Castañeda V. Pickard Case Summary

Bilingual education has been a debatable subject since its conception during the case of Lau vs. Nichols, in the early 1970’s. However, in that case, the court only ruling was that the children’s

Movements for bilingual education rose in 1974 with the Equal Education Opportunity Act and Bingual Education Act, which ordered federally funded schools to meet special educational needs for students not proficient in English. Unfortunately, dropout rates and lack of English-language proficiency alarmed the states that these bilingual programs were not efficent. Because of this, arguments between English-only advocates and supporters of bilingual educations emerged. Articles such as the New York Times have proclaimed the failures of bilingual education. One cause could be the resistance of immigrants from English language acquisition, who hold tight onto their first language and culture. Despite this, studies show that generations

T.M., by A.M. and R.M., his parents, Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, v. Cornwall Central School District United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit Docket nos. 12-4301, 12-4484(XAP). Decided: April 2, 2014

Through this opinion the district has the authority to manage and structure the schools they deem fit. Under Judge Smith’s deliberation he further explains that the Mexican students are not being segregated. Although, Judge Smith’s statement is valid it negates the fact that as a court they hold the responsibility to make sure school districts are abiding by the law. Smith validates the Del Rio Independent School district intention and

The primary goal of any school district’s English Language Learner policy should be to ensure that all students receive equitable access to the curriculum. The Office of Civil Rights memorandum (May 25, 1970) requires school districts to take affirmative steps to provide equal access to instructional program for students with limited English proficiency. The Illinois Constitution guarantees every child from kindergarten through grade 12, access to a free public education; which means, regardless of a child’s home language, he/she deserves a free and appropriate education (Illinois State Board of Education, 1998).

School principals will find in the following lawsuits the legal framework to provide educational services to ELLs in public schools. Baker (1997) points out that a landmark case in favor of bilingual education in the United States was a lawsuit in 1970. The case was a class-action suit brought by the parents of nearly 3000 Chinese students against the San Francisco School District (Lyons, 1990). This case originated that in 1974 the Unites States Supreme Court handed down its only substantive decision regarding the responsibilities of school districts serving ELLs (Lyons, 1990). The court indicated that under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, the Chinese students were entitled to receive specific support to allow them full participation in the school program (Crawford, 1989). This case was known as Lau v. Nichols and its verdict outlawed English submersion programs for language minority students, and resulted in nationwide ‘Lau Remedies’ (Baker, 1997). Lyons (1990) writes that the ‘Lau Remedies’ specified how to identify and evaluate language minority students, determine appropriate instruction, decide when ELLs were ready for mainstream, and determine the professional standards expected of teachers serving language minority students. Under the Lau Remedies school districts were encouraged to provide

Diana versus State Board of Education, 1970, Hispanic students who only spoke Spanish were give IQ tests in English. As as result of the tests, the students scored at the mental retardation level and were placed in classes for students with mental retardation. The court ordered that testing should be done in the language spoken by the student. Also, the court ordered retesting of the students wrongly placed in special education be give additional assistance to transition back into the general education setting.

This ruling primarily concerned the schools responsibility to “maximize” student achievement and was more focused on the level of services provided rather than the exclusion of benefits due to lack of benefit. (United States Court Of Appeals, 1989) The Rowley case ultimately provided a basic “floor of opportunity” and with regard to handicapped children specifically states that … "[t]he Act requires special educational services for children 'regardless of the severity of their handicap,"' … and "[t]he Act requires participating States to educate a wide spectrum of handicapped children, from the marginally hearing-impaired to the profoundly retarded and palsied…” (United States Court Of Appeals, 1989) Although Robert Walczak and Karen Walczak V. Florida Union Free School District and Maureen Flaherty produced a ruling that a child should be placed in a program that provides for educational advancement it does not prescribe that a child must show ability to advance before services are rendered.

Proposition 58 would undo almost 20 years of regulations limiting bilingual education. It repeals the English-only immersion requirements, along with the waiver provisions of the 1998 Proposition 227. Currently, under Proposition 227, all education is conducted exclusively in English, with a few exceptions. These exceptions include voluntary education programs, such as dual emersion classes, where students concurrently learn English and a second language. In effect, this proposition would bring back programs where students, that are not fully fluent in English, have education in both English and their native language. I understand the educational value of bilingual classrooms; however, I am concerned that it would cause segregation and significant disadvantages for students.

Decision: The court ruled against the school district and upheld the establishment clause of the first

In 1974, Dwight Lopez and eight students were suspended for 10 days on behalf of destroying school property and disrupting the learning environment at Central High School in Columbus, Ohio. Lopez testified he was a bystander and he was innocent. In addition, Lopez testified approximately 75 other students were suspended as well. Lopez claimed his suspension without a hearing violated his Fourteenth Amendment right to due process. During this action, the principals did not perform hearings for none of the affected students before ordering the suspensions. Due to the students not given a hearing, the principals’ actions were challenged and a class-action suit was filed asking for declaratory and injunctive

In 1981 the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals established three criteria for determining program adequacy and appropriate action for limited English proficiency students as it ruled in favor of Castaneda, the plaintiff. The program must be:

In 1982, the Supreme Court decided Board of Education of the Hendrick Hudson Central School District v. Rowley. A deaf student, named Amy Rowley enrolled in kindergarten in public school in Peekskill, New York. Amy’s parents met with school administrators to plan for her attendance and to determine what supplemental services would be necessary for her education. Amy was assigned a sign language interpreter for a short portion of her kindergarten year. After two weeks, the sign language interpreter reported that Amy did not need the services inside of the classroom. Once Amy fished her kindergarten year and started first grade, an IEP was prepared for Amy’s assistances. The IEP was provided to Amy and her parents that she would be kept in the

It seems that in this country people want to rush to the courts to fix things. George could not be fixed by the courts so the time had come to be realistic about meeting George’s needs as no law in the United States gives the state the right to NOT meet his needs. Having looked at the final settlement and the numbers involved it seems clear to me that the family was not out to “milk the school district”. They wanted simply to see their son get the most he could get from the educational system and become as viable of an American citizen as possible. This case cries out for thinking outside the box and putting the child first. Unfortunately, as I have seen from interviewing other teachers many parents simply want a fix for their unfixable child. This case does not fall into this category and the fact that in the end solutions were found demonstrates that point.

Immigrants often are overlooked and mistreated because of their seemingly lower status. Many immigrants move to America to pursue better education or work options. Many of these immigrants bring families or meet people in America and start families here. These children have challenges of their own, moving to a new home, or the seemingly simple problem of the language barrier. Congress tried to overcome this challenge by passing the Bilingual Education Act (more commonly known as Title VII) in 1967, but it was met with strong debate. Aria: A Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood by Richard Rodriguez is a strong argument against bilingual education.