Blog #7: Language

This week my group did the presentation on language, so I had a very in-depth look at the entire chapter in the book. Much of the in-class discussion centered around bilingual education and ESL students, which are very "hot" topics in education today. Especially in Texas, but in the nation as a whole, our classrooms are becoming increasingly diverse when it comes to language. In Irving ISD, 70.84% of students are classified as Hispanic/Latino, and among those students many come from homes that speak Spanish only, and 39.3% are considered LEP,Limited English Proficiency (according to the 2009-2010 AIES Report: http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/cgi/sas/broker?_service=marykay&_program=perfrept.perfmast.sas&prgopt=2010%2Faeis%2Falltyped.sas&year4=2010&search=distback&year2=10&topic=aeis&gifname=g_aeis10district&title=AEIS+Report&level=District&ptype=HTML&sublevel=dist&distback=057912). This is a large percent of the overall student body, and these students require special programs, teachers, and curriculum. Irving offers bilingual programs at the elementary level, ESL for all levels (elementary, middle, high), Dual Language programs at the elementary and middle school level, and ExcELL (Excellence for English Language Learners) at the middle and high school level. More information about Irving's Bilingual/ESL/Migrant Department can be found here: http://www.irvingisd.net/bilingual-esl/

Another unique population in Irving ISD is the students that belong to the Regional Day School Program for the Deaf (RDSPD). This program serves students who are "auditorally-impaired and whose hearing loss interferes with processing linguistic information." (http://www.irvingisd.net/schoolforthedeaf/) The Irving RDSPD serves students more than 130 students (from age birth-22 years) living in Irving, Grand Prairie, and Duncanville. Here's a video about the Irving RDSPD and the services it provides: http://www.irvingisd.net/schoolforthedeaf/RDSFD.wmv

I'm glad I work in a district with such broad diversity, language and otherwise. As a teacher of the Deaf, I try to see the school through my students' eyes, and although they are very different in one way, they are welcomed and accepted by their hearing peers. Similarly, I see the ESL students receiving similar support and acceptance from Native English speakers. It seems in Irving there is a common unity in their diversity. The one thing they all have in common is that they're all different, and language is no exception.