Way back in 1985, a Cambodian refugee enrolled in the School District of Philadelphia was mistakenly placed in a special education classroom, based on the results of a test indicating that he was mentally handicapped. But the test had been conducted in English, which was not the refugee student’s native language. This student, whose initials [...]
California: English-language proficiency is a concern for a growing number of the U.S. residents, according to New America Media. The foreign-born population in the United States increased by 57 percent between 1990 and 2004, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Moreover, the number of adults ages 65 or older is projected to more than double [...]
South Korea and America: Are you looking for a teaching job? Try going abroad, advises the Whitworthian. According to a recent article on the Florida Times-Union’s Web site, the “frightening job market is encouraging many college graduates to look abroad for work.” The article also states that “more students are inquiring about teaching overseas.” Two [...]
A foreign exchange student’s complaints over living conditions he encountered with a host family in Norwood Young America have prompted a state investigation that could lead to new legislation to safeguard visiting students. The Norwegian student complained that he had lent his host family $1,000 for groceries and their son’s acting classes, amazingly he was [...]
United States: The U.S. Supreme Court is now considering one of the most consequential cases about civil rights and schooling in two decades. At stake are the rights of English language learners (ELLs), and the responsibility of state governments and local school districts to provide enough funding and equal access to schools and the curriculum [...]
United States: For over a decade now, notes the New York Times, researchers have documented the effects of language barriers on health care. Patients who speak English poorly or not at all face longer hospital stays, an increased risk of misdiagnoses and medical errors, and decreased access to acute and preventive care services, often regardless [...]
Canada: Nearly 60 per cent of first- and second-year University of B.C. medical students speak at least one other language besides English, and nearly a third speak English as a second language. Nearly one-quarter of students are able to speak French, but the four most common first languages are Cantonese, Mandarin, Farsi and Punjabi.
Making Change: [...]
Somalia and the United States: The crowd listened intently as the soft-spoken, sometimes shy writers took the stage to read excerpts from their new book, notes the Sun journal. They read poems praying for a better life, autobiographical accounts of the harsh reality of life in a refugee camp and stories about the hope and [...]
United States: Hot on the heels of a Dep. of Education report stating that immigrant students are doing better than ever before, groups serving immigrant families issued a report of their own today, calling on the city Department of Education to change the culture in schools so that immigrant parents feel welcome participating in their [...]
United States: Immigrant parents who don’t speak English can sit in school and learn alongside their children, thanks to the revolutionary Toyota Family Literacy Program, notes the Examiner.
Over the past 20 years, more than a million families with parents who couldn’t read or speak English have participated in the program. “Studies find that the parents’ [...]
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