Wisconsin Budget Bill Could Eliminate Successful English Learning Program

Legislation would replace English teaching methods with bilingual-bicultural courses

Legislators in Wisconsin have approved a state budget bill that would require private schools with more than 10 percent limited-English proficient students to teach students in a bilingual-bicultural fashion, despite the fact that some schools have successful English-immersion programs in place. The amendment, which was added by Wisconsin Assemblyman Pedro Colon, would gut some of the most well received and innovative learning methods in the state, replacing those that teach children mostly in English with courses that rely heavily on maintaining the student’s native language.

If set into law, the change would hit the St. Anthony’s School in South Milwaukee especially hard. St. Anthony’s, a private choice school where nearly all of the 1,000 students come from Spanish speaking homes, uses English immersion techniques to help children acquire English fluency as quickly as possible. According to principal Ramón Cruz, the proposed change would not only eliminate the existing program, lauded by both parents and administrators, but require St. Anthony’s to lay off existing staff and hire new personnel to teach the mandated courses.

“This is an outrageous example of the bilingualism lobby telling educators how to do their jobs and hurting children in the process,” said Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman of U.S. English, Inc. “Though bilingual education advocates have a right to express their opinion on the best manner of educating English language learners, they cross the line when they purposely undo a successful competing program. Unfortunately, instead of joining parents and educators in lauding the efforts of St. Anthony’s School, they attempt to tear the program apart because it proves that their beliefs are flawed. All Wisconsin residents should be ashamed of this behavior.”

Under the measure passed by the Joint Finance Committee, St. Anthony’s and other private choice schools with similar demographics would be required to teach bilingual-bicultural programs beginning in the 2010-11 school year. For many St. Anthony’s students, this would mean abruptly transitioning from a class taught overwhelmingly in English in 2009-10 to one taught mostly in Spanish the following year. The budget bill now heads to the full House and full Senate for consideration.

“If legislators and union leaders want to teach in a bilingual-bicultural fashion, they can do so in their own homes rather than force their beliefs down the throats of schoolchildren,” added Mujica. “Their actions are an affront to the schools, the teachers and the very parents they claim to be representing. For the sake of tomorrow’s leaders now being educated at St. Anthony’s and elsewhere around the state, I hope that Wisconsin’s elected officials come to their senses and remove this ridiculous amendment.”