Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 98 Part 2.djvu/1210

 98 STAT. 2370 Bilingual

PUBLIC LAW 98-511—OCT. 19, 1984 "TITLE VII—BILINGUAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Education Act. "SHORT TITLE

20 USC 3221.

"SEC. 701. This title may be cited as the 'Bilingual Education Act'. "POLICY; APPROPRIATIONS

20 USC 3222.

"SEC. 702. (a) Recognizing— "(1) that there are large and growing numbers of children of limited English proficiency; "(2) that many of such children have a cultural heritage which differs from that of English proficient persons; "(3) that the Federal Government has a special and continuing obligation to assist in providing equal educational opportunity to limited English proficient children; "(4) that the Federal Government has a special and continuing obligation to assist language minority students to acquire the English language proficiency that will enable them to become full and productive members of society; "(5) that a primary means by which a child learns is through the use of such child's native language and cultural heritage; "(6) that, therefore, large numbers of children of limited English proficiency have educational needs which can be met by the use of bilingual educational methods and techniques; "(7) that in some school districts establishment of bilingual education programs may be administratively impractical due to the presence of small numbers of students of a particular native language or because personnel who are qualified to provide bilingual instructional services are unavailable; "(8) that States and local school districts should be encouraged to determine appropriate curricula for limited English proficient students within their jurisdictions and to develop and implement appropriate instructional programs; "(9) that children of limited English proficiency have a high dropout rate and low median years of education; "(10) that the segregation of many groups of limited English proficient students remains a serious problem; "(11) that both limited English proficient children and children whose primary language is English can benefit from bilingual education programs, and that such programs help develop our national linguistic resources; "(12) that research, evaluation, and data collection capabilities in the field of bilingual education need to be strengthened so as to better identify and promote those programs and instructional practices which result in effective education; "(13) that parent and community participation in bilingual education programs contributes to program effectiveness; and "(14) that because of limited English proficiency, many adults are not able to participate fully in national life, and that limited English proficient parents are often not able to participate effectively in their children's education, the Congress declares it to be the policy of the United States, in order to establish equal educational opportunity for all children and to promote educational excellence (A) to encourage the establishment and operation, where appropriate, of educational programs using bilingual educational practices, techniques, and methods, (B)

�