roses. I think you get my point - just find the same person.

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No, I don't think Spanish is the most spoken language around the world - but it doesn't surprise me that she would tell say that.

I don't think it is, either. In fact I know it isn't. English is.

I have been to several foreign lands. The common language is English. I know people who speak several different languages fluently. Spanish isn't even one of the top three.

I think that the people here might think that spanish is so common because the majority of the invaders here are spanish speakers.

I imagine the uneducated people in France and Holland who have never left their own country might think Arabic is the most spoken language because that is the face of their invaders.

But I have NEVER been in an airport anywhere in the world where the messages weren't followed up in ENGLISH. That may have changed since 2001, which was the last time I flew internationally, but that is the way it was then.

I have to teel you guys. Some of this information is dumbfounding me. I guess I never thought of how bad things could be in the classrooms along the border. You are serious that the libraries have books in both languages? Is the future of our children worth the 15 cents saved on the head of lettuce in the fridge? We should all be ashame that we have let it come to this. It is truely saddening to know that a childs education should even be part of the great comprimise of saveing a dollar of geting a service. Truely sad guys...Johnny

But I have NEVER been in an airport anywhere in the world where the messages weren't followed up in ENGLISH. That may have changed since 2001, which was the last time I flew internationally, but that is the way it was then.

You are 100% correct. I flew internationally a few months ago and at the airports messages are always announced in English. And doing business in Europe while in Italy and in Germany almost everyone I came into contact with spoke English.

Yes, English is the most commonly used language in the world. It is certainly the language of business. No English, no business...

Spanish ??? Quien sabe?? Top 20...maybe.

MJ

(extrapolated and condensed from http://www2.ignatius.edu/faculty/turner/languages.htm) More people speak Spanish as a primary language than speak English (but not by much). However, (in large part due to computers and business) more people in the world speak English as a secondary language, thus making English more universally understood than Spanish. Also many upwardly bound yuppies (that's not racist is it?) are studying the most widely spoken language in the world, Mandarin Chinese. But that's another subject.

Number of speakers of language irrelevant to the issue here though. Teach in ENGLISH ! Kids absorb languages amazingly fast. If you teach in Spanish it will only slow them down.

One nation, one flag, ONE language. Everything else spells disaster.

If you move into a new school district (anywhere in the country) and have a Spanish sirname, they will try very very hard to put your child into the ESL class ... because of the extra money they get ... this is just another reason why I want the whole program to end ... now ...