Two-Way Bilingual Education Conserving and Developing Language Resources

1
Two-Way Bilingual EducationConserving and
Developing Language Resources

• James Crawford
• Institute for Language and Education
  Policywww.elladvocates.org
• February 21, 2008

2
Bilingual EducationKey Factors to Consider

• Student characteristics
• academic language skills
• sociolinguistic patterns
• School capacity
• research knowledge
• program design
• staff qualifications
• Language attitudes
• parent community support
• government policies

3
Politics vs. PedagogyAmerican Contradictions

• Research increasingly shows benefits of bilingual
  education
• academic, linguistic, social, economic
• Policies are moving toward monolingual, English
  Only education
• anti-immigrant politics on the rise
• Despite decline, bilingual education remains
  widespread, relative to most countries
• 15 of 5m English learners vs. 37 in 1992

4
English Language LearnersA Growing Population,
1992-2006
5
Bilingual Education in U.S.Declining
Enrollments, 1992-2006
6
Language PoliciesU.S. Attitudes toward Diversity

• Pretend that it doesnt exist
• sink or swim treatment no special help
• See it as temporary problem
• transitional bilingual education
• Treat it as a threat
• English Only requirements in several states
• Recognize it as a resource
• developmental and two-way bilingual education

7
Immigration LanguageRecent Growth

• U.S. Foreign-Born Population, 1960 2006

8
Immigration LanguageHistoric Patterns

• U.S. Foreign-Born Population, 1850 2006

9
Language DiversityContradictory Trends

• Rapid increase in speakers of non-English
  languages
• 400 languages reported in 2000 Census
• immigration is main factor in growth in
  minority-language speakers, especially Spanish
• Rapid acquisition of English by immigrants
• Anglicization at record rates, historically
• rapid loss of heritage languages

10
Demographic ChangeIncreasing Bilingualism, 1980
2006

• Speakers of Languages Other Than English at Home
  and English-Speaking Ability (percentages, age 5)

1980 1990 2000 2006 Change
English only 89.0 86.2 82.1 80.3 20
Other language 11.0 13.8 17.9 19.6 138
Speaks English very well 6.1 7.8 9.8 10.9 138
less than very well 4.8 6.1 8.1 8.7 138
Source U.S. Census Bureau Source U.S. Census Bureau Source U.S. Census Bureau Source U.S. Census Bureau Source U.S. Census Bureau Source U.S. Census Bureau
11
Language UsageSecond-Generation Immigrant Youth

• English Heritage-Language Proficiency Ages
  13-15 (percentages)
• Source Portes Hao (2002)

Knows English Knows English Knows HL Knows HL Prefers English
Well Very Well Well Very Well Prefers English
Latin American 94.7 65.1 60.6 21.4 71.0
Asian, Pacific 90.3 57.9 20.1 8.8 73.6
Other 99.0 84.2 33.7 7.8 83.5
Total 93.6 64.1 44.3 16.1 72.3
12
Bilingual EducationHistoric Evolution

• Widespread in 19th century America
• authorized by law in 12 states, including Ohio
  (1839), Louisiana (1847)
• non-English groups had local majorities
• 1900 4 in German-English
• Rationale
• language, cultural maintenance
• English-speaking teachers unavailable
• Mostly eliminated by 1919
• coercive assimilation, immigration restriction
• English-only instruction laws

13
Bilingual EducationModern Era

• 1967 Bilingual Education Act
• civil-rights basis
• transitional goals English, academics in
  English
• 1974 Lau v. Nichols decision
• addressing diverse needs
• trial and error in program design
• 1980s developmental bilingual education
• goals academics in English, bilingualism/bilitera
  cy
• research found superior results
• 1990s rapid growth of two-way models

14
ResearchFindings on 2nd Language Acquisition

• Comprehensible input hypothesis (Krashen)
• use of L2 for communication vs. sink or swim
• Interdependence hypothesis (Cummins)
• L1 supports L2
• transfer of knowledge skills
• Academic language, conversational language
• 4-9 years for L2 learners to catch up
• age on arrival studies

15
Which Programs Work Best? Findings of 3 Major
Reviews

• Bilingual models are consistently more effective
  than all-English models
• the more rigorous the study, the more positive
  effects for bilingual programs
• Larger positive effects are documented in
  developmental bilingual education
• one-way two-way support English, heritage
  language, AND academic achievement in English
• bilingualism biliteracy
• Sources Rolstad, Mahoney Glass (2005), Slavin
  Cheung (2005), August Shanahan (2006)

16
Evolution of Two-Way BEProgram Experience in
Canada, U.S.

• French immersion
• English speakers in Quebec
• alternative to traditional foreign-language
  teaching
• goal fluent bilingualism at no cost to academics
• Developmental (one-way) bilingual education
• gradual exit model for language-minority
  students
• goal academic progress at no cost to
  bilingualism
• Two-way bilingual models
• 90/10 vs. 50/50 use of languages

17
Growth of Two-Way BE 1962 2007
18
Profile of Two-Way BE Program Data

• Relatively few programs
• 332 in entire U.S., most in elementary schools
• Spanish, French, Korean, Cantonese, Mandarin,
  Navajo, Japanese, German
• Students
• no enrollment data estimate 50-75,000
• class differences between majority/minority
  speakers
• Sociolinguistic context
• bilingual homes, communities
• English-dominant communities

19
Profile of Two-Way BE Program Variations

• 90/10 or 80/20 model
• minority language for academics in early years
• English phased in to 50/50 by year 4 or 5
• 50/50 model
• parent concerns
• parity of languages in all grades
• Language arts instruction
• heterogeneous grouping some programs separate
  groups for L1 language-arts classes
• Teachers
• in 50 of programs, teachers are fully bilingual
• most alternate between classes, maximizing staff

20
Research on Two-Way BE Limited Data

• Few conclusive studies
• most do not control for socioeconomic variables
• selection bias
• Promising results
• minority language speakers do well academically,
  acquire native-like English
• English speakers excel academically but may reach
  less than native-like oral proficiency in L2
• no clear advantage for 90/10 or 50/50 for
  minority group 90/10 superior for majority group

21
Two-Way Bilingual Education Student Outcomes

• Academic achievement
• superior for language-majority but lag in L1
• relative advantage for language minority group
• Bilingualism, biliteracy
• oral proficiency gains greater for minority group
• Positive attitudes toward cultural diversity
• also toward target language, other language
  group
• For minority language group
• greater self-esteem, academic expectations
• fewer identity conflicts

22
Two-Way Bilingual Education Challenges

• Making instruction comprehensible
• varying L2 proficiency, academic level
• immersion, sheltered instruction
• Ensuring parent/community support
• explaining program goals
• responding to misunderstandings, fears,
  prejudices
• Dealing with power relationships
• serving both groups equitably
• ensuring equal status of languages

23
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Long-term approach
• 4-6 years to achieve goals
• Parity of languages, language groups
• at least 50 usage of minority language
• peer models
• maximizing interaction among language groups

24
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Additive bilingual environment
• empowerment approach
• respect for both languages
• languages as resources
• cooperative learning, group work

25
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Professional development of staff
• planning/training year
• theories of second-language acquisition
• language education pedagogy
• assessment
• partnerships with institutions, experts

26
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Curriculum instruction
• challenging academically
• tailored to students language level
• teachers with native-like proficiency
• L2 taught primarily through academics, combined
  with some direct instruction
• initial literacy in minority language
• L1 language arts

27
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Assessment
• authentic, understood by staff
• academic vs. language assessment
• multiple indicators
• diagnostic role for individual students
• serves program planning, goals

28
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Effective leadership
• training in theory, pedagogy
• staff support, coordination
• planning, curriculum development
• integration within larger school
• ambassador for program to parents, communities

29
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Parent involvement
• program goals, expectations
• student performance data
• out-of-school support
• resolving conflicts

30
Two-Way Bilingual Education Principles for
Success

• Program evaluation
• monitoring student progress
• rectifying mistakes
• considering parent/community views
• redesigning program

31
Bilingualism Benefits for Individuals

• Cognitive advantages
• metalinguistic awareness
• executive control, working memory
• limiting effects of aging
• Career opportunities
• need for bilingual skills, higher incomes
• Social adjustment
• identity construction, educational aspirations
• Family relationships
• minimizing conflicts

32
Bilingualism Benefits for Society

• Economic edge
• trade, development assistance
• Cultural vitality
• enhancing arts, learning, expression
• Ethnic harmony
• protecting rights, limiting conflicts
• National security
• dealing with a dangerous world
• Global understanding
• climate change, public health, education

33
Resources

• Institute for Language and Education Policy
• www.elladvocates.org
• Center for Applied Linguistics
• www.cal.org/twi
• California Association for Bilingual Education
• www.bilingualeducation.org/2waycabe
• Dual Language of New Mexico
• www.dlenm.org