Giuliani Proposes ESL Reforms
Frustrated by uneven academic progress, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani unveiled a series of reforms yesterday intended to help the city's more than 160,000 non-English speaking students learn the language faster. Greater parental choice, recruitment of better qualified bilingual and ESL teachers, and greater emphasis on meeting the state's three-year transition goal into mainstream classrooms were among the recommendations released in a report from the Mayor's Task Force on Bilingual Education. In endorsing the report, Schools Chancellor Harold Levy, who sits on a three-member panel appointed by the mayor to examine bilingual education, stopped short of stating his position. The chancellor is scheduled to propose similar changes to a bilingual subcommittee of the Board of Education, which meets today. Specific details of Levy's plan were sketchy yesterday, but he hinted in his remarks at City Hall that his recommendations would parallel the findings of the mayor's task force. "There is so much that we agree on here, and so much that we collectively can put in place to improve the education of children who come to this country not speaking English,” said Levy as the mayor sat nearby. "Everyone wants the children, by the time they graduate, and as early as possible, to speak and read English fluently. The question is how do we do that, and how do we do that consistently with the other objectives that we have as well.” The city's system for teaching students with poor English skills has been criticized for slow progress. Randy Mastro, former deputy mayor and chair of the mayor's task force, said that according to statistics from the Board of Education, more than half of the students enrolled in bilingual education do not exit their programs within three years, which is the state's goal. Critics have also maintained that foreign-born students become trapped in dead-end bilingual programs, which offer substandard academic courses. Under the existing procedure, the Board of Education places students in bilingual education classes if they fail an English competency exam. Under the task force's recommendations, parents would have options, including intensive English-only summer and one-year programs. But any proposed changes to city bilingual educational programs could face serious civil rights and legal challenges, because of existing federal guidelines intended to ensure that non-English-speaking students have access to the same education as English-speaking students. But despite the possible challenges, Giuliani remained optimistic that changes could be made in bilingual education to help immigrants assimilate into the city. "They should be the ones deciding the kind of bilingual education program they want for their children,” Giuliani said. "We should make sure that it has some finite part to it. What we should be doing is making sure that the children that graduate from our schools are fluent in English for their own good, so that they have a better chance at success.” Board of Education President William C. Thompson was unavailable for comment late yesterday. |