HISTORICAL STRUGGLES FOR BILINGUAL EDUCATION IN AMERICA

埼玉県越谷市Even though bilingual education had always existed in the United States since the colonial period, America had both embraced and rejected its significance within its vastly diverse immigrant society. Most would agree that the immigrant languages and cultures in North America have certainly enriched the lives of many Americans, yet there are periodic waves of xenophobic tendencies to restrict the use of other languages and cultural expressions other than the English language in American communities. As a consequence of these educational policies which had restricted the use of other languages, public schools had greatly reduced the capacity for most U.S. citizens to speak another foreign language. Due to the English-only schooling programs in early American history, there was much cultural suppression and discrimination to the extent that the English language was often touted as being the key to patriotism and success in America. In 1968, the English-only policies had all changed dramatically and made way for a more global platform for today's informational literate citizen of the 21st century. During the 1960s, the U.S. Congress made its first commitment to bilingual education by enacting the Bilingual Education Act. Subsequently, the social and political movements toward a more culturally and holistic method of teaching was adapted into its educational systems in recent decades to promote more multiculturalism in America. For this research paper, a general overview in the development of bilingual education in the United States will be discussed. Through the evolution of the United States court system and prevailing state laws, the educational policies that surround the issues of bilingual education in America and its implementation programs have overturned the English-only tendencies. Moreover, this paper will also include the ongoing curriculum plans for America to embrace its diversity and to provide more multicultural learning opportunities for all students. These visionary changes have paved the way for America to become a more multilingual nation