A Language Barrier Essay example -- Personal Narrative

A Language Barrier From my experience, bilingual education was a disadvantage during my childhood. At the age of twelve, I was introduced into a bilingual classroom for the first time. The crowded classroom was a combination of seventh and eighth grade Spanish-speaking students, who ranged from the ages of twelve to fifteen. The idea of bilingual education was to help students who weren’t fluent in the English language. The main focus of bilingual education was to teach English and, at the same time, teach a very basic knowledge of the core curriculum subjects: Mathematics, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences. Unfortunately, bilingual education had academic, psychological, and social disadvantages for me. A disadvantage is something that makes a situation worse or that makes somebody less effective. This is exactly what happened to me when I was part of bilingual education. Instead of learning challenging material, I was presented with material I already had learned when I was younger. English was never spoken in the classroom. Instead, different Spanish accents were heard: Colombian, Puerto Rican, Mexican, among others. I was labeled a â€Å"bilingual kid.† As a result, I couldn’t be part of the â€Å"regular kids’† groups. Therefore, I had to reinforce my family language and traditions instead of assimilating into the American culture. All these situations were disadvantages that played against the development of my education. The academic disadvantage was a delay in learning the English language. The crowded classroom had thirty to thirty-five students who came from a variety of Latin American nations. As a result, I used to speak Spanish with them. I didn’t want to make mistakes using incorrect words. Also... ...ents, and my English problem. I didn’t even have control of my own identity at that point. In the bilingual classroom my education depended upon the teachers and the system. I couldn’t express my viewpoints to faculty members like I do now in college. For instance, in college when I need help in a certain class, I can just go and talk to the professor or even to my counselor. Unfortunately, in grammar school, I didn’t know how to talk about the situation. As a result, in college I have been determined to change my study habits and take back control of my identity because I see how a student cannot survive with inefficient study habits. I realize now that, as a child, I was disadvantaged in many ways. Today, I have to be prepared to do extra to make up for a poor educational background by spending more time studying, focusing on school, and controlling my life.