Nikolas is an eleventh grader who came to America from Russia with his parents one year ago. He has gradually developed his fluency in the English language, but he continues to have some difficulty using English during classroom activities. What should Nikolas teacher do to help him with his English language acquisition?
A. Encourage Nikolas to use English in the classroom and save his Russian for use at home.
B. Promote Nikolas bilingualism in both Russian and English.
C. Refer Nikolas to the English-as-a-Second-Language program in the local magnet school.
D. Respond positively to Nikolas only when he makes accurate attempts with English.
Answer:B
Nikolas is an eleventh grader who came to America from Russia with his parents one year ago. He has gradually developed his fluency in the English language, but he continues to have some difficulty using English during classroom activities. What should Nikolas teacher do to help him with his English language acquisition?
A. Encourage Nikolas to use English in the classroom and save his Russian for use at home. B. Promote Nikolas bilingualism in both Russian and English. C. Refer Nikolas to the English-as-a-Second-Language program in the local magnet school. D. Respond positively to Nikolas only when he makes accurate attempts with English.
Explanation: B) Research on bilingualism (e.g., Garcia, 1992) supports the idea that children benefit from becoming proficient speakers of both their native language and the dominant language of the country. Therefore, Nikolas teacher should promote his bilingualism in both Russian and English.