Controversial Topic Discussion

That's what I'm saying. Students who come into America at such young ages, and are given the chance, can learn quickly. But ones who are already of school age have difficulties learning in the mainstream classroom environment. One's whose parents know no English have an even harder time, as the practice of the language outside of the classroom is intrinsic to their integration.

Also, illegal or not, the families that come in generally are not as lucky as your family. So the hardships they face toss blocks up on their learning and integration into the community. My mother teachers kindergarten and has a student in her class that has just come over the border from Mexico with his mother, who came to live with another child and her husband. The father and oldest son can speak English quite well, the mother and younger son cannot. Even with the help of the family and friends who are able to speak English, the past semester of school, and total immersion into the society, the child and his mother barely know the words a two year old normally can tell you. This saddens me, because they are often looked over as ignorant, or illegal (I don't know if they are or not) because of the struggle to learn these new phrases. The mother has recently decided that she doesn't need to learn English because her family can all speak Spanish, so she has stopped encouraging her son because of her low self-esteem. This could go on until the family reverts to their Spanish speaking completely, and lose the ability to really immerse in the culture they chose to come to. If you are going to immigrate, you need to choose somewhere that can not only provide a better home for your children, but that you will be comfortable living in as one with the community.
Elizabeth
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