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Teacher Who Told Spanish-Speaking Student To 'Speak American' Returns To Work

CLIFFSIDE PARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — A teacher who sparked protests at a New Jersey high school when she told a Spanish-speaking student he should instead "speak American" has made a school-wide apology and has returned to the classroom.

READ: NJ HS Students Stage Walkout After Teacher Caught On Video Telling Students To 'Speak American'

Cliffside Park School District officials say English teacher Laura Amico returned to work Tuesday after delivering an apology to staff and students over the school's public address system.

Dozens of students at the high school in the heavily Hispanic district walked out of school earlier this month after a video clip surfaced in which Amico admonished a student for not speaking English.

The teacher said on the video: "Men and women are fighting. They are not fighting for your right to speak Spanish. They are fighting for your right to speak American."

Before the 26-second clip was recorded, students were apparently whispering to each other in Spanish during class, 1010 WINS' Samantha Liebman reported.

(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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