Reply to Charter School board is approving new schools!

Forum Index » DC Public and Public Charter Schools

Reply to "Charter School board is approving new schools!"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Ugh. I wish charters would branch out from the language emphasis. Languages are good but hardly the only thing that matters! Would prefer that the school focuses on instruction instead of being distracted by trying to hire native speakers.[/quote]

You say that as if doing both is impossible.  It's not.  Time will mainly tell, but the language immersion schools I'm most familiar with strive to do both really well.  We'll all see how students do as these schools are open for 10 and 15 years.[/quote]

Agree with this.
[i]
foreign language learning is much more a cognitive problem solving activity than a linguistic activity, overall. [b]Studies have shown repeatedly that foreign language learning increases critical thinking skills, creativity, and flexibility of mind in young children. Students who are learning a foreign language out-score their non-foreign language learning peers in the verbal and, surprisingly to some, the math sections of standardized tests.[/b] This relationship between foreign language study and increased mathematical skill development, particularly in the area of problem solving, points once again to the fact that second language learning is more of a cognitive than linguistic activity. 
A 2007 study in Harwich, Massachusetts, showed that students who studied a foreign language in an articulated sequence outperformed their non-foreign language learning peers on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test after two-three years and significantly outperformed them after seven-eight years on all MCAS subtests.

Furthermore, there is research (Webb bibliography) that shows that [b]children who study a foreign language, even when this second language study takes time away from the study of mathematics, outperform (on standardized tests of mathematics) students who do not study a foreign language and have more mathematical instruction during the school day.[/b] Again, this research upholds the notion that learning a second language is an exercise in cognitive problem solving and that the effects of second language instruction are directly transferable to the area of mathematical skill development.[/i]

http://tip.duke.edu/node/866[/quote]

But which really came first, PP, the second language or the intelligence?  Some might argue that what motivates the creation of language immersion charters, at least in part, is the desire to drive out kids who are not smart enough, don't have support at home, come from a different culture, etc.[/quote]

I think it's [i]you[/i] who are continually arguing that language immersion schools are designed to keep low-SES families out. That is complete BS. Look at Mary McLeod Bethune or DC Bilingual and get back to us.[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics