Language Beliefs and Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Language Beliefs and Learning - Essay Example These transformations have been studied closely and modified to realize the great changes that have been made in our school systems. The transformation of schools, now increasing in momentum is a response to educational practices of the past several decades that have not been effective in promoting the academic achievement of all students (Soto, 2007; Friedman, 2004). Students with close connections to their bilingual/bicultural heritages have been underserved especially by U.S schools. Policy issues regarding how these students are served have evolved around power relations between groups in the broader society and thus have not been effective in addressing the problem. When educators view particular groups of students as having problems in need of remediation, the deficit perspective tends to reinforce social status relations between groups that exist in the wider society (Piper, 2006). According to our chapter readings this week, most of the countries that speak English for example here in the United States, consider bilingualism to be out of the norm. Due to the diversity of culture and languages in schools, most of the children in the world speak more than one language by the time they finish high school. From various researches undertaken, English is observed to be the second language adopted by many students across the world. All languages have a systematic learning approach which makes them easy to learn. For instance, our language consists of twenty-six alphabet letters, morphemes, vowels consonants and digraph blends. In other languages, the same systematic concepts of presenting the language to be learned in their culture are used. It may not always match up with the lettering, but yet it has a way of linking communication with the letters, sounds and symbols in their culture the same way as the American English culture. From previous researches conducted o n languages, it is observed that when students have a  strong background in their primary language, the transition to a second language is easier (Ovando, Collier & Combs, 2011).