No Habla Ingles....

Really? We need a law passed to make sure this happening? Now, I love the United States, and despite our problems, we are STILL the best country in the WORLD, but COME ON! I appreciate the fact that in a global economy and in a world where many cultures can be represented in one area, more than one language is likely to be spoken. I see great value in being fluent in more than one language. I wish I was! I support offering foreign languages in all schools, at all levels. However, we're in America, and if you don't want to learn English, you need to leave. Same rule should apply if someone moves to Germany and doesn't want to learn German. Of COURSE you should have to speak, read, and write in English in order to graduate. How in God's name would a student a be able to make it through all the years leading up to their Senior year without being able to do this? Oh, that's right, political correctness. We don't want to offend, so we have to offer the same curriculum in multiple languages. This will require more teachers (unnecessary teachers because this shouldn't be happening) and the teachers we DO need will suffer. Bottom line: if you leave your country of origin to go anywhere else (whether it be America, Spain, Italy, etc etc), you need to learn THEIR language.

I understand that people will argue that English is spoken globally so we don't understand, etc, but I don't buy it. Yes, it is spoken globally, but these countries that teach it aren't giving up their own languages and we aren't moving there expecting them to cater to us. What about our ancestors that moved here and worked their asses off to learn the language?  We offer so many ESL programs in this country that it shouldn't be an issue. Look in the job section of any paper or any online job site, ESL jobs are ALWAYS in demand. As for those people who won't learn,  it's pure laziness and/or arrogance and we're allowing it to happen. Kudos to New London, but at the same time, I'm sorry that we needed a mandate to make this happen.

-KC Jones

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/New-London-Graduation-Requirement-Speak-English-121883654.html

New London Graduation Requirement: Speak English

Only 16 percent of 10th graders test at the highest levels.

Monday, May 16, 2011 | Updated 6:46 PM EDT

The schools superintendent says, beginning in 2015, students must be able to read and write English in order to graduate.

By LeAnne Gendreau

Students in New London will not only have to pass English to graduate, but they will have to prove that they know the American English language and be able to demonstrate it as of 2015.

The board of education on Thursday approved the major change to city education policy, according to the Day of New London.

The student body includes immigrants from 28 countries, the Day reports. And the school district Web site includes translations in 52 languages.

"We know from colleges and employers, that our students are going to have to know how to read and write in English if they are going be successful," Supt. Nicholas Fischer, told the Day.

That is not to say that the school is instituting an "English only" program in which where students are told they can only speak English in the schools. New London's program is a literacy program in which students will be required to achieve a certain level of English reading and writing literacy by the 10th grade.

The school system will offer several ways for students to fulfill their English language requirement and they have until the age of 21 to meet it. One community leader has no problem with testing students in English, but was concerned about students making it to 11th grade without being able to speak the language. "It's good that we are raising standards, and I don't see a problem with testing," Elizabeth Garcia Gonzalez, executive director of Centro de la Comunidad and a former school board president, told the Day.  "But I have concerns about a student who comes into the high school at 11th grade and can't speak the language."

The state department of education does not have a policy of this kind.

*Big Ran Note: