See related podcast #138 at http://www.idra.org/Podcasts/
Bilingual education and ESL programs have been in place in U.S. schools for several decades, but for some there is still a bit of a mystery about their purpose. And while the Civil Rights Act and the U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Lau vs. Nichols case require schools to appropriately serve English language learners, educators and parents are sometimes unclear about their role and the rights of students. IDRA education associate, Kristin Grayson, Ph.D., talks about why we need bilingual education and English as a second language programs, what these programs do and how parents can work with educators to make sure their children learn English while also learning their other subjects.