Last updated: February 19, 2025
Acknowledging bias is the first step to identifying possible ways to address the gaps in our understanding and take actionable steps to eliminate bias (ACE, 2025). Bias occurs when we base the experience of others on our own, which is substantially different from our own. I have encountered many language-related biases among Americans who believe in the hegemonic view of “English only”. I recall one incident of bias that informed my view on education. One situation where I encountered bias and blatant racism was when I was speaking to a woman in Spanish while I was working at a pet store. Another customer approached us and told us to “speak English”. After the customer commented, my face immediately changed and I moved our conversation to another part of the store. Obviously, I was upset about what transpired and I was cautious about speaking Spanish around other customers moving forward. I was able to change my perspective on this experience by studying the Spanish language and education in college. I learned about language nationalism and hegemony to explain why the customer had a negative reaction to us speaking Spanish.
Language nationalism and hegemony have been used to exclude and suppress the use of other languages, besides English, from being a part of the national narrative (Fránquiz, Leija, & Salinas, 2019). I have personally experienced Freire’s banking model as a teacher where I was expected to “deposit knowledge” of Eurocentric rules and values into my curriculum to teach a diverse classroom of students. The systems and structures established by state curriculums for English as a Second Language (ESL) programs limit the development of bilingual education by devaluing the student’s first languages and cultures (ACE, 2025). Moreover, the Bilingual Act of 1968 was not the remedy to developing more English-literate students as was originally hoped. Instead, it led to a focus on English immersion, which has not been disproven to be an effective strategy for teaching a new language to students (Fránquiz, Leija, & Salinas, 2019). Research has shown that English acquisition requires five to seven years to obtain English fluency (ACE, 2025).
In Hispanic communities, the Spanish language is held in high esteem and holds national pride. I was raised with a sense of pride in the Honduran culture and had an affinity with other children in Honduras in school. In addition, I grew up in a household where my parents were bilingual. When I started my career as a science teacher in an English immersion program at a low-income district in Connecticut, I believed my ESL students needed to learn English to be competitive in the job market in the United States. I was expected to teach “English only” within my classroom due to a district policy. After two years of teaching in an “English only” program, I resented being a teacher because of the additional research I conducted on bilingual education and dual-language programs. My student-teaching experience was in a dual language program where students learned 50% in Spanish and 50% in English. In addition, I completed my master’s thesis project on developing bilingual Spanish-English resources for science instruction for middle school students. Moreover, Liping’s (2019) study results showed students excelled in reading and mathematics in dual-language programs by a 40% difference between non and dual-language programs in the same school district. Needless to say, I was at odds with the principal and the ESL coordinator at the school because of our divergent pedagogies. My students showed limited progress in writing and reading in English on the World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) each year due to the “English only” program. However, the data did not persuade the administrator to invest in additional training and support for bilingual or dual-language programs at the high school level.
To overcome my biases towards “English only” programs, I also needed to address the underlying biases of teacher professional development. Teacher biases can originate from a lack of proper development training (Lòpez & Pàez, 2021). I decided to take action through the school board and union meetings to share findings on the importance of teaching bilingualism and creating dual-language programs within our district. In addition, I developed presentations for early childhood conferences to promote dual-language instruction within Massachusetts and Connecticut. Limiting biases can be done through education by providing oppositional narratives to hegemonic social structures. In 2024, I developed a parent/teacher education website to share resources on developing bilingualism in early childhood and advocating for children with disabilities. Freire argued that through dialogue, reflection, and action we can change oppressive systems (Fránquiz, Leija, & Salinas, 2019). I will continue to work towards ending Bilingual and Dual-Language bias within my school and school district as an informational resource.
References
American College of Education. (2025). BE5013 – Foundations of ESL and Bilingual Education- Module 1 [Parts 2 & 3 presentation]. Canvas. https://ace.instructure.com/courses/2044055/modules/items/42364947
Liping, W. (2018). A Quality Chinese-English Bilingual Education Program: Defining Success. Journal of Language Teaching & Research, 9(6), 1191–1198. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.0906.08
Fránquiz, M. E., Leija, M. G., & Salinas, C. S. (2019). Challenging Damaging Ideologies: Are Dual Language Education Practices Addressing Learners’ Linguistic Rights? Theory Into Practice, 58(2), 134–144. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405841.2019.1569379
Lopez, L. M. & Paez, M. M. (2021). Teaching Dual Language Learners: What Early Childhood Educators Need to Know. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
