A blogger for the Wall Street Journal has written a post commenting on the impact the immigration law may have on education.

The new law requires police to question anyone suspected of being in the country illegally. The educational implication for this may result in the arbitrary firing of teachers with heavy accents or have less than standard English syntax or morphology.

The reasoning given behind this is, “How can you expect a student learning English to learn it properly from someone who has trouble with the language himself or herself? Whether it be through clarity of pronunciation, mixing syntax and morphology, or otherwise ‘mangling’ the language?”

The question at the core is how to deem one person more “American” than the next, using linguistics as a tool. I know many children who are US born to immigrant parents who speak with accented English and have less than perfect syntax because they learned English simultaneously as their native tongue. Others have become naturalized citizens, are hard-working professionals, who just happen to have accents as English was not their first language. Though they are US Citizens, this new law could potentially threaten the employment of Arizona teachers in these situations.

First, nobody speaks “perfect” English. We all use slang, mix tenses, leave prepositions at the end of sentences, etc. If grammar and spelling were markers for teaching employment, a large majority of teachers would find themselves with pink slips. (I was in a classroom today where the teacher had written “grammer” on the board.) Or what about the many students (and teachers) who consistently mix up “there”, “their”, and “they’re”? Or those who write, “should of” instead of “should have”? Should those individuals be interrogated too?

Second, what about regional accents? There are many accents within our nation that people from outside that geographic region find difficult to understand. Fran Drescher’s New York accent? Or what about a heavy Southern drawl? Or the nasal accent associated with “Wes-caaaahn-sin”?

While I understand why this law was passed and the intention behind it, the whole thing just seems poorly thought out. I suspect it will affect many people in ways that its writers had not previously thought.

I recently read a news article about a school in which I have been a substitute teacher. For reasons unknown to the general public, the principal and a teacher have been removed from their positions.

This is the only fully Spanish-bilingual school in a district with a high Latino population. Several other schools have bilingual classrooms, but at White Rock, every class is bilingual. In fact, all classroom teachers are required to speak, read, and write Spanish at the fluency of a native speaker.

What bothers me most are the comments from the public that accompany the article such as, (paraphrasing) “Learn to speak English, this is America… stop wasting my tax dollars.”

First, even at the kindergarten level, most students are fluent in spoken English. The students who come from Spanish speaking households are on par with their native English speaking peers in terms of literacy. As a non-Spanish speaking teacher, I have had no linguistic troubles at the school.

Second, though the school is bilingual, many non-Spanish speaking students attend because of diversity.

Third, it is a school. The point of a school is to have a safe place where students can learn. What better place for students new to the country to learn the primary language here?

Finally, studies have shown that many minority families, particularly non-English speaking families, are apprehensive to be involved in their children’s school due to a language barrier. At White Rock, because most staff members speak Spanish, that fear is gone. Parents at White Rock are not afraid to speak to their children’s teachers and become active in education. Isn’t that what all schools strive for? Additionally, it is a powerful for students to see many of their own heritage as positive role models, instead of relying on stereotypes of what societal roles a Mexican immigrant can and cannot do.

While I do not know what is going on with the school, including rumors it may close or be repurposed as an administration building, it is a special place. The staff and students have been nothing but friendly and welcoming to all who pass through their doors.

Good Characters, Inc has come out with a new iPhone application: Chinese Alphabet. Thankfully, the creators realize such a thing does not exist and this is for entertainment value only, to add “mystery” to your writing. Of course, everything from the Orient is mysterious…

To those gullible enough to think this will translate their writing into real Chinese, for just $1.99 you can sound like an idiot!

三內丁口了!

According to the app, it says “Enjoy”, but it actually says:
“Three inside diced meat/vegetables mouth [past tense marker]!”

On second thought, I might actually enjoy three pieces of diced meat/vegetables in my mouth. Mmm… beef stew.