SANTA FE (AP) – Lawmakers in this heavily Native American and Hispanic state pushed initiatives Monday to improve academic achievement among minority students and revitalizing local linguistic and cultural traditions.
A House panel unanimously endorsed a trio of bills that would expand training for teachers of English as a second language and bilingual instructors, while enlisting an existing network of teacher cooperatives to collaborate with local Native American tribes.
A separate bill would add two administrative posts at the Public Education Department to oversee progress among Hispanic students and better tailor teaching to local cultures.
“For years we have used spit and duct tape to try and close the holes in multicultural education,” said Democratic Rep. Christine Trujillo of Albuquerque. “We’re facing a state education emergency.”
The initiatives respond to a state district judge’s findings that the state fails to provide an adequate education to students from low-income and minority communities, especially children who speak Spanish or Native American languages at home. A court order gives lawmakers until April to provide solutions and increase state resources.
The order responds to lawsuits by teachers and school districts that turned to the judiciary over frustrations with state spending on public education. Attorneys for the plaintiffs endorsed the bills on Monday, along with an array of teacher unions and advocates for greater spending on public education.
The Department of Public Education estimates that about 15 percent of the state’s school-aged students participate in the state’s bilingual and multicultural education program.
At Monday’s hearing, concerns were voiced both about student academic performance in English and the preservation of indigenous languages.
“Leadership at Acoma Pueblo recognizes that the language there is truly at risk of being lost,” said Conroy Chino, a lobbyist for the Native American community known for its mesa-top “sky city” dwellings. “We stand in support for the intent of the bill – which is beginning to train and assist teachers in teaching the native languages of the indigenous tribes.”
