Was this in the editorial section of the New York Times? Probably, as it seems to be putting forward an opinion. I'm glad to see it.
How utterly sad for these kids.
I have a friend who is Dutch and is raising her boy to be bilingual. She talks to him only in Dutch at home. He's now almost 4 and can barely speak in English to the rest of the Americans he has to deal with. (She likes to use a lot of babysitters. Especially free ones). He struggles and has such a difficult time my hubby and I feel sorry for him.
I've noticed, however, another couple in my church who have one spouse Dutch and one English. Their grown-up kids speak English (they were raised in the States) but with a definite accent. I don't know if their Dutch is perfect, either. It almost seems like a handicap to not speak one language perfectly. I wonder if anyone else has experience with this.
I've read articles that say if one parent always talks to the child in Dutch and the other parent only speaks to the child in English, then the kid will be fine. The child can readily sort out the two languages as long as each parent sticks to one language.
There, ya got my 2-cents worth. :)
The poor kid's parents are especially heinous, as English is required study in the Netherlands. They have the highest percentage of English speakers in mainland Europe.
Duel-language is a priority of the Council of La Raza. They're really taking care of their constituency. Taking care that they remain a manipulated minority.
I know a number of children - Polish, Japanese, Hungarian, Yugoslavian - who spoke no English until they went to school or were put in regular classes upon moving to the US - total immersion and they are fluent. These children were between 4 and 8 when they learned English.
My brother's wife is Peruvian and they are bringing up their children bilingually. Last time I saw my nephew I thought his English was lagging behind the Spanish, but he hasn't seen as much of my side of the family and he was sick. By the time he goes to school I expect he will be fluent and accentless.
Mrs VS
Perhaps it's just the way it's done. One of my best friends fled Czech in 1968 (he was an infant) and landed in Ottawa. His parents spoke mostly Czech at home but ensured that he learned English. Then he went to a French school for 5 years. Today, he's 35 and speaks all 3 fluently. So it can be done, but the parents MUST ensure that English is a priority.
I went to school in Texas with a bunch of Mexican kids. They all spoke English perfectly in school. Every once in a while they would speak Spanish to one another but the teachers would correct and say English! When we were not in school they spoke Spanish & English to each other, I guess depending on what they wanted to say. I only speak English and always felt that I wasn't as well educated as they were because I wasn't bilingual. It is great for kids to grow up with two languages, wish I had. MrsPD
One of my nieces did have speech problems but we are fairly confident that it was not related to being raised bilingual. Two of my uncles had the same problem and they were raised single language.
Your friend's son is not being raised bilingual but single language. That is why he is having a hard time.