Mexican TV network adding English classes to its lineup

This is a good idea, people all over the world are trying to learn English. DP

By S. Lynne Walker, COPLEY NEWS SERVICE

signonsandieg.com: MEXICO CITY – As the debate over immigration reform festers in Congress, one message is clear: Americans think people from other countries who live in the United States ought to speak English.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said it to a gathering of Latino journalists. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, said it when he proposed a bill calling for the designation of English as the national language. Even President Bush said it as he lobbied for his immigration overhaul package.

“I think people who want to be a citizen of this country should learn English,” Bush said.

Now a Mexican television network is saying it, too. And the network, TV Azteca, is putting its money where its microphone is.

In January, Mexico's second-largest network plans to launch a 60-hour series of English classes on 60 affiliates in the United States, from Chattanooga, Tenn., to San Diego.

The televised classes, the first of their kind to be broadcast by a Mexican network in the United States, will offer cultural as well as language lessons. They will not be broadcast in Mexico or other countries in Latin America. The aim is to prepare immigrants in the United States for a host of situations ranging from taking their children to school to grocery shopping and going to the doctor.
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