Mod 2 Discussion: What the Research Means to Me

To me, the research means that individuals who receive a free and appropriate education in the United States must be guaranteed equal and fair treatment under civil rights laws of the United States. Brown v. Board of Education and the 1964 Civil Rights Act Title VI were the catalyst of the 1974 Lau v. Nichols court decisions. According to the 1974 Lau. v. Nichols class-action lawsuit, the San Francisco Unified School District did not provide "access" to English language acquisition for English Language Learner students. The courts noted that the students received the same treatment but not equal treatment. To me, this scenario is like an individual who has no musical background or formal education in music, who is expected to read classical music and perform to the best of their ability. As educators, we should not make the mistake of generalizing the background of English Language Learners (ELL) with Limited English proficiency. English Language Learners are very diverse and we should treat every students' situation differently. The research also means to me, is that linguistic boundaries exist among the many languages around the world. As an educator, it would be unfair for me to impose the way I learned English onto my students. The way I know of directions, may not be the same for my English Language Learners. The  color blue for me, may take on the form of knowing the different shades of blue, for the English Language Learner. That is to say, Linguistics play a vital role in teaching the English Language to ELL students.