NLA xpost: California's English Only Initiative (fwd)

[David J Rosen]

[Cross-posted from NIFL-ESL]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 7 Nov 1997 23:16:47 -0500 (EST)
From: Grupo Primavera <paul168 at juno.com>
Reply-To: nifl-esl at literacy.nifl.gov
To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-esl at literacy.nifl.gov>
Subject: [NIFL-ESL:1472] California's English Only Initiative


             As it will appear on the June, 1998 California Ballot


                                The Unz Initiative
                       by Ron K. Unz and Gloria Matta Tuchman
  Text: 

  SECTION 1. Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 300) is added to Part 1
of the Educational 
  Code, to read: 

  CHAPTER 3. ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION FOR IMMIGRANT CHILDREN 

  ARTICLE 1. Findings and Declarations 

  300. The People of California find and declare as follows: 

  (a) WHEREAS the English language is the national public language of the
United States of 
  America and of the state of California, is spoken by the vast majority
of California residents, and 
  is also the leading world language for science, technology, and
international business, thereby 
  being the language of economic opportunity; and 

  (b) WHEREAS immigrant parents are eager to have their children acquire
a good knowledge of 
  English, thereby allowing them to fully participate in the American
Dream of economic and social 
  advancement; and 

  (c) WHEREAS the government and the public schools of California have a
moral obligation and 
  a constitutional duty to provide all of Californiams children,
regardless of their ethnicity or national 
  origins, with the skills necessary to become productive members of our
society, and of these 
  skills, literacy in the English language is among the most important;
and 

  (d) WHEREAS the public schools of California currently do a poor job of
educating immigrant 
  children, wasting financial resources on costly experimental language
programs whose failure 
  over the past two decades is demonstrated by the current high drop-out
rates and low English 
  literacy levels of many immigrant children; and 

  (e) WHEREAS young immigrant children can easily acquire full fluency in
a new language, such 
  as English, if they are heavily exposed to that language in the
classroom at an early age. 

  (f) THEREFORE it is resolved that: all children in California public
schools shall be taught English 
  as rapidly and effectively as possible. 

  ARTICLE 2. English Language Education 

  305. Subject to the exceptions provided in Article 3 (commencing with
Section 310), all children 
  in California public schools shall be taught English by being taught in
English. In particular, this 
  shall require that all children be placed in English language
classrooms. Children who are English 
  learners shall be educated through sheltered English immersion during a
temporary transition 
  period not normally intended to exceed one year. Local schools shall be
permitted to place in the 
  same classroom English learners of different ages but whose degree of
English proficiency is 
  similar. Local schools shall be encouraged to mix together in the same
classroom English learners 
  from different native-language groups but with the same degree of
English fluency. Once English 
  learners have acquired a good working knowledge of English, they shall
be transferred to English 
  language mainstream classrooms. As much as possible, current
supplemental funding for English 
  learners shall be maintained, subject to possible modification under
Article 8 (commencing with 
  Section 335) below. 

  306. The definitions of the terms used in this article and in Article 3
(commencing with Section 
  310) are as follows: 

  (a) "English learner" means a child who does not speak English or whose
native language is not 
  English and who is not currently able to perform ordinary classroom
work in English, also known 
  as a Limited English Proficiency or LEP child. 

  (b) "English language classroom" means a classroom in which the
language of instruction used by 
  the teaching personnel is overwhelmingly the English language, and in
which such teaching 
  personnel possess a good knowledge of the English language. 

  (c) "English language mainstream classroom" means a classroom in which
the students either are 
  native English language speakers or already have acquired reasonable
fluency in English. 

  (d) "Sheltered English immersion" or "structured English immersion"
means an English language 
  acquisition process for young children in which nearly all classroom
instruction is in English but 
  with the curriculum and presentation designed for children who are
learning the language. 

  (e) "Bilingual education/native language instruction" means a language
acquisition process for 
  students in which much or all instruction, textbooks, and teaching
materials are in the childms 
  native language. 

  ARTICLE 3. Parental Exceptions 

  310. The requirements of Section 305 may be waived with the prior
written informed consent, to 
  be provided annually, of the childms parents or legal guardian under
the circumstances specified 
  below and in Section 311. Such informed consent shall require that said
parents or legal guardian 
  personally visit the school to apply for the waiver and that they there
be provided a full 
  description of the educational materials to be used in the different
educational program choices 
  and all the educational opportunities available to the child. Under
such parental waiver 
  conditions, children may be transferred to classes where they are
taught English and other 
  subjects through bilingual education techniques or other generally
recognized educational 
  methodologies permitted by law. Individual schools in which 20 students
or more of a given 
  grade level receive a waiver shall be required to offer such a class;
otherwise, they must allow the 
  students to transfer to a public school in which such a class is
offered. 

  311. The circumstances in which a parental exception waiver may be
granted under Section 310 
  are as follows: 

  (a) Children who already know English: the child already possesses good
English language skills, 
  as measured by standardized tests of English vocabulary comprehension,
reading, and writing, in 
  which the child scores at or above the state average for his grade
level or at or above the 5th 
  grade average, whichever is lower; or 
  
  (b) Older children: the child is age 10 years or older, and it is the
informed belief of the school 
  principal and educational staff that an alternate course of educational
study would be better 
  suited to the childms rapid acquisition of basic English language
skills; or 

  (c) Children with special needs: the child already has been placed for
a period of not less than 
  thirty days during that school year in an English language classroom
and it is subsequently the 
  informed belief of the school principal and educational staff that the
child has such special 
  physical, emotional, psychological, or educational needs that an
alternate course of educational 
  study would be better suited to the childms overall educational
development. A written description 
  of these special needs must be provided and any such decision is to be
made subject to the 
  examination and approval of the local school superintendent, under
guidelines established by and 
  subject to the review of the local Board of Education and ultimately
the State Board of 
  Education. The existence of such special needs shall not compel
issuance of a waiver, and the 
  parents shall be fully informed of their right to refuse to agree to a
waiver. 
  
   ARTICLE 4. Community-Based English Tutoring 

  315. In furtherance of its constitutional and legal requirement to
offer special language assistance 
  to children coming from backgrounds of limited English proficiency, the
state shall encourage 
  family members and others to provide personal English language tutoring
to such children, and 
  support these efforts by raising the general level of English language
knowledge in the community. 
  Commencing with the fiscal year in which this initiative is enacted and
for each of the nine fiscal 
  years following thereafter, a sum of fifty million dollars
($50,000,000) per year is hereby 
  appropriated from the General Fund for the purpose of providing
additional funding for free or 
  subsidized programs of adult English language instruction to parents or
other members of the 
  community who pledge to provide personal English language tutoring to
California school 
  children with limited English proficiency. 

  316. Programs funded pursuant to this section shall be provided through
schools or community 
  organizations. Funding for these programs shall be administered by the
Office of the 
  Superintendent of Public Instruction, and shall be disbursed at the
discretion of the local school 
  boards, under reasonable guidelines established by, and subject to the
review of, the State Board 
  of Education. 

  ARTICLE 5. Legal Standing and Parental Enforcement 

  320. As detailed in Article 2 (commencing with Section 305) and Article
3 (commencing with 
  Section 310), all California school children have the right to be
provided with an English language 
  public education. If a California school child has been denied the
option of an English language 
  instructional curriculum in public school, the childms parent or legal
guardian shall have legal 
  standing to sue for enforcement of the provisions of this statute, and
if successful shall be 
  awarded normal and customary attorneyms fees and actual damages, but
not punitive or 
  consequential damages. Any school board member or other elected
official or public school 
  teacher or administrator who willfully and repeatedly refuses to
implement the terms of this 
  statute by providing such an English language educational option at an
available public school to a 
  California school child may be held personally liable for fees and
actual damages by the childms 
  parents or legal guardian. 

  ARTICLE 6. Severability 

  325. If any part or parts of this statute are found to be in conflict
with federal law or the United 
  States or the California State Constitution, the statute shall be
implemented to the maximum 
  extent that federal law, and the United States and the California State
Constitution permit. Any 
  provision held invalid shall be severed from the remaining portions of
this statute. 

  ARTICLE 7. Operative Date 

  330. This initiative shall become operative for all school terms which
begin more than sixty days 
  following the date at which it becomes effective. 

  ARTICLE 8. Amendment. 

  335. The provisions of this act may be amended by a statute that
becomes effective upon 
  approval by the electorate or by a statute to further the actms purpose
passed by a two-thirds 
  vote of each house of the Legislature and signed by the Governor. 

  ARTICLE 9. Interpretation 

       340. Under circumstances in which portions of this statute are
subject to conflicting 
    interpretations, Section 300 shall be assumed to contain the
governing intent of the statute.