The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), signed in 1965, was a pivotal civil rights law to address the dream of equitable education for all children on the mainland and in U.S. territories. The ESEA was followed by the Bilingual Education Act (BEA), signed by President Johnson in 1968. The BEA specifically addressed the necessities of…

The 1980-81 Teachers Language Skills Survey shows dramatic increases in number and quality of professionally prepared bilingual education teachers since 1976-77, when the first training programs funded by the Bilingual Education Act were started. However, less than 25 percent of the teachers teaching bilingually in 1980-81 had basic qualifications…

Language and cultural preservation efforts among different communities of language speakers in the United States have received increasing attention as interest in linguistic rights and globalization continues to deepen. In addition to mounting evidence of the cognitive, psychological, and academic benefits of heritage language/community language…

Bilingual education has had great impact on education in the United States. Bilingual education programs have existed since 1845. Between 1854-1877, eight states enacted laws stipulating that local school boards had the power to require English-German bilingual programs. Many bilingual education programs were created, thrived, and eventually died;…

Based on a review of twenty-eight studies, this report examines the success of transitional bilingual education proqrams in leading to better performance in English and in nonlanguage subject areas. The following conclusions are offered: (1) Schools can improve the achievement level of language minority children through proper programs. (2) There…