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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Brandon, Youth Advocate for Language Access Campaign at Asian American Student Advocacy Project (ASAP)
9:50:54
ยท
176 sec
Brandon, a high school student and youth advocate, testifies about the challenges faced by Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) English Language Learners (ELLs) in NYC schools. He emphasizes the need for better support, cultural responsiveness, and language access for immigrant students and their families.
- Highlights personal experiences of feeling isolated as an AAPI student and relates this to additional challenges faced by ELL students
- Advocates for creating culturally responsive spaces, improving language access beyond mere translation, and fostering welcoming environments for ELL students
- Calls for baseline funding to support immigrant students and families, including better outreach through ethnic media and data disaggregation to understand language needs
Brandon
9:50:54
Oh sorry, hello.
9:50:56
Good evening.
9:50:57
First I wanna thank chair Joseph and the rest of the council for allowing this conversation.
9:51:00
My name is Brandon.
9:51:01
I'm a student at Lab High School in Manhattan.
9:51:04
I'm also a youth advocate at the Asian American Student Advocacy Project's language access campaign.
9:51:09
In schools, I've always felt a sense of distance from my friends because of my background.
9:51:13
For example, kids in school would always compare skin colors and as an Asian, I felt secluded as I was only one of color.
9:51:20
My experiences as an AAPI student is something other students can relate to.
9:51:24
The constant feeling of being different led me to join the language access campaign in ASAP.
9:51:29
While I may not be an immigrant myself, I believe that we have shared struggles and it can be worse for them due to their additional language barriers.
9:51:37
English language learners not only need to learn the language, but they also have to adapt to a whole new culture, social life, and also have to support their families who are often in need of language support as well.
9:51:50
AAPI ELLs face additional challenges in schools such as social isolation due to stereotypes, different accents, and sometimes even the cultural food that they're eating.
9:52:01
Moreover oftentimes school resources are not translated into their language and it puts burden onto the AAPI ELL students to translate for their families.
9:52:10
Supporting ELL students must go beyond the academic support.
9:52:13
It is a shame that ELL's are not getting the adequate support that they deserve.
9:52:18
Language access isn't just providing a translation.
9:52:21
This is why in ASAP we advocate for the creation more culturally responsive and integrated spaces for AAPI ELL students in high school across the city.
9:52:31
Implementing these spaces require understanding their social and academic barriers.
9:52:35
We also need schools to actively foster an environment where all students including ELL students feel genuinely welcomed and supported to be themselves and thrive.
9:52:44
No one should be judged based on their speed at learning English.
9:52:47
We believe that their identities as English language learners should not be ashamed and that their ability to be multilingual must be cherished.
9:52:55
All families should be receiving information and school materials regardless of the language that they speak.
9:53:01
Navigating a new education system is challenging for both parents and ELL students and it is on the school to ease that burden.
9:53:12
The city must baseline the funding support for immigrant students and families and what this means is that they can also have different outreaches so such as using ethnic media and translating material into more languages.
9:53:26
We also need data disaggregation to have a full understanding of the language needs of students.
9:53:32
We believe that the city can do and must do more to support and protect our immigrant students and families through many different ways.
9:53:38
They are part of the community so the city must take action to make that happen.
9:53:43
No one should feel excluded, isolated, or judged in our school system.
9:53:48
We all deserve to be seen and valued.
9:53:50
Thank you.