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Bilingual teachers are in short supply in the United States due to two major challenges:

1. Limited recruitment

It begins with the overall shortage of qualified bilingual educators. Consequently, there is a lack of qualified candidates and it is difficult to find them. In the absence of targeted recruitment strategies to reach bilingual educators specifically, it becomes challenging to fill teaching positions with qualified candidates.

The hiring pool was low due to the low application volume from which to choose.

Not all Spanish speaking teachers have a highly specialized skill set in biliteracy therefore they are not qualified for recruitment as a highly qualified bilingual teacher.

2. The lack of resources for bilingual education programs also causes a challenge because

Schools may struggle to develop and maintain effective bilingual programs without adequate resources, making bilingual education less attractive to teachers.

Due to the lack of resources available in Spanish in our school district, our dual language teachers had to search the internet for Spanish science resources on their own. In recent years, we have acquired a software program that provides videos and other resources for planning.

In addition, it can hinder teachers' professional development, making it harder for them to remain up-to-date on best practices in bilingual education.

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2 de las razones por la cual vemos una escasez de maestros bilingües en las escuelas es por:

1.     Los desafíos para obtener la certificación-

Parte del problema que vemos en la actualidad es que hay muchos maestros que no pueden pasar sus exámenes de certificación y esto se debe a que no son biliterales. En mi opinión, es un problema que el mismo sistema educativo a creado. Si no hay apoyo en los programas bilingües, cómo pretendemos que nuestros estudiantes salgan preparados académicamente para ser biliterales. Nuestros estudiantes son la próxima generación de profesionales y seguimos educándolos en un sistema educativo que apoya al monolingüismo.  Para poder tener maestros preparados y certificados, tenemos que darle el mismo lugar al lenguaje español dentro de nuestras escuelas, tenemos que ofrecerle los recursos necesarios a nuestros maestros para que se puedan convertirse en fully biliterates y que puedan tener la preparación adecuada para educar a la comunidad de estudiantes.

Pero también entiendo que hay personas que no son buenas tomando exámenes y creo que la certificación no se debe basar solo en exámenes. El proceso de certificarse debe incluir otras opciones que realmente demuestren los niveles del lenguaje que los maestros poseen. De esta manera, hacemos un poco más justo las formas de evaluar a los maestros que quieran obtener su certificación bilingüe.

2.     Los desafíos en retener a los maestros-

Vemos maestros que tienen su certificación, son bilingües, pero no biliterales. Esto hace que los maestros no tengan la competencia multilingüe necesaria para que los estudiantes tengan la oportunidad de convertirse en biliterales y tener éxito académicamente. Y al darse cuenta de que no tienen los requisitos necesarios y que no están preparados adecuadamente, deciden cambiar de materia o profesión. Esto les afecta a los estudiantes ya que no tienen maestros de calidad para impartir las clases y que, en ocasiones, los abandonan a mitad de año.

Otra razón que podemos encontrar es la sobrecarga de trabajo que se les da a los maestros bilingües. Si ponemos en una balanza el trabajo de los maestros y la paga que reciben, sabemos que no es una paga justa. Los maestros bilingües tienen que hacer el doble de trabajo, muchas veces creando su propio contenido ya que los recursos que les brindan las escuela son muy escasos. Esto hace que los maestros se sientan saturados de trabajo y poco valorados.

El choque cultural, en mi opinión, es una de las razones de las que no se habla mucho, pero creo que es bastante común para los maestros que son de otros países. Muchas escuelas reclutan maestros extranjeros y cuando estos llegan a las escuelas donde van a trabajar, se encuentran con una población, una cultura, un dialecto diferente al que conocen y hay veces que es muy difícil la comunicación entre ambas partes por el choque cultural. También, la comunicación con la familia y la comunidad se hace difícil.

Para evitar el desafío que tenemos con la retención de maestros, los distritos y las escuelas deberían ofrecer mejores entrenamientos para que los maestros bilingües tengan las herramientas necesarias para que sus estudiantes puedan tener éxito adquiriendo ambos lenguajes. Estos entrenamientos también deben incluir clases para conocer las culturas a las que les servirán siendo maestros bilingües.  También, deberían tener mejores compensaciones ya que estos trabajan más de lo que trabaja un maestro regular. Haciendo mejoras dentro de las compensaciones que se les ofrece a los maestros bilingües, podemos crear un programa más atractivo para los maestros.

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The Effects of Bilingual Teachers Shortage

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The Effects of Bilingual Teachers Shortage

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In my opinion, the two biggest challenges that contribute to the shortage of bilingual teachers are bilingual teacher recruitment and bilingual teacher retention. These challenges are critical because they directly impact the availability and effectiveness of bilingual education programs, which are essential for fostering academic success and cultural understanding among diverse student populations. These challenges are significant because of:

1. Limited Pool of Qualified Bilingual Teachers: There is a scarcity of individuals who possess the necessary qualifications to become bilingual teachers. Fluency in both the target language and the language of instruction, along with the required teaching credentials, can be rare. This limited pool of potential candidates makes it difficult to recruit an adequate number of bilingual educators to meet the demand.

2. Recruitment Barriers: Encouraging individuals to pursue a career in bilingual education can be challenging. Factors such as low salaries, lack of balance between incentives and volume of work, and inadequate professional development opportunities discouraging potential educators from entering the field. Additionally, the recruitment process itself may not effectively reach out to bilingual individuals who could be excellent candidates.

3. Teacher Certification and Licensing Requirements: The strict certification and licensing requirements for teachers can be a barrier, especially for bilingual individuals with non-traditional educational backgrounds or credentials obtained outside the United States. Aligning these requirements with the diverse backgrounds and skills of potential bilingual teachers is crucial for expanding the pool of qualified candidates. Modifications to those qualifications are needed to expand the amount of possible certified bilingual teachers.

4. Bilingual Teacher Retention: Bilingual educators often face unique challenges, including the pressure to serve as cultural bridges, the excessive workload, and the emotional toll of working with culturally diverse student populations in a system that favors the White monolingual mainstream. Without proper support and mentorship, many bilingual teachers will continue to leave the profession prematurely, agravating the shortage.

5. Workplace Support and Professional Development: Bilingual educators need ongoing support and opportunities for professional growth. They require additional training in language acquisition methodologies, culturally responsive teaching practices, and specialized classroom management techniques. Insufficient investment in these areas can lead to burnout and turnover among bilingual teachers.

6. Equity and Resource Allocation: Disparities in resource allocation, including funding, classroom materials, and access to technology, can disproportionately affect schools with bilingual programs. Addressing these disparities is essential for creating an environment where bilingual educators can thrive, and students can receive high-quality bilingual education.

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I understand there is an important need for bilingual teachers, but the pathways offered can be problematic. The most important would be recruiting and retention.
A school district should offer pay commensurate to the extra work a bilingual teacher does. Often, they need supplemental materials they must create on their own to aid their students. A proper salary would also retain qualified teachers, as they would feel valued for their work and not need to find another job offering higher salaries.
A disagreement I have with the article is the need for an easier path to teacher certification. I agree that anyone can have the heart to teach, but studying to be an educator offers in-depth studies of educational psychology, child development, and educational pedagogy, as well as student teaching, that are crucial to creating a holistic and highly informed educator. I do agree, though, on changing the exam. I think the amount of exam material to be completed in 5 hours would be overwhelming. And sitting in that highly secured testing facility would give me anxiety. However, properly vetting bilingual teachers should be a priority. Just as we expect our students to have excellent speaking, reading, and writing skills, we should have the same high expectations of ourselves. Perhaps breaking the test into smaller sections with more time to complete would make it easier for teachers seeking certification.
Emergent bilingual students would likely suffer from not having an appropriate bilingual teacher, but they still deserve someone who is highly qualified, not just a substitute or re-assigned teacher. Currently, the biggest obstacle I see is an underpaid job. It's why teachers are leaving and why new ones don't want to come.