Penalized For Bilingual Success

Here is a prime example about how government bureaucracy can't tolerate out-of-the-box thinking - even when it actually benefits those people that the government is trying to help.

The Chicago Tribune had an article a few weeks ago about Diamond Lake School District 76 in Mundelein (a Northern suburb of Chicago).

Five years ago, the district modified their bilingual education program to teach children primarily in English. In other words, the teacher would only speak in the student's native language when first introducing a new topic, or if a student is finding a particular problem difficult.

Now, after five years, the policy has been proven successful. The bilingual students achieve higher test scores.

At first, the State Board of Education praised the school district. Once they learned about the policy change, however, they suspended all of the district's state and federal funding for the year - causing trims in summer school and other programs.

It seems that state law mandates that non-English speaking students be taught in their native language.

The school district is now trying to get state law-makers to rewrite the law.

The superintendent for District 76 replied, "I'm not saying bilingual education doesn't work. What I'm saying is, if another program is working, the district should be able to use the program without losing funding."