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Limited-English teaching 'a mess'
By Lori Baker Many limited-English students languish in school, despite Arizona's reportedly spending $361 million a year to teach them. One in seven students does not understand English. And on average, it takes them more than three years to master it, the state Department of Education says. As a result, many lag in classwork, standardized test scores and graduating from high school. Some say the problem is money. A federal judge ruled last week that more must be spent on limited-English students. Others say the issue is technique. Do you teach those who don't speak English alongside those who do? Put them in separate classes? For how long? It's "a mess," said Lisa Graham Keegan, the state's top education official. And the problem is growing. About 112,000 of Arizona's 743,000 public school children were considered limited-English proficient in 1997-98. That's up from 45,000 a decade before. Nationally, the number of LEP students has increased from 2.2 million to 3 million during the past four years. "Non-English-speaking students are the largest rate of growth of students in the country," said Jorge Amselle, vice president for education at the Center for Equal Opportunity, based in Washington, D.C. "Communities that haven't had to deal with LEP students at all now are establishing new programs to help these kids get along." Covering shortfalls
For decades, Arizona teachers have grappled with students who speak Spanish and Navajo. Today, they face more than 72 languages. Last week, U.S. District Judge Alfredo Marquez ruled that Arizona doesn't spend enough to teach these kids and shoves them into classrooms with teachers unprepared to help them. A 1988 study determined that it cost an additional $464 a year to educate each student, but the state pays only $162. The difference falls on school districts, who often dip into other programs to cover the shortfall. Some dispute the $464 cost and have proposed having a legislative task force look into the cost of educating all children, including those lagging in English. Still, districts must shell out money for materials in both English and Spanish. They also must pay bonuses to lure qualified teachers. Nearly 2,500 uncertified teachers worked with LEP students during the 1997-98 year, according to the state report. And many classrooms are overcrowded. At one Kyrene elementary school, "English as a Second Language" students meet in the library. Then there's the problem of interpreters. The Tempe and Kyrene elementary school districts, for example, struggle to find people who can communicate with increasingly diverse non-English speakers, including students who speak Albanian, Icelandic and Punjabi. Of the $361 million spent to teach students English in the 1997-98 school year, $106 million came from federal funding and $15 million from the state. The other $240 million came from district budgets, desegregation taxes, grants, donations or public and private contributions.
But state officials say it's unclear whether the school districts spent the $240 million only on language programs. In the past, the state has not been required to audit district information. But Keegan says an annual report due next month will have more reliable data. In addition to this money, 18 Arizona districts are allowed to impose local desegregation taxes to help limited-English students, among others, through an agreement with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights. But they aren't required to report where these taxes go. And some say districts aren't using all the cash to teach students. Sen. Joe Eddie Lopez, D-west Phoenix, has introduced a bill that would increase state funding for limited-English students from $162 to $621. He hopes last week's federal court decision will give it a boost. Yet the ruling did not say how much more money is needed, when it is due or who makes sure it gets to the right places. Tim Hogan, an attorney for the Nogales parents in the federal lawsuit decided last week, said he will see whether legislators come up with answers and cash this session, then decide whether he needs to head back to court. Lopez's bill also would establish a $1 million block grant program to help teachers go back to school for bilingual education training. He has a tough time ahead. The Legislature is in the middle of a two-year budget cycle and reportedly has just $36 million to distribute. Plus, some say, lawmakers' priorities are building schools and reducing class size. Lopez is undeterred. "I don't want to imply the districts are doing a bad job," he said. "They don't have the tools to do an effective job. The state should be spending three times as much money as we are." How to teach them?
Along with the money debate, officials, educators and the public are split over how best to educate limited-English students. Almost everyone agrees that students new to English need help outside a regular classroom. But they disagree over how long they should get it. Arizona law gives districts several options: Keegan says students shouldn't be in bilingual programs for more than three years. They should become fluent in English as soon as possible. Others say children need more time in their native language. "Students can learn playground English within two years, but it takes four to seven years to learn to read and write academically," said Jesus Escarcega, president of the Arizona Association for Bilingual Education. But a growing number of people say kids should just get one school year to learn English in special classes. After that, children should be placed alongside native English speakers. That's the intent of the English for the Children of Arizona initiative proposed by Tucson residents Maria Escalante Mendoza and Hector Ayala. It will appear on the November ballot if they collect 101,762 signatures by July 6. California voters approved a similar proposal in 1998. "It is not a matter of money or a shortage of teachers that students are not learning English," said Mendoza, who would not say how many signatures she has. "You don't need to coddle the children. The best way to learn English is to immerse students in a classroom where only English is spoken. We cannot afford to sacrifice more children to these race-based programs." Students get trapped in English as a Second Language programs, said Christine Rossell, a Boston University political science professor. "I say force them out," said Rossell, an LEP expert who supports the initiative. "Kids learn English by sitting in a classroom. As miserable of an experience as it is, they get over it." Keegan and Gov. Jane Hull oppose the idea. Hull said there's not a magic number of years in which children should be able to learn English, but it shouldn't take their entire educational career. The "sink or swim" mentality of the initiative would be disastrous, said Josue Gonzalez, director of Arizona State University's Center for Bilingual Education and Research. "There will be more dropouts and more unsuccessful children." Gonzalez faults Keegan for not ensuring that schools properly educate LEP students. A legislative panel recently recommended a study of schools that have high numbers of bilingual students and low academic achievement. "There is a tendency for people to say the state should have a plan," Keegan said. "What these children need is the skill and expectations of the classroom teacher." Influx of languagesBut even the most-motivated teachers feel the crush of ever-increasing students and languages. Acacia Elementary School in the Washington Elementary School District had all English-speaking students until five years ago when 10 Spanish-speaking pupils arrived. Today, there are 78 students speaking 18 languages. None of Acacia's classroom teachers speaks a foreign language. They use hand gestures and visual aids to communicate. Other students often translate. The Washington district has 3,510 LEP students speaking 45 languages, an 813 percent increase over just a decade ago. And although limited-English students can take time away from regular classroom studies, their diversity adds something as well. "I love having children from different countries in my classroom," said Sue-Ellen Tucker, a second-grade teacher at Acacia who has taught children from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Romania and Mexico. "When we're doing geography, we talk about where the children are from and how they got here." In the 24-school Kyrene Elementary District where 30 languages are spoken, 10 teachers of English as a Second Language rove the district. Tencha Witiker is one of them, traveling among three schools. On a morning last semester, Witiker held up laminated cards showing different modes of transportation. Diana Farah, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Kuwait, shared how she spent time in a moving van. When her brother, 12-year-old Fedi, didn't understand something, Diana launched into their native Arabic to explain. "If you put me in Kuwait, I'm not sure I would do as well," Witiker said. "It is amazing at the rapidity in which they learn English. They have such an urgency for learning the language." Still, classroom teachers worry about students like Diana. "Because she doesn't understand, she does her own thing," physical-education teacher Rita Casillas said. "I'll be taking roll, and she'll be at the mirror." And every day, more students like Diana stream into Arizona schools, eager to fit in but excluded by language. "It's hard to understand sometimes," Diana said. "It can make you afraid."
Reach the reporter at Lori.Baker@ArizonaRepublic.com or at (602) 444-7120, or at Kelly.Pearce@Arizona Republic.com or at (602) 444-8979. |
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