Reading #1 is done!

Mother Tongue: the Problem of Immigrant's English

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I've read awesome essays from writer Amy Tan and Richard Rodriguez. I must admit that I'm so curious about being such good materials in standard(!) college(!!!) programs! And, I have to say that even in high school, and in the university as well, I NEVER got such area of discourse like now!

I highly recommend you to reat that essays, even in translation. I think, the deep of text and questions to it. I accorded the Reading #1 post to the first one, Amy Tan's "Mother Tongue".

Amy's mother felt guilty on her incapacity to speak English like native speakers do. I agree that it limits our possibilities. But is it abnormal at all? How exactly this may influence a child born in America and taken

And the main question is: what should one do with this issue, and should one? Does bilingual education really helps parents and children to adapt in the American society?

Amy Tan thinks that the experience of many Englishes in child's life gives one the wide experience. People can and must be different. If Amy's mother isn't good speaker it doesn't make her the bad woman.

Someone, including Amy herself, considered Amy's mother's language "broken" - indeed, it would make people think that something's wrong and need to be "repaired"... That's the rational look on the problem, which considers only "not knowing English" as the only result.

There was also an emotional aspect. Amy Tan heard her mother's English since her birth. And she understand her mother from the first letters! There was no need to change the style, because the "broken" one consisted the exact feeling mom tried to express to!

And looking to myself, I would like to say there is a third aspect of native language itself. Everyone claimed the language of Amy's mother as "broken", but didn't care about how smart at Chinese she is! The same applies to me: if someone read or hear my English, nobody still know that I'm VERY smart at Russian and Belarussian as TWO native languages of mine!

How that could influence Amy as a bilingual child of immigrants? I see the positive experience in Amy's text. I do not think something is wrong because you encountered not just "loud and clear" Oxford speech! Being in line with many people, you can learn many accents, "dialects", and special pronunciations in different speeches. You don't need to be only boring "Oxford nerd" with your "perfect accent", and not understand other people who use dialects or accents!

The negative experience of Amy's initial language isn't linked with bilingual environment, as I understood. The problem wasn't in low grades in English subjects in school, but in grades themselves! Finding your own style is something you obligate to do to succeed. Some teachers, as I see, don't agree with something "non-academic", and lower your grade.

As I saw in "Mother Tongue", many people tried to convince Amy to develop her math skills and give up on her "Chinese" dialect, initially. But Amy Tan became famous writer despite.

And here's the answer to the problem of "bilingual" children adaptation. Only the choice matters.

Stepping aside, "dialect" problem doesn't make one worse than another. American and Britain Englishes at their academic form are different, as Australian and African as well! Where is the "ideal"?

I've also heard the same issue about Kansas or, let's say, Ohio people; they may use "dialect" comparing to the academic American, but that doesn't mean their English is bad. I can't understand why someone's speech might be called as "dialect" if many immigrants in America speak with their own, unique, manner! :)

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It doesn't mean that nobody should attempt to reach the good pronunciation and ease in using English. I plan to reach excellence in my speaking and writing skills, considering my shining future in the USA. But that work considers building your own future, with different roles in English.

I'm trying to rebuild myself to create new American mentality of mine instead of the Belarussian one! It is the path I've chosen. No one is supposed to do the similar, because the immigration can't be passed similar ways.