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New World
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/97501668/ The first wave of immigration to the "New World" were Europeans. During this time (roughly a century), the Europeans brought over many languages and traditions with them. We still see some of these traditions today. Many of these immigrants had L1's other than English (e.g. French, Italian, German). -
Italian, German, & Irish, OH MY!
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/cph.3b00423/ During this wave of immigration, the states had a large influx of Europeans into Ellis Island. These Europeans were mostly from Germany, Italy, and Irish. They were fleeing Europe for many reasons (famine, roman catholic church, and rulers). Again, they brought their language and culture with them. At list time bilingual education was natural; we taught what they spoke. They even had full native language schools. -
Bilingual Ohio
http://redalertpolitics.com/2013/10/14/ohio-gears-up-for-stand-your-ground-battle/ After a large number of German immigrants settled in Ohio, they began to see the necessity of giving German-speaking children a fair chance to learn in our public schools. Therefore, they were the first to adopt a bilingual education law that implemented the use of German and English in their schools. This was successful and lead to many other states to follow by the end of the 19th century. -
No Migration Immigration
http://foundationsofbilingualeducation2.weebly.com/historical-timeline-of-bilingual-education-in-america.html The states didn't really see the European immigrants as much of a "problem" yet, we did see those who were native as a "problem". These are the bilinguals that we treated like they were aliens on their own land. With the intention of helping them see a "better way" of living, we began to restrict Native Americans educational rights. -
No Rights Natives
http://foundationsofbilingualeducation2.weebly.com/historical-timeline-of-bilingual-education-in-america.html Only a short 40 years into new bilingual education we digress again. Rather this time it is with the native people of this land. While other children are still getting bilingual education we decided to "fix" Natives by taking all of their kids away and putting them into boarding schools in an attempt to "Americanize" them. They were forced into English-only schools/lessons. -
Immigration from the West
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/ppprs.00250/ As America is beginning to reach its peak for the "American Dream", we see more immigration. This time, it's from our neighbors to the West. The third big wave of immigration brought over Japanese, Chinese, and other Asian immigrants. Along with them came cultures and languages that were very diverse from the current ones. It was another spice to add to the American melting pot! -
In Came the Cubans
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2017739307/ After fleeing Fidel Castro, Cubans came to America for a better opportunity. Many of the Cubans were from the middle to upper class of well-educated Cuba. Coming in through Florida and other southern states brought a large amount of Cuban/Spanish language. They even brought the Cuban cigar! -
Coral Way Elementary
http://foundationsofbilingualeducation2.weebly.com/historical-timeline-of-bilingual-education-in-america.html With a new wave of Spanish-speaking Cubans in Florida, one elementary school implemented the first ever Spanish-English bilingual program school. This was Coral Way Elementary. There was a study of both languages and cultures within the curriculum. Overall, the program was highly successful. -
It's the Law!
https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/voting-rights-act-of-1965/sources/1389 After many years, the United States passes the first Bilingual Act of 1968. The goal of this act was to provide schools with federal funding so that they would be able to use different bilingual education programs in their schools. This was a huge milestone in the states. Although we have seen many pushes and pulls support of bilingual education since. -
Rapid LEP's
https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/voting-rights-act-of-1965/sources/1389 Many pushed back to bilingual education in the 20th century. California, in an attempt to "please" both sides, passed Proposition 227. Proposition 227 tried to give LEP students a "chance" to be educated in a quick one-year program only. This was not successful and mostly repealed by another proposition in 2016. -
Hijabs & Freedom
https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/syrian-refugees-united-states Most recently the states have seen a large number of Syrian refugees due to the civil war in Syria that began in 2011. Fleeing from a war zone many Syrians came over to the states in hopes to find a safer place to raise their families. Many were accepted and resettled here until the latest presidential election. Ever since we have resorted to refugee "camps". This brought over new language and culture. -
Colorado, One Step at a Time
http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/states/colorado/index.html After many failed attempts to provide quality education, the state of Colorado finally made it mandatory for all new coming teachers to take CLD courses. The goal is to equip all new teachers with the ability to effectively provide quality education to non-English speaking students. Hopefully, this push will keep CO school districts from failing to provide and give EL's a fair chance at education.
