CRESJ Seminar: A Meaningful Education for Language Minority Students in the United States: Language, Learning, and Social Justice Perspectives

The rights and educational needs of language minority students in the U.S. can be looked at through many different lenses. Historically, laws and court decisions starting in the 1960s and 1970s set the stage for systematically including students’ home languages in education. Since that time, controversy about the use of languages other than English in the public sphere has led to profound differences in how minority languages are regarded and how they are used in U.S. education. Keeping in mind the political, social, and educational consequences for students who speak languages other than English at home, to what extent have U.S. society and schools lived up to the commitment to provide a meaningful and equitable education to all students?

Outline of April 30, 2013 Presentation

1) Overview of the main points that will be addressed

2) The impact of legislation and court decisions with an emphasis on the Bilingual Education Act (1968) and Lau vs. Nichols (1974)

3) Official decisions in contrast to public perceptions of languages other than English

4) Evolution of bilingual programs to the present day

5) The concept of and provisions for “a meaningful education” for immigrants and children of immigrants (including prospects for the DREAM Act for undocumented students)

PLEASE NOTE THAT THOSE WHO WISH TO ATTEND THE SEMINAR SHOULD CONTACT IAN DAVIES (ian.davies@york.ac.uk) BY NOON ON FRIDAY 19 APRIL.