The Grammar of Neoliberalism: What Textbooks Reveal About the Education of Spanish Speakers in Mexico, Colombia, and the United States

Abstract

Emergent to Advanced Bilingual Students (EABs), also known as English Language Learner Students (ELLs), are both the fastest growing group in the United States and the ones with lower academic performance. Spanish speakers account for around 78–80% of all EABs. All too often, EABs who are fortunate to receive quality bilingual education receive instruction based on mirror texts; that is, texts that are direct translation from its English counterparts (Ramirez et al, 2016). In this chapter, we present a brief analysis of the textbook market in the USA, Colombia and Mexico, complemented with a linguistic analysis of the patterns dominant in three 3rd grade science curricular units written in Spanish on the same topic in the three countries. Two of these units were written for regular educational curriculum programs in Colombia and Mexico. The third one is a text used in dual language English/Spanish bilingual programs in the USA that is directly translated from the English textbook version. The macroanalysis reveals a strong market-based neoliberal influence on the textbook used in the USA. At the micro level, the comparative systemic functional linguistic analysis of these three texts reveals the distinct linguistic organization of the mirror text in relation to the other two. Key implications for teacher’s role in the classroom, for teacher preparation programs, and for the education of Spanish speakers in these three countries with special attention to bilingual students in the USA are addressed.