This is one of the issues we discussed when I was in Dallas this past week—-the huge and growing cost in the educational system where students in the system may speak 50 or more languages because of the Refugee Admissions Program of the UN/US State Dept. The next time you hear some argument that the diversity of immigrants coming to the US brings strength and helps our economy, remember that those phony economic studies rarely include the cost to educate the children (in dozens and dozens of languages!).
Dallas Morning News from Melinda Cowart, a professor of ESL:
In Texas, speakers of languages other than Spanish represent 14.59 percent of the linguistically diverse student population. Those ELLs speak other languages, including Vietnamese, the third-most common language spoken, Chinese, Arabic and Urdu.
In addition to newcomers who immigrate to the U.S. through Texas each year, refugee resettlement contributes to the vast diversity in the state, especially in or near major cities such as Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin, which tend to be primary refugee resettlement sites. Yet, the schools provide special language programs for speakers of only two of those languages — English and Spanish. [Get out your wallets!—ed]
By the way, when you read the story about the author’s poor little Chinese child not being allowed to buy milk because she couldn’t speak Spanish or English, I fault Mom. From my own experience (and assuming the household is an English-speaking one as hers certainly is), I know it’s best to educate a new daughter (or son) at home until their English is pretty good before subjecting them to the confusion of public school in America. What was this woman thinking?
Note to Texans: You have got to get the flow of refugees slowed!
New readers: See my three-part Texas series, beginning here. BTW, the number one language needed in the Dallas County health department for refugees is Arabic!