Bob Menendez: “Mr. Chairman, we want our children to learn English. Immigrant communities know that without English proficiency, there…”

“Mr. Chairman, we want our children to learn English. Immigrant communities know that without English proficiency, there is no upward mobility, no chance to succeed in our society. We want our students to be able to comprehend and learn the language thoroughly so they will not be left behind academically. But, at the same time, with increased international commerce and global competition, we need our students to master multiple languages so they can provide a cutting edge advantage for America in Asia, in Europe, in Latin America. Those who have advocated for greater trade on this floor will agree with me that we not only need to be ahead in product and technology development, but also in our capacity to have a work force that has the ability to effectively communicate worldwide. This bill is not designed to empower or limit English proficient students to succeed. It does not provide more resources or more language teachers to deal with the growing number of today's students who require extra help to learn English. Rather, it in effect stunts our students' growth academically while they learn English as quickly as possible.”