Tara Garcia Mathewson
@taragarciam.bsky.social
Spencer Fellow at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. Writing a book about bilingual education.
Pinned
The Future is Bilingual
Insights at the intersection of language, learning, and policy.
taragarciam.substack.com
Care about #bilingualeducation or #equity in #education? What about #EnglishLearners or #EmergentBilinguals? Sign up for my newsletter, The Future is Bilingual. It's free! taragarciam.substack.com/p/whats-this...
Did you know there’s a bilingual version of Aladdin with a plot twist? It premiered in Texas in 2005 and brought the community to tears. open.substack.com/pub/taragarc...
A whole new (bilingual) world
A school district in Texas' Rio Grande Valley premiered a bilingual version of Aladdin in 2005. It brought the community to tears.
open.substack.com
November 18, 2025 at 9:15 PM
Did you know there’s a bilingual version of Aladdin with a plot twist? It premiered in Texas in 2005 and brought the community to tears. open.substack.com/pub/taragarc...
I have been fuming over the TPUSA "All-American" halftime alternative to Bad Bunny's performance for awhile now. So I wrote about it. Come for the rant, stay for the history and the kid art! ;)
On Bad Bunny and being "American"
TPUSA's "All-American" halftime show ignores Spanish's long history in America
open.substack.com
October 28, 2025 at 1:25 PM
I have been fuming over the TPUSA "All-American" halftime alternative to Bad Bunny's performance for awhile now. So I wrote about it. Come for the rant, stay for the history and the kid art! ;)
Care about #bilingualeducation or #equity in #education? What about #EnglishLearners or #EmergentBilinguals? Sign up for my newsletter, The Future is Bilingual. It's free! taragarciam.substack.com/p/whats-this...
The Future is Bilingual
Insights at the intersection of language, learning, and policy.
taragarciam.substack.com
October 9, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Care about #bilingualeducation or #equity in #education? What about #EnglishLearners or #EmergentBilinguals? Sign up for my newsletter, The Future is Bilingual. It's free! taragarciam.substack.com/p/whats-this...
It has been 5 years since I stopped writing the Future of Learning newsletter at @hechingerreport.org. Time to dive back in, but this time writing about bilingual education! Check out my new, self-published newsletter, The Future is Bilingual, and subscribe: taragarciam.substack.com/p/whats-this...
The Future is Bilingual
Insights at the intersection of language, learning, and policy.
taragarciam.substack.com
October 9, 2025 at 3:51 PM
It has been 5 years since I stopped writing the Future of Learning newsletter at @hechingerreport.org. Time to dive back in, but this time writing about bilingual education! Check out my new, self-published newsletter, The Future is Bilingual, and subscribe: taragarciam.substack.com/p/whats-this...
Last year, I reported on how high schoolers were kept from much of the internet because of overactive web filters/blockers. As you might imagine, prison education contexts are even more restricted. calmatters.org/education/hi...
They're working toward degrees in California prisons, but tech limitations hold them back
California and other states have pushed to expand prison education, but students regularly face dead ends.
calmatters.org
August 8, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Last year, I reported on how high schoolers were kept from much of the internet because of overactive web filters/blockers. As you might imagine, prison education contexts are even more restricted. calmatters.org/education/hi...
There are serious social capital implications of #chatbot use for #college students. Students are already inclined to avoid asking for help. When chatbots make it even easier, they lose opportunities to build connections that lead to long-term success: calmatters.org/education/hi...
Chatbots help students be more independent, but the isolation could be career poison
As students use chatbots for quick answers, they can lose the human connections that are key to success in college and careers.
calmatters.org
July 16, 2025 at 6:51 PM
There are serious social capital implications of #chatbot use for #college students. Students are already inclined to avoid asking for help. When chatbots make it even easier, they lose opportunities to build connections that lead to long-term success: calmatters.org/education/hi...
Congress already approved K-12 spending for 2025 and schools budgeted around it, but the Trump Administration isn't releasing more than $6 billion it owes districts -- all aimed at programs it wants to zero out in 2026.
calmatters.org/education/k-...
calmatters.org/education/k-...
California schools are scrambling as Trump administration withholds almost $811 million
Congress already approved the education funding, which pays for migrant education, after school programs and other services.
calmatters.org
July 1, 2025 at 9:41 PM
Congress already approved K-12 spending for 2025 and schools budgeted around it, but the Trump Administration isn't releasing more than $6 billion it owes districts -- all aimed at programs it wants to zero out in 2026.
calmatters.org/education/k-...
calmatters.org/education/k-...
"But honest students are caught in the crossfire of an arms race between technology that mimics human speech and technology that claims to identify it." #AI #Turnitin #highered #ChatGPT
calmatters.org/education/hi...
calmatters.org/education/hi...
California colleges spend millions on AI detectors. Is the faulty tech worth it?
Turnitin’s AI detectors are flawed and the company demands forever access to student papers.
calmatters.org
June 30, 2025 at 2:07 PM
"But honest students are caught in the crossfire of an arms race between technology that mimics human speech and technology that claims to identify it." #AI #Turnitin #highered #ChatGPT
calmatters.org/education/hi...
calmatters.org/education/hi...
"Turnitin tries to make the gray area of academic dishonesty into something black-and-white, and many faculty members drive demand, searching for the promise of algorithmic accuracy."
June 27, 2025 at 1:21 PM
"Turnitin tries to make the gray area of academic dishonesty into something black-and-white, and many faculty members drive demand, searching for the promise of algorithmic accuracy."
There are so many problematic things about Turnitin use in higher education it's hard to even write a headline. Can you just read the whole story?
themarkup.org/artificial-i...
themarkup.org/artificial-i...
California colleges spend millions to catch plagiarism and AI. Is the faulty tech worth it? – The Markup
Colleges and universities renew Turnitin subscriptions year after year even though its flawed detectors are expensive and require students to let the company keep their papers forever.
themarkup.org
June 26, 2025 at 2:33 PM
There are so many problematic things about Turnitin use in higher education it's hard to even write a headline. Can you just read the whole story?
themarkup.org/artificial-i...
themarkup.org/artificial-i...
There are not enough school counselors for kids to get the college and career advising they need. But my latest story for @themarkup.org and @calmatters.org examines the downsides of turning to #AI #chatbots: themarkup.org/machine-lear...
AI Chatbots Can Cushion the High School Counselor Shortage — But Are They Bad for Students? – The Markup
The more students turn to chatbots, the fewer chances they have to develop real-life relationships that can lead to jobs and later success
themarkup.org
March 12, 2025 at 8:16 PM
There are not enough school counselors for kids to get the college and career advising they need. But my latest story for @themarkup.org and @calmatters.org examines the downsides of turning to #AI #chatbots: themarkup.org/machine-lear...
The Center for Democracy & Technology has new survey data showing the scope and scale of online censorship in schools. I spoke with a student in Northern California who said her Spanish class was recently derailed because Telemundo was unexpectedly blocked.
themarkup.org/digital-book...
themarkup.org/digital-book...
Online Censorship In Schools Is ‘More Pervasive' Than Expected, New Data Shows – The Markup
Nationally representative survey data from The Center for Democracy & Technology finds schools subjectively and broadly block students from information online
themarkup.org
January 16, 2025 at 2:21 PM
The Center for Democracy & Technology has new survey data showing the scope and scale of online censorship in schools. I spoke with a student in Northern California who said her Spanish class was recently derailed because Telemundo was unexpectedly blocked.
themarkup.org/digital-book...
themarkup.org/digital-book...
Gracias al Diario Sin Límites por invitarme a hablar acerca de la educación bilingüe en California en su podcast! Escucha aquí: citylimits.org/2025/01/13/p...
PODCAST: ¿Cuáles son los desafíos que persisten tras el fin de la prohibición de la educación bilingüe en California?
La ley no sólo frenó el crecimiento de los programas bilingües en las escuelas sino que provocó un fuerte descenso en la preparación del profesorado que se certificaban en el estado.
citylimits.org
January 13, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Gracias al Diario Sin Límites por invitarme a hablar acerca de la educación bilingüe en California en su podcast! Escucha aquí: citylimits.org/2025/01/13/p...
Escúchame hoy en Radio Bilingüe a las 12:30 PST/3:30 EST. Estaremos hablando acerca de la educación bilingüe en California, que investigué para CalMatters. En vivo: radio.radiobilingue.org.
radio.radiobilingue.org
December 16, 2024 at 7:45 PM
Escúchame hoy en Radio Bilingüe a las 12:30 PST/3:30 EST. Estaremos hablando acerca de la educación bilingüe en California, que investigué para CalMatters. En vivo: radio.radiobilingue.org.
California is the nation's most linguistically diverse state. Fully 60% of kids younger than 6 speak a language other than English at home. Yet California banned bilingual education from 1998-2016 and it is far from recovered. Read my in-depth story here: calmatters.org/education/k-...
'We were punished for speaking Spanish': Inside California's slow recovery of bilingual education
After banning bilingual education in 1998, California voters brought it back 8 years ago. Schools are still trying to rebuild their programs.
calmatters.org
December 9, 2024 at 4:56 PM
California is the nation's most linguistically diverse state. Fully 60% of kids younger than 6 speak a language other than English at home. Yet California banned bilingual education from 1998-2016 and it is far from recovered. Read my in-depth story here: calmatters.org/education/k-...
I joined The Cyber|Show to discuss online censorship in K-12 schools and what I found in my "Digital Book Banning" investigation. Check it out: cybershow.uk/episodes.php...
The Cyber Show - Episodes
The Cyber Show podcast. Three real hackers, diverse in their world views and politics unite in a passionate, deeply critical quest to understand our technological society.
cybershow.uk
December 4, 2024 at 2:35 PM
I joined The Cyber|Show to discuss online censorship in K-12 schools and what I found in my "Digital Book Banning" investigation. Check it out: cybershow.uk/episodes.php...
An English teacher wanted her students to compare Emily Dickinson's letters and poetry. An athletic trainer wanted to create an exercise regimen for a high schooler. The sites they needed were blocked. Students aren't the only ones stymied by overzealous web filtering: themarkup.org/digital-book...
April 23, 2024 at 2:04 PM
An English teacher wanted her students to compare Emily Dickinson's letters and poetry. An athletic trainer wanted to create an exercise regimen for a high schooler. The sites they needed were blocked. Students aren't the only ones stymied by overzealous web filtering: themarkup.org/digital-book...
In their own words: see what students have to say about running into blocked websites at school. From my latest investigation for The Markup.
themarkup.org/digital-book...
themarkup.org/digital-book...
April 16, 2024 at 2:41 PM
In their own words: see what students have to say about running into blocked websites at school. From my latest investigation for The Markup.
themarkup.org/digital-book...
themarkup.org/digital-book...
You've heard of book bans. In schools, the digital version can happen under the radar. And sometimes the online blocking is political: I found districts censoring abortion information, sex ed and LGBTQ+ resources -- including suicide prevention. My latest!
themarkup.org/digital-book...
themarkup.org/digital-book...
April 13, 2024 at 6:44 PM
You've heard of book bans. In schools, the digital version can happen under the radar. And sometimes the online blocking is political: I found districts censoring abortion information, sex ed and LGBTQ+ resources -- including suicide prevention. My latest!
themarkup.org/digital-book...
themarkup.org/digital-book...