Asian students are the center of a dispute over bilingual education that has put several North Jersey school districts at odds with state education officials.

Enforcing a 1975 law designed chiefly to meet the needs of the waves of Hispanic students entering the schools, state officials have directed these North Jersey districts to provide bilingual education for Asian students, too.

The state issued the orders to Paramus, Ridgewood, Tenafly, Palisades Park, and Fort Lee, even though there aren’t many Asians in their schools.

Thirty-three Japanese students who speak English poorly, or not at all, attend Paramus public schools. They are scattered through all grade levels, making it difficult and costly for the district to establish a bilingual program for all of them.

That is not the only problem. The district tried to hire a bilingual Japanese teacher this year, but even after spending $ 3,000 on advertising, the district could not find one. Instead, Paramus settled on a bilingual aide, who tutors elementary school students for 30 to 60 minutes a week in difficult subjects.

New Jersey has one of the strongest bilingual education laws in the country. Under the law, districts must provide bilingual education when there are 20 or more students who speak the same foreign language and cannot converse in English.

The aim of the law is to help students learn English faster and to prevent them from falling behind in school while they learn English.

With the support of the New Jersey Association of School Administrators, Paramus Superintendent Harry Galinsky is spearheading a campaign to ease the law’s requirements. He has found an ally in Assemblyman Walter M. D. Kern Jr., R-Ridgewood, who has introduced a bill requiring all instruction to be in English.

Legislative hearings are expected to be held on the bill sometime this spring.

William Cobb, Ridgewood’s acting superintendent of schools, maintains that Asian students learn best when instructed only in English. Ridgewood hired a bilingual teacher only because the state required it.

Last month, Ridgewood’s school board wrote to state Sen. Matthew Feldman, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, asking that the state’s bilingual law be eased.

Tenafly school officials also say that, in their experience with Asian students, bilingual education has limited value.

Not everyone agrees.

Japanese parents in Paramus want their children to receive all their classroom instruction in English, but would welcome bilingual tutors to assist the youngsters. Many of the county’s Japanese residents are executives with Japanese companies, and are in this country for only a few years.

“The course of study should be English,” said Akihira Morimoto, the father of a Paramus High School sophomore. “But after they finish a subject, if they have questions, they ask this bilingual tutor. I want this kind of bilingual education.”

Asian students say bilingual education would be helpful at the outset.

“I had a science class. I didn’t know anything,” said Yoshi Shiraishi, a Paramus sophomore. “I was just sitting there drawing and it was a waste of time.”

Educators are sharply divided on the merits of bilingual education. Some say it keeps students from falling behind in other subjects while they learn English; others say it is crutch that reduces the motivation to learn English.

State Education Commissioner Saul Cooperman recognizes that bilingual education may not be right for all students. “We have to let districts try various ways to provide these services,” he said.

State officials have been flexible, allowing some districts to satisfy the law by tutoring students in both languages. Those districts do not use bilingual teachers for specific subjects, such as science or math.

Palisades Park, Ridgewood, and Tenafly have, in the last two years, grudgingly hired bilingual teachers to tutor Japanese and Korean students in response to the state mandate.

Fort Lee and Palisades Park offer bilingual classes in science and social studies for Japanese and Korean youngsters.

Even though Paramus does not have a bilingual program, Japanese students spend at least part of the day in English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, along with other foreign youngsters. ESL teachers speak only English. The students pick up the language in two to three years, school officials said.

Said Galinsky: “Tell me the reason we have to go to bilingualism is because kids aren’t learning; then I’ll listen. But we’re successful.

The dominant mode of instruction is English. Kids aren’t being hurt by that.”

State officials concede that Galinsky may be right. “We want to help Paramus help their children,” said Richard DiPatri, assistant commissioner of educational programs. If we think the law is hamstringing the districts, I’d be the first to say let’s change it.”

But DiPatri added: “We support transitional bilingual education.”

Paramus would need at least three bilingual teachers next year if it does not receive a state waiver. The district may also have to provide Koreans with bilingual education because there are 19 Korean students who have trouble speaking English. One more Korean student would force Paramus to establish a bilingual program with at least two teachers.



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