The teaching of English in public primary schools in Mexico: More heat than light?

Abstract

The national English program in Mexico was formally launched in 2009. The new program supplanted various state programs, and aimed to create a coherent, uniform curriculum that extended English instruction to all public school students across the country. The article describes the development, evolution, and changes as the program was piloted and implemented. The authors synthesize various sources to identify the accomplishments of the program and the challenges that remain. They argue that a main concern, from a policy perspective, is that the program has not been conceptualized as part of a broader coherent language education policy, and that the program has been implemented not as an education policy, but as a series administrative and fiscal actions. Hence, while the program has succeeded in expanding access to English in public schools, it has not had continuity and has been characterized by inconsistency and change.

The Associations Between Multiple Dimensions of Acculturation and Psychological Distress Among Latinx Youth From Immigrant Families

“…Perhaps, they are quick learners or have flexible personalities and adapt easily in new environments, both of which may make them generally less likely to experience psychological distress. In addition, this finding could be linked to social class, as children who receive education in English prior to immigrating to the United States are more likely to be from families with higher socioeconomic status (SES) in their countries of origin (Ramírez-Romero & Sayer, 2016). Higher social class may protect these young people from many risk factors associated with psychological distress (i.e., lack of access to resources).…”

Time for New Thinking about ELT in Latin America and Elsewhere

“…It is still too early for a definitive verdict on PRONI as a fully implemented and operative national English programme, especially since it has fallen far short of the planned implementation period due to poor organization and insufficient resources, economic and human (Ramírez-Romero & Sayer, 2016), and has been interrupted by the COVID pandemic, L2 Journal Vol. 13 Issue 1 (2021) 88 but its prospects seem extremely poor.…”

English in Public Schools Located in Metropolitan Lima, Peru: An Analysis of Eleventh-Grade Students’ Level and Perceptions

“…This nationwide program displaced the diverse state programs and offered students a uniform curriculum that aimed at ensuring that by the time they graduate, they could reach CEFR level B1 (Ramírez-Romero & Sayer, 2016;Mexicanos Primero, 2015). Six years after the formal launching of this program, the educational organization Mexicanos Primero prepared the first Examen del Uso y Comprensión del Idioma Inglés para Egresados de Secundaria (EUCIS) (English Usage and Comprehension Test for Secondary School Graduates) and applied it to 4,727 secondary graduates from 11 Mexican cities.…”