A terrific subject that needs more attention. Kates does a good job of covering the issues, and he's found a great bunch of sources.
But we're caught up right from the start by a linguistic tick: "English learners." While it's a bit cocky to note that LA is the home of the largest contingent of Brit-expats in the US -- which gives an entirely different meaning to "English learners" -- I fear Kates's thrust suffers from political correctness.
A political correctness, I should add, weighed down by the American ambivalence toward learning a second language.
My instinct would be to go back and discover where the indigenous tribe (so-called "Americans") have determined where the linguistic threshold stands. The story here sets such questions into motion..
Comments for English Learners in California Schools
Produced by David Kates
Other pieces by David Kates
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Jackson Braider
Posted on June 12, 2007 at 07:11 PM | Permalink
Review of English Learners in California Schools
A terrific subject that needs more attention. Kates does a good job of covering the issues, and he's found a great bunch of sources.
But we're caught up right from the start by a linguistic tick: "English learners." While it's a bit cocky to note that LA is the home of the largest contingent of Brit-expats in the US -- which gives an entirely different meaning to "English learners" -- I fear Kates's thrust suffers from political correctness.
A political correctness, I should add, weighed down by the American ambivalence toward learning a second language.
My instinct would be to go back and discover where the indigenous tribe (so-called "Americans") have determined where the linguistic threshold stands. The story here sets such questions into motion..