I have lived in the United States for almost three years now. Being natively of Bangladeshi origin, I experience an extremely different lifestyle than Americans do. It is the lifestyle experienced by those you come from other countries to live in the U.S. Being part of this international community, I am more sensitive to and hence aware of issues that primarily affect the lives of these kinds of people than Americans are. Of these many issues, there is one I have identified that comes up in discussions more frequently than others. The issue I am referring to is that of the language barrier that exists between those whose primary language is English and those whose primary language is not English. In recent history, many studies have been conducted on this topic regarding how often this language barrier restricts effective communication, what consequences occur as a result of it and how best to rectify this problem. These studies are far from finished and are still continuing. It might still be quite some time before we can obtain some quantifiable results from these studies that can actually be applied towards determining a viable solution. However, as stated in "USA Today", one person with limited English skills enters the country every thirty one seconds, and one out of five people in the USA speak a language other than English. This is enough to prove that language differences are real enough. However, being in the 21st century, I would like to believe that we have at least to some extent made some beneficial progress in these issues. My experience in the extremely diverse and multicultural environment that is UTA, I have come to believe this true at least about the issue of language barriers between people of dif... ... middle of paper ... ...rtant to understand that we do not live in a perfect society and that the debate here is not whether or not language barriers have come to be of no consequence what so ever, but whether or not it is a significant problem that warrants peoples' attentions or not. To this question I can give first hand testimony that it is not. I regularly hang out with a group of friends who speak different languages, and we all actively speak in our own languages even when some don't understand the language. However, most of the time we don't even notice or address this phenomenon. I believe that if it stays on its current course, the issue will soon become nothing more than a simple nuisance that nobody pays attention to. I also believe that the benefit we all receive from encouraging such an environment far outweighs any possible downside that may be caused from this issue.
Language can bring people together but can also isolate. The United States is known as a melting pot, not only does that refer to culture but also the many different languages. We know of language barriers, but very seldom do we think of the language barriers within our borders. Even with the language barriers it solidifies the need for a national language, the United States of America should allow the freedom to express one’s culture while maintaining English as our national language, therefore offering common ground to its citizens.
Moreover, I believe that there is a solution to this by creating an adult program for non-English speakers to help them learn English and also providing career paths for them to be able to have a good living gain at the end of the programs to be able to provide jobs for them to help feed their
There will always be a gap in between languages. In this story just by the way Gloria Anzaldua uses a certain grammar in quotes and certain phrases shows the intellect she has with various languages. There are two sides in this the Anglos and the Hispanic, but at the end both there is have the urgency of adaptation. Adaptation isn 't something that comes naturally or is offered easily. Thats where all the racial and discrimination comes. In the Educating Immigrant Students a Challenge in U.S., Elsewhere article by Nirvi Shah said “Teaching foreign-born students and students learning English is a complex task, further complicated by issues of race, culture, and ethnicity. Because defining these groups is difficult, measuring their performance and progress can also be a challenge.” Yes it is a challenge because not everyone learns at the same
Policy in the United States towards foreign languages has long been a complicated process. The nation was founded by polyglot immigrants and welcomed, to varying degrees, many subsequent waves of immigrants speaking languages familiar and foreign. Most immigrants learned English and despite efforts to maintain their mother tongue, the “permissiveness and apathy” of American society towards second languages allowed the gradual erosion of many mother tongues. English, although the common language in schools, the courts, government, and the business community in the United States, is not the official language of our country. This fact juxtaposes paradoxically with the necessity of speaking English for success in our society, and the dying out of many languages native to immigrants after the third generation. Since no official policy at the federal level governs the official language of the United States, nor the teaching of foreign languages until after the Second World War, language education in the U.S. remained a patchwork of local policies.
The United States is made up of many different ethic groups. These groups vary from Latinos, Asian American, African American, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and etc. These ethnic groups come into America speaking many different languages. However, many people are still surprised to learn that the United States has no official language. Many assume that English is the official language of the United States. But despite efforts over the years, the United States has no official language. Because the United States has no official language, it is suffering with large costs. These large costs will lead us on a road to wasteful government expenses, language battles that fuel ethnic resentment, and in the long run serious ethnic and linguistic separatist movements. An official English legislation is the answer to the problem.
Should the conflicting rights of non-English speaking people be taken away because of an English-only law? I think non-English speaking people have the right to speak their homeland language in public events and as part of their social lives. In America no one should be allowed to be a form of prisoner because of their native language. There should be laws or ordinances to prohibit persons from confronting—either verbally or physically- non-English speaking persons for speaking their native language in their work or social life. Whenever these confrontations prompt wide spread publicly, native English speaking Americans begin debating the degree of influence that non-English speaking people can have in the social, political, and economic realms.
Marquez states in her article that, “It’s not meant to be rude to others… We know that, to get ahead here, one must learn English. But that ought not mean that somehow we must stop speaking in our native tongue whenever we’re in a public area, as if we were ashamed of who we are, where we’re from”(512). While most immigrants know that English is the common language of this country and one of the most common language used in international business, many kept their language through the first and second generation. Bilingual people speak in their language so that their cultural roots would not vanish and so they can show respect to their ancestors.
...influenced. This correspondence leads to individual growth because it pushes our understanding. As we begin to see the individual as a person and not as an “other,” we can, as a country, grow stronger. Regardless of our growing humanitarian stance towards immigration reform, many Americans still insist on having English as our national language. Though speaking the language would greatly close the distance witnessed in towns like Shelbyville, we must provide methods for language acquisition by working through difference. With the transition towards inclusiveness, an increasingly global perspective should also follow suit.
Language is a very powerful thing. It is the way that people communicate with each other. For a foreigner living in America I think that this is essential. This is why I believe that if a foreigner only attempts to learn English, then they are already assimilating to American culture. Whether or not they choose to change their whole lifestyle into an American way of life, if they take on the English language then they are assimilating to a certain extent.
The language barrier is potentially high in situations where cultures are widely differing and languages may not even share a common alphabet, for example between the West and China, making it extremely difficult for expatriates to acquire a high degree of language ability (Selmer, 2006)
Language barrier was a difficult process my family and I had to overcome. At the beginning it was difficult for all my family members to learn English, but as the years passed we learned to speak it accurately. My childhood was difficult because I was the oldest of three children and I had to go to school, learn English first and help translate for my parents. I believe it was a little easier for my brother and sister because I was able to teach them English and they did not have to stress much, but our parent’s immigration status was still a stressor event that affected us a great amount. My sister, Lupe, was the second child and she was born in 1998, when she was born, my dad had a stable job in the restaurant, but would still have the fear
Immigrants live complicated lives as they adapt to new communities and new language while coming to America. Language barrier has a major effect on the lives of our immigrants and those who are acquiring English as their second language. Language barrier is a barrier to communication resulting from speaking different languages. The immigration population in the United States is growing rapidly. For many immigrants English is not their first language. In America, English is the main spoken language. People who are acquiring English as their second language are expected to embrace English along with customs and culture while at the same time holding on to the language and culture they first began with. However, language discrimination is a major
Firstly throughout the text, language barrier is tangible by the use of body language.Language barrier, hence its name, create a barrier for connection between people.The absence of communication between people who speak different languages can make anyone feel distressed and dishearted. Since 1923, the use of the term 'language barrier' increase as people started to travel and many began to move to a different country either for future or freedom. Body language can signify authority, social status and can express ideas such as strength,
Language is the main way to communicate with others, and when a foreigner comes to a new country, the communication is the major thing he has to deal with. According to the text, “the first is so obvious it hardly needs mentioning-language. Vocabulary, syntax, idioms, slang, dialects, and so on, all cause difficulties, but the person struggling with a different language is at least aware when he is in this kind of trouble” (p. 69). Language is an obvious blockade in a cross-culture communication, because of the different grammar, words, slang, and so on. If a person knew the language of that country, at least he could know when he is in the trouble and what kind of the trouble, and I perceive this as the most important thing, to be able to understand. The difficulty of learning a language, is not only know the vocabulary and syntax, but the actual meaning of the sentences. I totally agree with this stumbling block of cross- culture communication, due to my experience of being an international student who studies in another country. When I wanted to come to the
Speaking different languages can be done by some, but may be very tough for others. When coming into a new culture, it is difficult to learn all the languages and beliefs all at one time. People that don’t speak the same vernacular as one who speaks a different language should and will be allowed in the future. We, blacks, whites, and all other races, need to be able to communicate whether it is the same language or different languages.