Bilingual Education Problems

Bilingual education is a system utilized in many school systems whereby immigrant students are taught in both English and their own language on the theory that while they are learning English in one class, they can still be learning other subjects in their own language. The system has come under increasing fire because of the perception that it has failed to overcome the language differences, leaving children unable to speak English and also disenchanted with the whole learning experience. This has contributed to high dropout rates and the general failure of the educational system. The public has started turning against such programs, as can be seen in the recent vote for Proposition 227 in California to eliminate bilingual education in favor of an immersion program to teach English to immigrant students during the first year. Bilingual education created a number of problems which must be addressed now that the program is ending, and immersion may not be effective if the same problems persist, such as wrongly labeling foreign students as in ne