BILINGUAL TEACHER TRAINING BACKED.

Byline: Eric Wahlgren Daily News Staff Writer

A referendum that sought ultimately to eliminate bilingual education training requirements for Los Angeles teachers was rejected Saturday by a majority of teachers who voted on the hotly debated proposal.

Of the 15,179 members of the United Teachers Los Angeles union who cast ballots, nearly 58 percent voted to retain the requirements for those teaching students who are learning English.

``It would have been bad for children,'' said Day Higuchi, union president, who, with the union's top leadership, opposed the referendum. ``Students should have teachers who have training to do a better job with the students they teach.''

But Stephanie Schwartz, a Granada Hills High School teacher and the referendum's architect, said she planned to contest the outcome, citing problems with the voting process.

Schwartz said that ballots did not reach all teachers in the union's ranks and that certain voting sites were wrongly disqualified.

``We are going to challenge this,'' Schwartz said.

Referendum supporters argue that new requirements for teachers, passed by the state last year, put an unfair burden on longtime teachers, who already have a proven track record of working with English-learning students.

Longtime teachers were required to take a 45-hour course at a cost of more than $100 to continue teaching English-learning students.

These teachers also argue that new teachers lacking experience are assured better positions, simply because they have completed special bilingual education requirements now on the books.

``It is unfair that experienced teachers are being displaced and replaced by new, inexperienced teachers,'' Schwartz said in a recent written statement.

The teachers submitted ballots last week and the votes were counted Saturday at the union headquarters on Wilshire Boulevard.

If the referendum had passed, it would have put the teachers union, which represents about 30,000 Los Angeles Unified School District teachers, in the position of opposing the state requirements.

It is unclear whether such an action would have actually led to the elimination of the requirement for Los Angeles teachers, but supporters have argued that the move would send a powerful message.

Higuchi said bilingual education training for teachers helps them gain a better understanding of different cultures, how students learn languages.