October 27 editorial, “Boston needs more bilingual education classes.” It’s true that Boston needs more bilingual programs. In fact, all of Massachusetts needs them.

Speaking a second language is an advantage. The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, of which I am a member, clearly saw strong evidence of this hiding in the third-grade MCAS data we recently reviewed. There are a number of children identified in the “Old English language learners” subgroup. Third graders in this group routinely outperform the general population in English Language Arts. This subgroup is more likely to read proficiently by the beginning of fourth grade. We need to build on this.

A deliberate statewide initiative to greatly expand bilingual education and attract a more bilingual workforce may be the best way to improve learning for our youngest students. The Board’s Special Committee on Pandemic Recovery and Literacy recently published a report I’m suggesting this, but the conversation hasn’t actually started yet.

Michael Moriarty, Holyoke

After studying in the Protected English Immersion model, I started teaching ninth grade English language students in 2009. Most of the students were new to the country and were just starting to learn English. SEI was a mix of phonics (“C is for cat”) and standard foreign language lessons such as “Introductions” and “Restaurant Dialogue.” I spent most of my preparation time googling images that would visually support my English lessons.

However, as the only English speaker in the class, I could not “hook” my students into English. My classes were, at best, a light mist of English sprinkled over the sea of ​​Spanish in the classroom. There were smaller Arabic and Haitian Creole pools. What actually happened was that I delved into Spanish. It taught me a lot about language acquisition.

I had the advantage of a background in French, Latin, Italian and Greek, as well as a love of languages ​​and affection for my students. They laughed and clapped like proud parents at every new Spanish word I learned. I also tried to learn some Arabic, Haitian and Nepali.

After about 10 years, I learned enough Spanish to teach using a bilingual education model (I never took classroom lessons). I wish I could offer this service in every student’s native language. But for classes with Spanish speakers, I realized how helpful it was to be able to communicate with them from the very beginning. Knowing that I respected their language motivated them to learn more in my own language.

I believe that true language learning only occurs when there is a hunger to communicate and trust in the other person’s positive response. Numerous other factors affect student motivation, including mental and physical health issues, low income, responsibilities outside of school, and a history of trauma. ELL students are disproportionately affected by all of this.

Starting with the deck stacked against them, ELL students need the best that Massachusetts schools can offer: qualified bilingual teachers, strict limits on class sizes, extra preparation time for teachers to create relevant multilingual learning materials, and funding to support them. Let’s show all other states how investing in ELL students can pay off.

Sallie KennedyLynn