El Valle Del Río Grande siempre ha sido bilingüe. ¿Por qué sus escuelas no?

Author

Karina Guerrero, Craig Newmark Graduate School of JournalismFollow
jesus chapa-malacara, craig newmark graduate school of journalismFollow

Graduation Date

Fall 12-16-2022

Grading Professor

Felipe De La Hoz

Subject Concentration

Spanish Language

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Abstract

Months before the pandemic began its wrath on education in the U.S., highlighting inequities that disproportionately impact English Language Learners, the Texas Legislature passed legislation (HB3) that created a funding incentive for starting dual language programs – a type of bilingual education found to be the most beneficial for English learners. As schools presumably “return to normal” and at an inflection point that could define the future of multilingual education in the United States, we catch up with several district’s in the country’s most bilingual region as it wrestles with and fights for how to preserve and promote bilingualism. English language learners are the fastest-growing student population group in the United States, and the Rio Grande Valley in the borderlands of South Texas has some of the highest percentages of them in their school districts. When it’s known that the dual language approach is the best form of education for these students – one that fosters bilingualism and the development of their native language (in this case, Spanish) – why do so many of the districts in this region opt for an approach that is compromising their linguistic and cultural identities?

Recommended Citation

Guerrero, Karina and chapa-malacara, jesus, "El Valle Del Río Grande siempre ha sido bilingüe. ¿Por qué sus escuelas no?" (2022). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gj_etds/598