B. McLaughlin 
Second Language Acquisition in Childhood [PDF ebook] 
Volume 2: School-age Children

First published in 1987. Throughout human history, learning a second language has been an important part of the educational process. From ancient times to the present, school children have had to struggle to learn a second language (and in many cases third and fourth languages). To be educated meant to know a language other than the language of one’s family and community. The contemporary American educational system is one of the few in recorded history that allows its products to remain monolingual.