With some 460 languages spoken across the land, the United States has a deep reservoir of linguistic diversity. But our nation’s inconsistent language-learning policies and practices present a variety of obstacles for learning English. Understanding and then addressing student needs during the critical transition phase for newcomer students is an important area for intervention. The shared fortunes of immigrant and native citizens alike will be tied to successfully linking our youngest new Americans to the educational and economic opportunity structure, to civic belonging, and full democratic participation.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AgbenyegaS.JiggettsJ. (1999). Minority children and their over-representation in special education. Education-Indianapolis, 119, 619–632.
2.
American Psychological Association (APA). (2012). Crossroads: The psychology of immigration in the new century. APA presidential task force on immigration. Washington, DC: Author. www.apa.org/topics/immigration/report.aspx.
3.
BayleyR.ReganV. (2004). Introduction: The acquisition of sociolinguistic competence. Journal of Sociolinguistics, 8, 323–338.
DuncanG.J.MurnameR.J. (2013). Restoring opportunity: The crisis of inequality and the challenge of American Education. Cambridge, MA & New York, NY: Harvard Education Press & Sage Foundation.
6.
EscamillaK.MahonE.Riley-BernalH.RutledgeD. (2003). High-stakes testing, Latinos, and English language learners: Lessons from Colorado. Bilingual Research Journal, 27 (1), 25–49.
7.
GándaraP.ContrerasF. (2008). Understanding the Latino education gap — Why Latinos don’t go to college. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
8.
GarcíaO. (2014). U.S. Spanish & education: Global and local intersection. Review of Research in Education38, 58–80.
9.
HakutaK.ButlerY.K.WittD. (2000). How long does it take English learners to attain proficiency?Berkeley, CA: University of California Linguistic Minority Research Institute.
10.
HernándezD. (2014, 2, 28). Lecture. UCLA Program on International Migration. Los Angeles, CA. UCLA.
11.
International Reading Association. (2012). Literacy implementation guidance for the ELA Common Core standards. Newark, DE: Author.
12.
KiefferM.J.LesauxN.K.RiveraM.FrancisD.J. (2009). Accommodations for English language learners taking large-scale assessments: A meta-analysis on effectiveness and validity. Review of Educational Research, 79 (3), 1168–1201.
13.
KindlerA.L. (2002). Survey of the states’ limited English proficient students and available educational programs and services, 2000-01 summary report. Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition and Language Instruction Educational Programs.
14.
KohlerA.D.LazarínM. (2007). Hispanic education in the United States: Statistical brief, No. 8. Washington, DC: National Council of La Raza. http://bit.ly/1GBtgWr
15.
MenkenK. (2008). English language learners left behind: Standardized testing as language policy. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters.
16.
MerchantB. (1999). Ghosts in the classroom: Unavoidable casualties of a principal’s commitment to the status quo. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk, 4 (2), 153–171.
17.
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). (2010). The condition of education 2010. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education.
18.
OlsenL. (1995). School restructuring and the needs of immigrant students. In RumbautR.G.CorneliusW.A. (Eds.), California’s immigrant children: Theory, research, and implications for educational policy (pp. 209–231). Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
19.
OlsenL. (2010). Reparable harm fulfilling the unkept promise of educational opportunity for California’s long-term English learners. Emeryville, CA: California Tomorrow. http://bit.ly/1MZGHMG
20.
OrfieldG.LeeC. (2006). Racial transformation and the changing nature of segregation. Cambridge, MA: The Civil Rights Project at Harvard University.
21.
OrfieldG. (2014). Brown at 60: Great progress, a long retreat, and an uncertain future. Los Angeles, CA: The Civil Rights Project at UCLA.
22.
Pew Research Center. (2015, 9). Modern immigration wave brings 59 million to U.S., driving population growth and change through 2065: Views of immigration’s impact on U.S. society mixed. Washington, DC: Author.
23.
QinD.B.WayN.MukherjeeP. (2008). The other side of the model minority story: The familial and peer challenges faced by Chinese-American adolescents. Youth & Society, 39 (4), 480–506.
24.
SadowskiM. (2013). Portraits of promise: Voices of successful immigrant students. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.
25.
ScherrT.G.LarsonJ. (2010). Bullying dynamics associated with race, ethnicity, and immigration status. In JimersonS.R.SwearerS.M.EspelageD.L. (Eds.), Handbook of bullying in schools: An international perspective (pp. 223–234). New York, NY: Routledge.
26.
SchwartzA.E.SteifelL. (2011). Immigrants and inequality in public schools. In DuncanG.J.MurnaneR.J. (Eds.), Whither opportunity: Rising inequality, schools, and children’s life chances (pp. 3–23). New York, NY & Chicago, IL: Sage Foundation & Spencer Foundation.
27.
ShinH.B.KominskyR.A. (2010). Language use in the United States: 2007. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau. http://1.usa.gov/1RisGNG
28.
Solano-FloresG. (2008). Who is given tests in what language by whom, when, and where?The need for probabilistic views of language in the testing of English language learners. Educational Researcher, 37 (4), 189–99.
29.
Solano-FloresG.TrumbullE. (2003). Examining language in context: The need for new research and practice paradigms in the testing of English-language learners. Educational Researcher, 32 (2), 3–13.
30.
SolórzanoR.W. (2008). High-stakes testing: Issues, implications, and remedies for English language learners. Review of Educational Research, 78 (2), 260–329.
31.
Suárez-OrozcoM.Suárez-OrozcoC. (2013, Fall). Taking perspective: Context, culture, and history. In HernándezM.G.NguyenJ.SaetermoeC.L.Suárez-OrozcoC. (Eds.), Frameworks and ethics for research with immigrants: New directions for child and adolescent development, 141, 9–23. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
32.
Suárez-OrozcoC.Abo-ZenaM.MarksA. (Eds.). (2015). Transitions: The development of children of immigrants. New York, NY: New York University Press.
33.
Suárez-OrozcoC.MartinM.AlexanderssonM.DanceL.J.LunnebladJ. (2013). Promising practices: Preparing children of immigrants in New York and Sweden. In AlbaR.HoldawayJ. (Eds.), The children of immigrant in school: A comparative look at integration in the United States and Western Europe (pp. 204–251). New York, NY: New York University Press.
34.
Suárez-OrozcoC.Suárez-OrozcoM.TodorovaI. (2008). Learning in a new land: Immigrant adolescents in America. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
35.
Suárez-OrozcoC.YoshikawaH.TeranishiT.Suárez-OrozcoM. (2011). Living in the shadows: The developmental implications of undocumented status [Special issue]. Harvard Education Review, 81, 438–472.
36.
ThomasW.P.CollierV.P. (2002). A national study of school effectiveness for language minority students’ long-term academic achievement. Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of Education, Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence.
U.S. Department of Education. (2002). 1999-2000 schools and staffing survey: Overview of the data for public, private, public charter, and Bureau of Indian Affairs elementary and secondary schools. Washington, DC: Office of Educational Research and Improvement, National Center for Education Statistics.
41.
ValenzuelaA. (Ed.). (2005). Leaving children behind: How “Texas-style” accountability fails Latino youth. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.
42.
WeinsteinR.S. (2002). Reaching higher. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
