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Spanish Media Denied Comment in Wake of School Massacre

Texas law enforcement ended a long press conference on the Robb Elementary School massacre without taking a single question from Spanish-language media. Speakers of Spanish make up around 30% of Texas’s population, and in Uvalde County, where the mass shooting took place, half of families speak a language other than English at home—largely Spanish, with Latinos making up just under 90% of the student body at the elementary school. At the first post-tragedy press conference, reporters with Spanish-language media pleaded for answers in Spanish, but despite being asked to “please” address the media in Spanish, Victor Escalon, a regional director with the Texas Department of Public Safety, walked away from the podium without responding.

Does Access Always End in Excess?

The fact that access and excess resemble each other is because of a family resemblance they brought to English from Latin, their shared language of origin. They also came into English at the same time, in the 14th century, a period when the French used by the ruling classes in England was contributing new words to English vocabulary, and the educated people of the time often also had a knowledge of Latin that influenced the early uses of these words.

This combination of influences is evident in the oldest meaning of access in English, a meaning that today is much more common in French: “an attack or onset of illness or disease.” This was one of the word’s meanings taken from the Latin word accessus: “onset (of fever or illness).”

Our more common and more general meanings of access, however, descend from the other meanings of accessus, meaning “to approach.” This gave the Latin noun the meanings “approach,” “means of entry,” and “right of approach.” Our modern word retains all of these meanings.

One can see the link between the word’s earliest use, meaning “beginning,” or, figuratively, “opening,” and a literal opening—something that gives access. By Shakespeare’s time, this was by far the most common use of the word, in phrases like “denied access” or “free access.”
The use relating to connectivity to networks or the internet, “freedom or ability to obtain or make use of something,” dates to the late 1950s, as does the corresponding verb use (“access the internet”), which was initially regarded as computer jargon but has become so common since the 1990s as to be unremarkable. Sometimes languages make big changes that are hardly noticed.

Excess comes from the Latin noun excessus meaning “departure” or “projection.” To the neutral use of excess meaning “an amount more than needed,” another was almost immediately added, giving the word a moral component, a connotation that “an amount more than needed” is a bad thing.

Excess is most often encountered as a noun or adjective, but it also has a rare verb use, meaning “to eliminate the position of,” a usage that is redolent of the impersonal bureaucratic business jargon that people seem to love to hate.

The coincidence of the resemblance of spelling and sound of the words excess and access sometimes leads to their confusion today. But if they seem to intersect in usage—what would be called an error by most editors and teachers—it turns out that, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, these words have been confused from the very beginning, and at the very least a slight overlap in meaning was present at the origin of the use of these words in English in the late 1300s.

If you hadn’t thought of that, you might just say that this article provides access to an excess of information.

Follow Peter Sokolowski, editor-at-large for Merriam-Webster, on Twitter @PeterSokolowski.

Let Teachers Be the Influencers

A recent NEA survey found that 55% of all educators plan to leave the profession earlier than expected due to pandemic-related stress.
In just two years’ time, the US is expected to have about 200,000 fewer teachers than it needs. Of course, teacher pay needs to be substantially increased to help recruit and retain them, but to fully fill these vacancies, school leaders need to embrace other factors important to Gen Z—the digital natives who prioritize diversity, activism, and work/life balance.

The long-feared teacher shortage crisis has now arrived across the subject areas of early childhood education, language arts, mathematics, science, and special education, and although California is at the top of the list of ten states with teacher shortages, educators will be in short supply nationwide.

The only way to solve the teacher shortage is to attract young trainees to the profession from all sectors of the community who are representative of the student body they will be teaching. Gen Z is the most populous generation on earth, with more than one-third of the world’s population counting themselves Gen Zers. In the US, Gen Z constitutes more than a quarter of the population and is the most diverse generation in the nation’s history. According to a comprehensive survey by Deloitte, Gen Zers are drawn toward working in the tech industry, with 51% of those surveyed rating technology as a top industry in which to work. At the same time, they also are drawn to work that supports the greater good, such as education (41%) and health care (37%).

To help make education a more attractive career choice for all Gen Zers—especially young men, who have traditionally been difficult to recruit—the fun tech side of the job should be emphasized. At the same time, teachers have to be retooled with the latest developments in edtech and have access to ongoing training to keep their skills up to date.

Thanks to post-pandemic recovery funding, we have a unique opportunity to increase teacher salaries to an acceptable level, but while salary is the most important factor in deciding on a job, Gen Z values diversity and social activism more than previous generations and they want to work at organizations where the values align with their own, with 77% of respondents saying that it’s important.

Of course, we need more teacher preparation programs and a solution to the crippling student loan debts incurred by teachers, but first of all, we need to stimulate the demand to become teachers. Teachers have borne the brunt of much of the political dissatisfaction over the last decade, so a great deal of PR work has to be done to convince young people without children of the excitement, joy, and diversity in teaching. Only in education can there be the cultural, linguistic diversity mixed with constant, lifelong learning and rewarding sense of contribution that this young generation so desires.
Teaching ticks all the boxes for Gen Zers. On top of giving the next generation of educators the salaries and the respect they deserve, we have to make sure that they have the tools and autonomy to make it the most fun and rewarding career ever…

White House Dedicates $15M for Language Grants



The House Appropriations Committee has approved $15 million in funding for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 to support the third round of the World Language Advancement and Readiness Grants Program (WLARA). The House Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS) Education Appropriations Subcommittee will act on language education program funding levels tomorrow, with the full Appropriations Committee set to approve those funding levels on June 30th. The full House is expected to pass both the FY23 Defense and Labor HHS Education spending bills in July. The Senate Appropriations process remains stalled.

“We are thrilled that the House’s Appropriations Committee continues to invest in world language education, to ensure our students have access to critical skills necessary to become global leaders,” said Amanda Seewald, President of the Joint National Committee for Languages-National Council on Languages and International Studies (JNCL-NCLIS). “By voting to approve another $15 million to fund the World Language Advancement and Readiness Grants in Fiscal Year 2023, this Committee not only recognizes the value of K-12 students developing multilingual and multicultural skills and knowledge, but also honors the late Rep. Don Young and the retiring Rep. David Price who’s bipartisan efforts resulted in the authorization and funding of this program. We urge Congress to approve and the President to enact this third tranche of funding for WLARA as soon as possible.”

WLARA was authorized in FY2020 through the National Defense Authorization Act and provides for three-year competitive grants to support local and state education agencies to establish, improve, or expand innovative programs in world language learning. 75% of the grant funding goes to programs for languages critical to national security and 25% for any natural human language. Last Fall, the Department of Defense awarded the first round of multi-year WLARA grants to nine public school districts, spread across seven states. Languages represented by the awards include American Sign Language, French, German, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, and Spanish. The second round of WLARA grant awards is expected to be made this summer.

Retooling from the Classroom to the Workplace


When COVID-19 began to spread, businesses and schools had to suddenly shift to remote ways of working and learning. This uncovered a major problem. Most businesses and classrooms weren’t prepared to offer a fully remote-work or remote-learning experience. We were thrust into the world of technology and, for many, it was uncharted territory. Some pivoted without hesitation, while others struggled badly.

Now, over two years have passed and our virtual world has blossomed. Instead of fearing a reliance on technology, companies and schools around the world are embracing it. We have learned many things during this global crisis. We know for sure that technology is here to stay.

With this in mind, the need to prioritize digital accessibility is more important than ever. Before the pandemic, digital accessibility was not a key focus for many businesses or school districts. However, with much of the population now working and learning remotely, digital accessibility is a must-have. Individuals with disabilities must be supported at work and in the classroom.

Technology in the Classroom
With remote learning, many, if not all, educators and students had to rely on edtech tools, some for the first time. A survey found that 90% of teachers plan to continue using technology in the classroom, even when teaching in person.1 The pandemic pushed people to use technology like never before, and many realized the benefits. Today, many educators and students can’t imagine a classroom that doesn’t leverage technology. Edtech tools have brought new opportunities, solutions, and successes to the classroom (in person or at home) for everyone.

Technology in the classroom has helped improve digital accessibility for students with disabilities. Well-designed edtech tools incorporate universal design for learning (UDL) principles.2 This is a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people. It’s based on scientific insights into how we learn.

These tools allow students to choose how they learn and show their knowledge. Examples include allowing students to choose to have homework questions read aloud or to use speech-to-text to complete an essay. Giving students choices removes barriers that exist when pen and paper are the only options.

We can make more informed choices about what edtech tools will work for teachers and students as new technology emerges to meet growing demands.

Technology in the Workplace
Having classrooms with digital tools also means that we are preparing students for the future of the digital workspace. Technology is quickly taking a prominent role in nearly every profession.

Here too, however, digital accessibility is critical. There are nearly six million Americans with disabilities in the US labor force.3 New tech solutions offer employees with disabilities a choice in how they work. They provide tools to complete tasks in a way that suits people’s personal needs and preferences. For example, the same speech-to-text function used in classrooms can be used when writing a sales pitch, and read-aloud programs can give employees the option to process information through listening. This can benefit auditory learners or those with vision impairments, for example.

Software like Read&Write is used by millions of students across the world.4 But it can also benefit neurodivergent employees.

About 15% of Americans have dyslexia, which can often go unnoticed.5 When employees are given a choice in how they understand and are understood, they can achieve more. Providing support for employees has also proven to be an added benefit for everyone—not just those with disabilities. The right workplace tools can boost employee performance and satisfaction. They can help businesses to attract, retain, and nurture employees of all capabilities.

Technology in the Future
Technology is a powerful support. It helps people to work and learn with more confidence and can ultimately help them to thrive. The pandemic shone a light on the need for digital accessibility, and today many are taking action to improve the digital space. The growing demand for digital work and learning spaces that work for everyone is driving positive change.

Links
1. https://techjury.net/blog/elearning-statistics/#gref
2. https://udlguidelines.cast.org
3. www.nytimes.com/2021/03/05/nyregion/workers-disabilities-unemployment-covid.html
4. https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/readwrite-for-google-chro/inoeonmfapjbbkmdafoankkfajkcphgd?hl=en-US
5. www.ldonline.org/article/10784/#:~:text=A%20staggering%20 5%20to%2015,intelligent%20he%20or%20she%20is

Martin McKay is CEO and founder of Texthelp, a global technology company helping people all over the world to understand and to be understood. Texthelp has led the way in creating innovative technology for the education and the workplace sectors for the last three decades.

AATSP’s 104th Annual Conference Right Around the Corner

The American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese is holding its 104th AATSP Annual Conference in beautiful San Juan, Puerto Rico July 9-12th, 2022. The conference theme this year is Valorando nuestras raíces y construyendo nuestro futuro / Valorizando nossas raízes e construindo nosso futuro. The theme celebrates heritage language learners and all language learners. It recognizes the importance of honoring one’s roots while we build our future. The conference theme reflects our rich and varied program that includes over 375 sessions, workshops, e-posters, plenaries, and special events.

Highlights include:

Keynote Speaker, María Carreira, “Teaching with Vitality in Mind: Aligning Instruction to the State of Spanish in the United States”

Opening Plenary Speaker, Kim Haas, “A Tropical Journey: Bringing Afro-Latino Travels to Television”

Portuguese Plenary Speaker, Gláucia Silva, “A relevância da gramática na opinião de aprendizes de português: foco em língua de herança”

Language and Linguistic Plenary Speakers, Richard Bueno Hudson, Jesús Fernández González, and José Luis Vega with moderator Florencia Henshaw, “Lo uno y lo diverso”

Over 750 participants will share language teaching tips, research, best practices, innovations, inspiration, and ideas in the Caribe Hilton, San Juan. Conference attendees are encouraged to explore the wonders of La Isla del Encanto!

Make your plan for next summer when the AATSP will meet in Salamanca, Spain.

Dread and Delight as Québec Passes Strict French Law

Called Bill 96, Canada’s Québec province passed into law its fiercely fought French language bill last month. The new law will impose penalties on businesses and organizations that don’t switch exclusively to the French language when they provide services in Québec.

Refugee Anxieties
Refugees are fearful over the clause that says if they don’t learn French within six months of arrival in Québec, their access to government services will be cut. Québec is a popular first destination for thousands of refugees streaming across forest paths from the US into Canada. In 2019, up to 50,000 entered Québec via forest crossings from the US, and up to now they have been able to receive public health, welfare, and education services in English if they wish. Bill 96 stops this.

School Fears
On the education front, English-speaking Canadians fear that the total enrolment of English students to CEGEPs, which are junior English schools in Québec, will be vastly curtailed. Last weekend, the English Montréal School Board in Québec’s largest city voted to launch an emergency court challenge of Bill 96.

Montréal is a magnet for international students and was voted the world’s most desired student city in 2017 and 2018. The passing of Bill 96 has prompted exit plans among some international students in Québec.

Business Doubts
Perhaps the most dramatic effect of Bill 96 will be its impact on businesses in Québec. Every company with 25 workers or more must now transact in French or face the wrath of the language enforcement police.

In Montréal, a major business hub in North America, those doing transnational trade, especially with the US, say the law is so damaging that it may force them to relocate their offices from Québec. Any French speaker in Québec who sees prices, say at a KFC restaurant, written in English has a right to sue such a business for thousands of dollars for “violation of his/her rights,” says the bill.

The bill further demands that companies draft worker contracts in French and establish Francization committees to switch the workforce into French. This could be impractical, expensive, and ruinous for international companies doing business from Québec, warns Michel Leblanc, CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montréal.

Indigenous Languages Violations
First Nations communities in Québec vow to defy Bill 96, which they claim forces them to learn French, a third language, as they already speak their native languages and English. Bill 96 is an egregious violation of First Nations human rights, says the Mohawk Council of Chiefs in Québec, which plans to ignore the law and drag Québec’s government to justify the move to the UN.

However, supporters of the bill are jubilant and even say the new law does not go far enough, asking that it also demand that Canada designate French Day a national holiday.

The implementation of Bill 96 will be phased over three years, according to Québec’s government. Ray Mwareya, Ottawa, Canada

Mental Health Services in Spanish Decline

According to a study published last month in the journal Psychiatric Services (https://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ps.202100614), between 2014 and 2019, the proportion of US centers offering mental health treatment in Spanish declined by nearly 18%, resulting in a loss of 1,163 Spanish-speaking mental health centers. Using national data from all known specialty mental health treatment centers, the study also illustrated epidemiological trends for centers offering Spanish-language services. Between 2014 and 2019, the proportion of facilities offering Spanish-language services declined in 44 states, and this decline was most marked in states with the fastest-growing Latino populations. These numbers are particularly troubling considering that Latinos account for more than half of the total population growth in the US over the past ten years and that the total Latino population surpassed 60 million people in 2019.

“These population changes have precipitated new and evolving demands on the health care system, which are nuanced and driven by a range of factors,” the researchers explained, “including fluency in English and Spanish, immigration and documentation status, being first- or second-generation residents in the country, and exposure to trauma related to racism and discrimination.” According to an analysis (www.samhsa.gov/find-help/disorders) of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, between 2015 and 2018, rates of serious mental illness in the Latino population increased by 60% (from 4.0 to 6.4%) among 18–25-year-olds and by 77% (from 2.2 to 3.9%) among 26–49-year-olds.

A similar trend between 2015 and 2018 has been observed for the prevalence of major depressive episodes among Latinos aged 12 to 49 years, which increased from 8.4 to 11.3%. In a study based on data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2019.305337), 34% of Latino respondents reported at least one day of poor mental health in the past month (mean=3.6 days), and 11% reported frequent mental distress. However, despite the growing need for mental health care among Latino populations, utilization of mental health services remains low. The researchers suggest that culturally responsive care, incorporating an understanding of culture and language into clinical mental health practice, may be one strategy to increase treatment uptake in Latino populations.

Sound Wall Classes

Tools 4 Reading is offering Sound Wall summer classes, which are designed to help teachers learn about the science and implementation of sound walls instruction.


Classes are online and run from June 24th – August 12th. 

Visit https://www.tools4reading.com/book-online to register for these affordable for individuals courses.

Belarus Restricts Lithuanian Education

According to Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Belarus will no longer allow students in its two Lithuanian-language schools to study in their native language. Instead, they’ll study in either Belarusian or Russian, with Lithuanian offered as a subject rather than being the language of instruction.

Belarus is home to two prominent schools catering to the linguistic needs of children from Lithuanian-speaking families. Since 1996, the schools have offered Lithuanian children the opportunity to learn in their heritage language.

“The Belarusian side has informed us that all national minority schools have to choose either Russian or Belarusian as their teaching language as of September 1,” Egidijus Meilūnas, the deputy foreign minister of Lithuania, told the Baltic News Service. “In other words, the Lithuanian language will remain only as one of the subjects.”

Shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union, the Lithuanian Ministry of Education, Science, and Sport began funding two Lithuanian schools. The schools cater primarily to students from Lithuanian families, as the country is home to a sizable minority of Lithuanian individuals. Lithuanian speakers make up roughly 5% of the country, and a handful of historically Lithuanian regions retain a majority of Lithuanian speakers.

The move is a stark reminder of the recent discord between Belarus and other former Soviet states. The relationship between Belarus and its Baltic neighbors has always been fairly complicated, but the recent war in Ukraine has increased tensions in the region. While countries such as Lithuania, Latvia, and Moldova have all condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Belarus has taken a decidedly friendlier stance toward Russia, allowing the country to station troops within its borders.

The government of Lithuania has called on Belarus to reverse its decision regarding the Lithuanian schools, but Belarus refuses. Although the schools are small (just over 200 students are enrolled), the Lithuanian government has noted that Belarus’s actions are “unacceptable” and “restrict the right of Belarusians of Lithuanian descent to receive education in their mother tongue.”

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