In the Arid Zone

Abstract

This chapter addresses the education of one important and growing subgroup of students in urban settings, those who have been designated as English learners (ELs). ELs are now the fastest growing group of students in the country. The majority of EL students are concentrated in six states: Arizona, California, New York, Florida, Massachusetts, and Illinois. The origin of Arizona state EL policy is complicated. It is the result of a unique nexus between state and federal legislation, federal case law, and state-level ideological beliefs about education, language acquisition, and immigration. State legislators resisted judicial funding mandates for another five years and not solely because of financial concerns. Several studies raised serious concerns about the increasing segregation in Arizona school classrooms, comparing the blocks to the infamous “Mexican Rooms” of earlier years. The ideological traps of Arizona policies not only ensnare students into low-quality education, but also constrain possibilities of a more favorable and expansive pedagogy.

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