The United States is stuck in a conflict between keeping the tradition of multiculturalism and diversity, and assimilating into one singular culture. Caught in the middle of this struggle is language. Currently the United States does not have an official language, even though many governmental organizations try to pass legislation making English the official American language. The Cambridge Dictionary states that the definition of an official language is, ¨the language or one of the languages that is accepted by a country 's government, is taught in schools, used in the courts of law, etc” (¨Official Language¨ 1). This means that if the United States government establishes English as the official language, all government funded events …show more content…
Even though the United States is known as an English speaking country, the influence of the Spanish language is just as influential to the country as English is. Currently, the United States is now the world’s second largest Spanish-speaking country just behind Mexico (Burgen). If the United States is the second largest Spanish speaking country in the world, then it would be unwise for the government to make the official language English. Many countries around the world have set a precedent in being successful without having an official language, thus, one language is not necessary. The United States, however, is not the only country which hosts multiple languages. As King states, India is home to nineteen official languages (536).The United States feels that it is necessary to only have one official language, however, India has set a foundation of representing multiple …show more content…
David Kopel of the Washington Post, an exceptionally educated author, describes the supreme court case of Meyer vs. Nebraska. As part of a World War I anti-German movement, the state of Nebraska passed a law in 1919 prohibiting the teaching of any language outside of English to children in school. This law was created with the intent to prohibit Lutheran and Catholic church groups to teach children their religion in a foreign language. Robert T. Meyer, a Lutheran school teacher was arrested and fined for teaching the children about religion in German. Eventually, Meyer appealed the State of Nebraska, and the case made it’s way to the United States Supreme Court where Meyer won 7-2 (Kopel 1). This case demonstrates why the United States should not adopt English as the official language. The government undoubtedly denied the citizens of Nebraska their first amendment rights to freedom of speech and religion. If the United States chooses to make the official language, America will endanger the rights of the citizens, as history often
What is the official language or the United States? 90% of the people would answer English, but guess again. The United States doesn’t have an official language. The subject of English as the official language of the United States has been covered intensively by the world press over the past decade. Declaring it the official language of United States can make an improvement in many areas, and is very relevant for future generations.
The discussion of making English the nation’s official language has sparked an ongoing debate among many individuals for several decades. As of now, the United States does not have an official language due to the diverse population. Many individuals believe that by establishing an official language, the United States is being culturally insensitive, that diversity is the key to forming America’s identity. However, establishing English as the official language would promote unity among not only American citizens but also the nation.
From the time the Pilgrims landed in this great nation at Plymouth Rock, immigrants have been culturally diverse and have spoken many languages. When the Pilgrims arrived in the New World, they did not know how to communicate with the natives. Through intense study the natives learned the Pilgrims’ language. Even with the common language they were still a melting pot of different culture. Some would say that America has gotten over the language/ cultural barriers and now almost everyone speaks the common language of English, but there are still many immigrants who do not know English. Bilingual education is put into public schools for this reason, so that immigrant children can be assimilated to English gradually. The national language should be English instead of the official language because America has prided herself in being very diverse. If we take away the diversity, then we take away the core values that America has always had since her founding.
English as the official language of the United States could benefit the U.S. Government and America as a whole. America has long since been a multicultural nation and has been an English speaking nation since it was founded. The constitutional and federal documents are all in English, which furthers the American people, believing English should be our official language. The majority of states already have English as their official language, for English has always provided a much needed cohesion to our diverse citizens since it was founded.
Wiley, Terrence G. "Language Planning, Language Policy, and the English-Only Movement." Language in the USA: Themes for the Twenty-first Century. Ed. Edward Finegan and John R. Rickford. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2004. 319-38. Print.
If one walks through one of the large cities’ streets in our country. They will hear and experience a variety of languages. Our history and tradition of being a land of immigrants is reflected in the languages we speak. This means that the USA is home to a vast number of languages, one would be hard pressed to find a language that is not spoken in the U.S. The official list as the number of languages spoken in the United States go as high as 322. The most spoken and prominent languages in the country being English, Spanish, and French. English has the highest number of speakers with 215 million. Spanish is the second most spoken language with 28 million speaker. The French language is the third most spoken language with a million and a half speakers in the U.S (Many Languages).
If a country doesn’t have an official language is usually due to distinct historical or cultural reasons. As I began reading articles on this topic, I was amazed that the great country I live in doesn’t have an official language. I begin to wonder why this is the case. Many countries have an official language in which all the official business, daily activities and other formal activities are conducted. There are even thirty (30) states that have succeeded through their own statutes to declare English as an official language of their particular state (www.us-english.org).
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.
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.
The purpose of this assignment is to explain the impact of English language learners in the classroom. As a foreign student, English language learner in the United States faces multiple challenges for achieving academic success. To successfully complete a task, they need to master both English as a language and how it is used in core content classes especially when they are an adult. When trying to assist in instructing English language learners, they usually have many concepts and language abilities that they need to master, as do the teachers that are trying to teach them. With the incorporation of the concepts and approaches to identify and assess the issues and concerns that we have learned in our classroom instruction, such as lesson preparation,
The majority of Americans believe English is the official language of the United States. However, The United States has no official language at all. This mistake is commonly based upon English being the most popular language spoken in North America. Making English official has recently become a popular topic, and more people every day join a curiosity of why it is not the official language. English should be the official language of the United States to give the people what they want, to recognize the historic role, and to limit controversy.
Everyone knows that America is called the “Melting Pot”, so naturally we have people from all different countries, who speak all different languages. Since before the United States was even established, there has been a heated argument on whether or not we should make English the national language. Making English the national language will not work, because, historically, it wasn’t the original language, most of our ancestors didn’t even speak it, and it erases people's culture and heritage. North America was originally inhabited by Native Americans, and because of this, we can’t justify making the national language English, when the original Americans didn’t speak it. When Christopher Columbus came to America, there were over 300 languages being spoken by the natives.
Experiencing those days where people would laugh at other for the broken English; the grammar and pronunciation are the toughest parts of the language. People with English as a second language always stumble upon difficulties; however, the determination of learning a new language do not decrease easily as the motivation is still surrounding one’s mind. Today, English has become an international communication; even the teaching and learning of the language has already spread throughout the world. English is known as one of the most common use language and has been offering classes everywhere for years especially around Asia; additionally, the world common language has now become the number one language uses in every fields of career that is being offer everywhere. Non-American students should be required to take English class as a second language in school
The English language arose from the early Anglo Saxon inhabitants in ancient England and spread to Scotland and other European countries via the British Empire and later to the United States through colonial political and economical influences. It later dispersed to other parts of the world through these same influences to become one of the leading languages of the world. It has over the years developed by adopting different dialects to create a language, which is the standard lingual Franca in many countries. The rapid growth of the English language and its adoption by different cultures across the globe is sufficient ground to make it the global language.
Even though there are advantages as well as disadvantages, the need for international language for communication, politics, economics and security is necessary and English is the best “language candidate” for that function. English is a language spread all over the world and it is used by millions and millions of speakers. According to my opinion, people should use English as a tool to communicate with all cultures but every country must keep their culture and language is a great part of it. In conclusion, language defines identity of a country and everyone should keep their language and explore others.