The Conflation of Dual-Language Bilingual Education With Gifted Programs: A Case of Disregarded Civil Rights in Gentrifying New York City Schools

• In Event: Critical Issues in Dual-Language Education

Abstract

As neighborhoods across New York City gentrify, Dual Language Bilingual Education (DLBE) has become a big draw for gentrifier families. Our research contributes to growing literature on DLBE gentrification by examining gentrifier parents’ perceptions of DLBE as a school choice option. We found that many schools conducted academic screening tests of children to determine admission into DLBE programs. This has contributed to a) the conflation of DLBE with the city’s gifted programs and b) a focus away from admitting and centering emergent bilinguals, thus undermining the civil rights aims of bilingual education. We argue that DLBE is not a choice program for emergent bilinguals, but rather a necessity, and recommend the elimination of screening and re-centering of bilingual students.

Authors

• Allison Roda, Molloy College

• Kate Menken, Queens College and Graduate Center, City University of New York