A mother called me last week to tell me about her middle-school daughter. I guess because I was a teacher for so long and write education articles, people tend to turn to me with their concerns.
The mother (I will call her “Annie”) said her daughter (“Suzie”) went to a Harmony School in XXXXX, Texas. Annie thought the schools would be good because they advertised their well-disciplined approach and high science and math scores.
Annie allowed her daughter to remain in the school for a year but became very concerned as the school year progressed.
Annie described the Harmony School as being decorated all in Turkish furnishings, wall hangings, memorabilia. Many of the students were Muslims, Pakistanis, Turks, Asians, etc. Low-income Afro-American and Hispanic students also went there. Suzie is dark-skinned, and that is one reason Annie thought her daughter would fit in well at Harmony.
Annie said there were four American teachers who spoke good English; the rest were Turks who came from Albania. The e-mails that Annie received from the school were written in such broken English that she could hardly understand the content. Suzie received almost no instruction on English grammar/usage, and her ability to write in good English decreased in proficiency while she was there.
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