Both common sense and the federal courts compel Colorado to find effective ways to teach the increasing number of students in our schools who don’t speak English.

While it is expensive to offer bilingual education or English as a second language programs, the human and social costs of not doing so would be even more enormous. These youngsters are our fellow workers and citizens of tomorrow.

The real questions facing the schools, as Denver Post reporters found in a just-concluded series on non-English-speaking students, are how to pay for such programs and how best to help students learn English while keeping abreast of other studies.

In Denver, the number of non-English-speaking students has risen 50 percent in four years, to 13,600 last fall. DPS faces a lawsuit and internal debate over the best way to meet these youngsters’ educational needs.

But in suburban and rural districts, the numbers of non-English speaking students also have skyrocketed in just four years: by 218 percent in Westminster, 200 percent in Aurora, 196 percent in Boulder and 174 percent in Commerce City. In smaller communities, absolute numbers are smaller but percentages are larger: 514 percent in West Yuma and 1,138 percent in Rifle.

And unlike Denver, where the controversy is mostly about how best to provide bilingual education, many suburbs and most small towns don’t have formal programs to educate non-English-speaking students.

Elected leaders and voters must directly address the issue, since the numbers of non-English speaking students no doubt will continue toincrease.

Foremost is where to get the money to hire or train qualified bilingual teachers. Since 1984, state funding for bilingual education has stagnated at $ 2.6 million annually – while the numbers of students and school districts that need assistance have grown astronomically. Clearly, the state legislature needs to significantly increase state funding for bilingual programs.

School districts themselves must do more with their own resources, as well. The schools get about $ 4,500 per student each year from state and local funding; some of that needs to be earmarked for bilingual programs.

Districts also should seek community and academic help in their own backyards. It may be possible to get assistance from the language departments at nearby community colleges and universities. Civic groups or businesses could develop scholarships for young people to become bilingual teachers on the condition that they return to their communities to work.

Not taking action may open the door to lawsuits; it would be much better to spend money now on teachers and textbooks than later on attorney’s fees and court costs.

Most important, it is in society’s interest to ensure that these children are properly educated. There’s no time for adult dithering. Youngsters grow up quickly. They need help while they are still in school.



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