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| Danielle Robinette Class of 2015 |
In 1996, the World Conference on Linguistic Rights produced the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights in which they advocated for the protection and respect for all languages and their use in private and public spheres. Of the rights and provision enumerated by the Declaration, the right to access to education in one’s native language serves to not only preserve, but also grow languages facing endangerment or extinction. In countries with numerous language groups existing simultaneously, the government must address bilingual education policy in order to comply with the propositions made by the Declaration. The linguistic divisions that exist in Ecuador only serve to reinforce the social stratification between the Amerindian and Mestizo populations. With the imposition of Spanish as the language of government in Ecuador, the indigenous languages of the region have gradually diminished. Of the twenty-two indigenous languages of the country, ten are threatened, nearly extinct, or extinct. Public education could be used to facilitate the development and reinvigoration of those languages facing extinction.
There are a number of models of bilingual education that considered standard. However, there are four models in particular that will be examined in this study – submersion, transitional, maintenance, and enrichment. As outlined by Dr. Cheryl Roberts in her examination of bilingual education models, each has its benefits and drawbacks with submersion being the least preferable and enrichment the most preferable. Submersion entails an environment in which students of a second language (L2) are completely submersed in a classroom using only that language. Enrichment models pair native speakers of two languages who are working to learn each other’s languages and eventually function in a bilingual classroom using both languages.
As a Senior, one of the opportunities offered by the Honors Program at UofL is to write a thesis. Over the course of the Fall semester, I will research bilingual education initiatives being pursued in Ecuador. In the Spring semester, I will write and defend a thesis that reflects my research in the field and will discuss the efficacy of the programs in Ecuador and compare them to similar programs in the other Andean countries. As I am also pursuing a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Ecuador following graduation, I hope that this research project will enhance my preparation for a year living abroad in Ecuador as well as help me be more effective in the classroom environment.
Danielle Robinette is a senior McConnell Scholar studying political science and Spanish. She is from Ft. Thomas, Ky.