Language policy and migration (Tollefson)

The chapter by Tollefson entitled “Language Policy and Migration” brings up some rather provocative points about language policies vis-à-vis migration. In particular, Tollefson argues that special educational provisions for immigrants, migrants and refugees are inadequate because they are “designed to channel learners into particular kinds of jobs” (104). The kinds of jobs Tollefson talks about are menial labor jobs that essentially no one else wants to do. They are also the jobs that are most vulnerable to shifts in the economy; therefore, these migrants have become welcome buffers to the volatile economy (Tollefson quotes Marshall in this on page 112). Personally, I think federally funded ESL courses structured to teach “survival English” make a lot of sense. To fund full advanced degrees or specialized English training specific to a certain industry would be far too costly. Instead, I think the approach our government should take is to move towards recognizing advanced degrees/professional certification from more countries. I think the governmet should fund booster courses that teach rules and regulations specific to the United States. Some professions are not transferable across nations—lawyers, for example. Another important point Tollefson makes is that fact that restrictive language policy will almost certainly NOT aid in unifying a nation. Rather, it will alienate minority-language communities into insular communities, which will establish the breeding ground for intense discontent. We have read many papers that point to the failures of language policy to truly weed languages out of existence, even under relatively oppressive regimes (as observed with the KMT’s Mandarin-only policies in Taiwan).