Bilingualism in the United States

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Bilingualism in the United States

Hakuta (1986: 226) argues that “perhaps the rosiest future for bilingual education in the United States can be attained by dissolving the paradoxical attitude of admiration and pride for school-attained bilingualism on the one hand and scorn and shame for home brewed immigrant bilinguals on the other.  ”Can these attitudes be changed if so, what are some specific steps that could be taken by government or community groups? Be sure to consider Spolsky’s (2001) “Principles for a language policy for a heritage language community.”

The government can put in place measures to encourage bilingualism without specification on the mode of acquisition. This means that the government will put in place a sensitization process so that the scorn on immigrant brewed bilingualism is eliminated and instead embraced. The government has to emphasize on the need for more people to speak freely in the language they are comfortable with. Policy changes in the United States need to encourage maintenance of culture to ensure that the local languages are passed down generations. This will ensure that nobody will feel more special for learning a second or third language in school while the rest is learned locally. There will be uniformity in the Use of English and the society will be accommodative of other cultures and respect their languages.