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Public schools have always had the goal of preparing students to be productive and responsible citizens. Of course part of that process is training them to speak English in public, just as our ancestors did while they were acclimating.

I speak with my family and children in Polish (also in public). My children speak Polish among themselves even in school. Are you going to punish us?

With all due respect, I believe you are over-reacting on this issue. As far as I can determine there is no restriction on the children conversing however they wish at recess. But the teachers must speak our (so far) national language. That seems pretty benign and sensible to me.

The repeated references to Germans, Swedes, Poles, etc. ad nauseam simply don't apply. Why? Well, because when I telephone a large corporation I do not get as my first question "which (apparently) U.S. language do you wish to speak in English or Polish?" I'm not likely to get a ballot handed to me written in Swedish. Nor, am I likely to be confronted with a street sign in German.

My point is transparently obvious. We are confronted with an historically unique situation here. And, given our present condition of multicultural wackiness we are just may take the wrong fork in the road. If we do not encourage courageous people like this Principal I fear we will wind up a lot more fractured than the Canadian French and English.

I have every confidence that the Mexican immigrants will assimilate and become proud Americans if we have enough common sense/courage to make the right decisions.

I speak with my family and children in Polish (also in public). My children speak Polish among themselves even in school. Are you going to punish us

My mother's generation was very different. They spoke a Russian dialect in my (immigrant) grandparents home, but they were taught that it was rude to use that language when out in public. The exception was Russian Orthodox Church events and holiday celebrations where everyone there was from this environment. I never heard my grandparents or any of their children speak anything but English around other people.