Bilingual Education and the Hispanic Challenge.

Overview & Synopsis

The bilingual education movement, begun in the 1960's and virtually mandated by the 1974 Supreme Court Lau vs. Nichols decision, is highly controversial due to public perceptions of bilingual programs; the apparent departure from traditional school language policy; and the concept of bilingual education as a strategy for realizing the social, political, and economic aspirations of Hispanic Americans. Prior to the reauthorization of the Bilingual Education Act in 1982, supporters of bilingual education face the major challenges of educational justification of what has become a political situation and solving the many problems embedded in the movement. The strong Guidelines for the 1978 Amendments to the Bilingual Education Act will help in the areas of curriculum development, funding, and research. Undeniably, bilingual education has grown dramatically since 1968 and has been a vehicle enabling Hispanics to press for their language rights and giving them a point of entry into all other issues related to Hispanic rights and opportunities. Bilingual education will continue to be significant especially in the education of mainland Puerto Rican children returning to the island and to the children of undocumented workers from Mexico, and in helping Hispanic children in general gain essential credentials for better employment. (SB)