Reflections on Language
By Alfred Posamentier, Ph.D.
When I opened a package from Istanbul, I was flattered to
learn that my two most recent mathematics books were translated
into Turkish. While I was clearly familiar with the contents,
I could not read a single word. I was able to recognize all
of the mathematical terms and diagrams, so there was a degree
of comfort—albeit minimal—in leafing through the
books. Suddenly, I had a revelation: What must a student from
a foreign country be thinking on his first day in one of our
public schools, opening a math book, and not understanding
a single word besides possibly recognizing some symbols? This
is an occurrence that probably happens every day somewhere
in this metropolis where over one hundred languages are spoken.
Studies show that students in this situation are usually most
comfortable in their math class where at least symbols are
recognizable, if not words. What do we do in all subjects to
facilitate these foreign students’ entrance to our schools
and our society? First, we need to sensitize all of our teachers
(since there is hardly a region of the city without immigrants)
to the plight of these students. Teachers should experience
the phenomenon of looking at a book in their subject that is
written in a foreign language, especially one that has no common
words with English (e.g. Chinese, Russian, Hungarian, and even
Turkish). Every teacher should be given an exercise to try
to decipher a random page of the book, which would normally
cover a topic she teaches. This process alone could initiate
teachers into the difficulties of plunging into a new language
and a new world.
For decades, bilingual education has been a controversial
issue and a possible remedy for the problem of language acquisition.
One standard argument against it has been that children receiving
bilingual education are prevented from the proper exposure
to English that would allow them to speak English fluently.
Rather than automatically putting these recently arrived students
in special bilingual classes, I believe we should provide in-service
instruction to all teachers in the theories and best practice
of second language acquisition so that they can productively
work with these English language learners in their regular
classes. This is especially important today, when we are experiencing
a shortage of bilingual teachers—further weakening the
pool of such teachers. Every teacher should be able to facilitate
the learning process for these students who are exposed to
English for the first time. As the city continues to be the
focal point for foreign immigration, it is our obligation to
provide the best possible education program for all of our
students. This includes the new immigrants who will be tomorrow’s
American citizenry.#
Dr. Alfred Posamentier is Dean School of Education, CCNY.
