Posted on 08/10/2014 2:34:17 PM PDT by Kaslin
On November 12, 2013, Amy Lacey, the principal of Texas’ Hempstead Middle School, was placed on administrative leave and subsequently fired when she made a simple request to students: speak English.
Now that the gag order has expired, Lacey is speaking out about what happened that day, dispelling rumors that she banned Spanish from the school’s campus.
“I informed students it would be best to speak English in the classrooms to the extent possible, in order to help prepare them for [state] tests,” she wrote in a letter to the Houston Chronicle explaining her side of the story. “It is important to note that I did not ban the use of Spanish anywhere in the school or at any time, even though teachers had reported to me that they had experienced instances in which students had been asked to stop talking during instruction, and they responded that it was their right to speak Spanish — ignoring the fact that they shouldn’t have been speaking [in any language] during class without permission. The perception of the teachers was that students were being disrespectful and disrupting learning, and they believed they could get away with it by claiming racism.”
By telling students to speak English, Lacey was not being racist, she was merely pointing out that the academic language in Texas is, by law, English.
“Even so, I did not suggest that there would be any adverse consequences for any student speaking Spanish at any time. I merely encouraged students to speak English in classrooms by advising them that it would be to their advantage to do so especially with regard to state testing,” she continued. “English language immersion is an accepted best-practice teaching strategy, and Hempstead ISD board policy provides for its practice.”
She ended the letter thanking those who supported her “even when true facts were never given to the media” because she and others were not allowed to publicly defend her position.
“I think the public needs to know that in public education there are only one or two district personnel designated to talk to media,” she wrote in closing, “so any teachers that would have liked to speak on my behalf were not allowed without risking their job status.”
My parents came from Hungary in 1951 and spoke very little English, however after realizing how much trouble my older brother was having in school they spoke only English with us, to the extent that sadly we did not speak any Hungarian. We did however become fluent in English and had no problems later in school. The sad fact is that those coming in from our southern borders refuse to learn English and use their children as translators and intermediaries, this is the major difference between them and European immigrants, other than the fact that the Europeans actually wanted to be Americans.
A ‘pinche pendejo’ usually gets them to STFU.
She sure was
I worked in TX public education for 30 years. The high rate of Hispanics in the state dictates that all the state testing also be provided in Spanish. All other language speakers are allowed to participate in a Newcomer’s program that teaches them English but it is only for the first year in a public school. Because of the influence of La Raza, all state testing (and most district testing) is required to be given in Spanish. It is not required to speak Spanish in the classroom however.
God has given me a new path to walk and I am excited about my new journey.
A ‘pinche pendejo’ usually gets them to STFU.
Her picture is in here
Hispanics must want to be segregated because nothing is more segregating than language.
Let them speak any language they want. Just don’t acknowledge them unless the speak in English. It self corrects very fast. Especially if they want a potty break or food.
Gee, I wonder how they were able to come up with that approach ;?
and the almighty teachers union was where???
I just laughed - I did not let them know I didn’t understand but honestly, the look on their faces said it all!
Glad I could help!
I have no idea what that means! lol The only spanish words I know involve food! lol
I recently had some new tile put in the kitchen and the middle eastern guy I was dealing with at the store told me he had been here about 6 years - three of which were high school years. He didn’t speak any english when he got here and only had one class to help him learn, the rest he was just put into a regular classroom. I was impressed that he learned so quickly and did well.
Welcome to the Obama Nation: Speaking the truth can get you fired.
Most government info up here is in English and Spanish.
When Lowes opened 20 minutes south of us, all their signage was in English and Spanish, despite being within an hour of French speaking Quebec.
At first I thought this was insulting to the Francophones.
Then I realized, no, this is insulting to the Spanish speakers.
It shows that our government, Lowes and many other entities consider the Spanish speakers too stupid to use a Spanish/English dictionary or to learn rudimentary English.
These same folks must think the French speakers are smart enough to figure things out on their own.
Every time the Spanish pull this crap, wanting everything in Spanish, they are just showing how stupid they are.
I find it sad that the immediate urgency of learning the language of the country in which you reside seems to fall by the wayside.
One of my best friends is Hispanic, although she has been here since she was two. She and her sisters have acted as translators for their parents and still do. (They both speak English...but Spanish is more comfortable for them.) When she started kindergarten...it was a total immersion situation. I don’t know if that is the best way...but she said she learned darn fast.
As a side note...she is one of the most intelligent people I have ever met and advanced in our company to one of the highest,best paid positions. That would have not happened if all she spoke was Spanish. La Raza does people a huge disservice.
The above is to an article about the Hemstead ISD supt., Delma Flores-Smith facing
criminal charges. This is unrelated to the Principal firing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.