Should the USA formerly adopt the English Only Rule Essay Example Essay Example

Should the USA formerly adopt the English Only Rule Essay Example Paper Should the USA formerly adopt the English Only Rule Essay Introduction The United States of America has always been called the land of the free. It is one country that everyone, almost, would like to come and live at. They say that America is a country full of hope and fulfillment. All some can see was the promises, golden promises that are being offered to those who became citizens of this country. They all wish to fulfill the American dream. America was the dream came true for most migrants who were able to find a place to stay here and live a good life. Especially to those poverty stricken places, America is like a pot of gold for them. Money is not that easy in America for like in other places, you really have to work hard for it but still because of America’s good economic standing in the world market, they still see America as a good place to work and fulfill their dreams. America is comps of a group of nation, there is no one place in America where there is only Americans, Native Americans that is.Since the United States of America is a me lting pot and is comprise of many nationalities, one issue that it faced will be using an English-only rules especially in teaching students of gradeschool and highschool. Learning a secondary language is never easy. It requires a lot of patience and handwork, after all there is no such thing as overnight success. It is only natural that mistakes will be encountered by anyone who tries to learn a new language as he or she progress in the process of learning. Learners of second language may encounter mistakes in learning and this obstacle is brought on by their first language (Ramà ­rez, Yuen, and Ramey, 1991.). The developmental sequencing of a person learning a second language has something to do with the mastery of the linguistic elements as it existed in the person’s cognitive understanding. (Lightbown and Spada, 2003) The mind is a critical element of a human being.The mind controls a lot of bodily functions like thinking which corresponds to learning which corresponds t o reaction or decision we make depending on what we perceive as right and wrong as to what we have registered in our brain cells that is in our brain or our mind. Not all language has the same usage in diction and grammar. There are differences in the way words are being pronounced by different nationalities; sometimes the tone of voice can make a great difference in the meaning of the word that one is conveying (Tarone, 2004). Critical thinking is common among adults, those whose brain has been developed in a way that they do not only accept everything that is being presented to them as absolute truth but also has the capability of questioning the validity of the information presented.The most precious possession that one person could have would be his knowledge. This is something that no one can take away from him. No one can rob you of what you know; you can only share it to others. They say that life is a continuous process of learning, we never cease to learn new things everyda y and man is never contented with the knowledge that he has now. To aid immigrants in the United States in their learning process the Bilingual Education Act of 1968 was ratified by the Congress. This 1968 Act aims to teach English to immigrants efficiently and more rapidly by employing the both their native language and the English language at the same time (Willig, 1985). They believed that this promote social equality and help raise the self-esteem of the minority. This means that as much as possible making others feel that there is no discrimination and that have equal opportunity for a quality education.It is assumed that all human beings are born with a unique capacity for language but the ability to put this language into action depends on the exposure that one would be having regarding the specific learning that he is having, a proper timing and proper teaching. The problem with the 1968 Act was the bilingual class was mostly for Spanish speaking natives only. Other national ities are not enjoying the privilege of having a bilingual class as much as they do. This would mean that the bilingual class is not equal after all and that it is still being shaded with discrimination.Younger learners may have an edge in learning a second language, they learn in a more contextual interactions; their advantage is that they are able to easily get the meaning of the words they hear. They are more willing experiment with unfamiliar sounds and sound sequences (Bucuvalas, 2002). Foreigners learn more when they can relate the English term that they are studying to their own native language. They should be able to freely compare and contrast different languages to better understand. This setting of learning could not be done if the English only rule will be acted on. It will be hard for the children to grasp the meaning if they still need to recall the word or phrase at a later time rather than learning in a bilingual setting.If one country uses multiple languages, it wil l be very costly in the sense that it will require them to print a lot of materials that may not be needed. The official language of the country is English and it is justifiable that those who would like to live in the country must learn the language to interact and succeed in the competition of life within the state. It does not necessarily mean that the old language will be abandoned but one must know what is the best language should be use as the situation calls for it. Another fallback of having a bilingual class will be the number of teachers that are capable of teaching may not be enough or may not be competent enough. Krashen has stresses out that acquisition of the language is important, knowing all the rules but failure in applying them would still be a negative acquisition for the learner.A student learns a lot about the language if he or she is exposed to it more time than. This would mean that only English language will be use for all classes and books and non-English sp eakers will just be given a remedial class and no more of the bilingual class. Some scholars believe that a child will not learn English faster if he or she learns it with his or her native language also being spoken. The behaviorism approach accentuates learning through imitation, practice, reinforcement and habit formation. Learning the secondary language will be of ease if the learner will see points of similarity with his native language but the he will have difficulty instilling those rules that have differences with the way he uses his native language. Learning readiness means that we are able to acquire the skills needed for us to have a good grasp on the concepts being presented in school or in our daily lives. Orientation as part of an adult learning is how we perceive lessons in life or in school. Five may all be looking at the same thing but they will arrive at five different conclusions. This is due to the fact that our orientation in life could dictate us on how we woul d think about the thing that we are looking at (Winnet).Recent studies support that a well designed bilingual program can achieve high levels of learning in school on a long term view. This achievement is with a no cost to English acquisition of students from disempowered group (Crawford, 1998). The studies on the effect of bilingualism confirmed that this help in cultivating academic excellence. A student’s native language needs not be sacrificed just to teach them effective English, instead it is even complementary. Moreover, native-language instruction can be helpful in overcoming other obstacles such as poverty, family illiteracy, and social stigmas associated with minority status. This helps them feel comfortable in working for what they would like to achieve in life.If one wants a work in America, he or she will be interviewed in English; his or her exams will be written in English. This means that as of now, the primary language that is being used in he country is Engl ish, so why adapting the English-only policy will not be such a hard problem for citizens and immigrants in the country. Immigrants in the country are required to take and passed an English proficiency exam before he or she could be given a visa to live or work within the boundaries of the United States of America. A fossilized system means that a second language learner would never develop his second language skill in the same manner, as in the same pronunciation as that of the language that he is studying (MacWhinney). Examples of this would be Japanese, Korean, Chinese or Russian nationalities with the English language as their secondary language but the diction and tones of heir native language is the one that they are still able to manifest, meaning they have not acquired the â€Å"tongue† of the west (Green, 1998).Everyone also have rights regarding their language. However this right is exercised by an individual as part of a group. Protection of these rights would mean protection of the community. A legal protection of language rights that would protect the linguistic community and not restrict its right to exist in any way (Crawford, 1998). Almost all transaction in the United States in America is done in English. If another person wants it in another language, he needs to translate it. There is no need to create a dilemma or a law as senseless as the English-only rule. One of the strengths of English as a language is that it is constantly evolving, swallowing new words and inventing others in a way that virtually no other modern language is able to do. Making a law that dictates â€Å"English only† is impractical and nonsensical for the above reason and because American cultures itself changes so fluidly. Human beings are created equally. Each person is given the chance to develop his or her capabilities. Some might have ended up not the way they wanted to but they were not without a choice. We are endowed with the right to pursue our li fe with liberty and happiness. There is no lesser being. Language should not be a hindrance on achieving goals. America would not be called the land of immigrants for no apparent reason. Should the USA formerly adopt the English Only Rule Essay Thank you for reading this Sample!