Return-Path: <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id h4OMANC23612; Sat, 24 May 2003 18:10:23 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sat, 24 May 2003 18:10:23 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <secf98bf.063@nmail.epcc.edu> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "Andres Muro" <AndresM@epcc.edu> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-ESL:9040] Re: Presentation X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII X-Mailer: Novell GroupWise 5.5.5 Status: O Content-Length: 2739 Lines: 20 Susan, et al: Let me state, as Elsa did earlier, that this is more complicated and there are more forces shaping language acquisition. However, the model does not suggest what you mentioned. A person can acquire BICS in L1 and then the person can acquire BICS in L2. After the person acquires BICS in L2, the person can acquire CALPS in L2 w/o having acquired CALPS in L1. Cummins conducted research with children and has not hypothesized about adults. However, by extrapolating, many in this list-serv have applied the model to adults. The model suggests that to acquire CALPS, a person must have some kind of a basic knowledge as a scaffold. The basic knowledge can be BICS in the same language, or CALPS in a different language. What a person cannot do is only have BICS in one language and be able to acquire CALPS in a different language. The model is of particular importance to children, and it was suggested in favor of bilingual education so that English L2 children would not fall behind in school. In theory, as English L1 children start school in USA, they immediately start acquiring CALPS. On the other hand, L2 children could not begin acquiring CALPS in English until they acquired some BICS in English, hence, falling behind. The suggestion was that as soon as children started school, they would begin acquiring CLAPS in their native language while they learned ESL. In this fashion, they would not fall behind. The model makes perfect sense to me, but bilingual education has been criticized because even when children go into bilingual ed, they may not succeed. What happens is that in bilingual ed classes you have many children of different cultures, poor children with limited resources, and other barriers. These barriers may interfere with children succeeding in traditional American schools. When some children don't do well, bilingual ed. is blamed for the failure. Of course, this is bologna (I hope that I can use this word w/o being censored) Another argument that has been leveled against bilingual ed. is that many kids in High school, junior high, or advanced elementary grades speak their native language and do not master English. This is not uncommon in many border communities or cities with large numbers of immigrants. However, the reason for this is that many kids come into the US at different ages and enrolled in school w/o much exposure to English. Within a short period, kids master English. It is not that they started school in the first grade in bilingual ed. classes and made it to high school w/o acquiring English. Andres >>> SusanPate@aol.com 05/23/03 08:48PM >>> Does this mean that if a person does not have academic language in L1 they cannot get it in their L2?
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