Timeline by rodolphe olivier

The 1906 Naturalization Act

rodolpheolivier — 2025-10-13 17:41:02 UTC

Signed into law by President Theodore Roosevelt, this bill was passed on June 29, 1906. This is an important event in USA bilingual history as this is the first piece of regulation requiring immigrants to speak English in order to become citizens. This bill also legitimized the English-only view of American education.

The 1974 ESEA re-authorization and the Title VII Bilingual Education Act

rodolpheolivier — 2025-10-13 17:58:03 UTC

Originally adopted in 1968, Title VII of the Bilingual Education Act originally left much to be desired. Not only did it lack a definition of bilingual education, but it also did not require schools to use a child's home language. This, however, was a step in the right direction and, in 1974, the ESEA re-authorization further built on its foundations. It now provided clear definitions and finally required schools receiving grants to include home languages instruction. For the first time, native language instruction was required to receive certain grants. In my opinion, this is more important than its 1968 predecessor as the re-authorization goes much further in helping all students gain access to quality education. It was a direct blow to the English-only view and provided incentives for schools to include native language instruction.

The 2002 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act & the Repeal of the Bilingual Education Act

rodolpheolivier — 2025-10-13 18:12:32 UTC

Signed by President George W. Bush in January 2002, the NCLB Act, along with Title III replacing the Bilingual Education Act (BEA), represented a step backwards in bilingual education. Bilingual education was still allowed, but no longer valued as the incentives provided by the BEA were suddenly removed. This, coupled with an emphasis on high-stakes testing, English proficiency and the threat of sanctions led schools nationwide to move, once again, toward English-only instruction.

The 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)

rodolpheolivier — 2025-10-13 18:30:32 UTC

ESSA was signed by President Barack Obama on December 10, 2015, replacing the NCLB Act. In short, ESSA reduced the federal government's authority and handed power to the states to develop their own systems for student assessment. I believe this was important for Bilingual Education because it was the first federal education law to require that the progress of ELLs in acquiring English proficiency be included as a key indicator in state accountability systems. This ensures that schools are held responsible for both ELLs' academic scores and for their language development.

The 1967 Bilingual Education Act

rodolpheolivier — 2025-10-13 18:43:28 UTC

The Bilingual Education Act was introduced by Texas Senator Ralph Yarborough in 1967 and was signed into law in January 1968. As Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), this was the first piece of federal legislation to officially recognize the educational needs of ELLs. The act provided federal funding for school districts to develop special programs, but without requiring bilingual education.I think this is important because it marked the end of a half-century of English-only instruction in American schools.