COUNTYWIDE : Grand Jury Praises Bilingual Programs

In a report on bilingual programs, the Orange County Grand Jury gave high marks to the Santa Ana and Garden Grove Unified school districts and has recommended that other districts follow their example in teaching non-English-speaking students.

The report, released Tuesday, found that one of the biggest hurdles facing school districts in implementing bilingual programs is the shortage of bilingual teachers and the high cost of language-assistance programs.

“In Orange County, the number of bilingual teachers is inadequate. The only way to operate a bilingual program is by hiring instructional classroom aides with widely varying native languages. The aides help teachers communicate with students,” the report said.

The grand jury, which specifically targeted Santa Ana and Garden Grove for study because of their large number of students who do not speak English, decided to look into bilingual education because the increasing numbers of immigrant students in the county has been “mind-boggling,” said Grant Baldwin, the grand jury foreman.

“The children can slip through the cracks,” Baldwin said. “The danger is that a good portion of the school-age population might not get the benefit of a good education if they can’t speak English.”

The report commended the Garden Grove Unified School District, in which 32% of its 38,000 students speak limited English, for providing classes for parents to learn English and for its language training for teachers. The report noted that 72 languages are spoken in the district’s 61 schools.

The jury also praised Santa Ana Unified, where 65% of its 46,000 students speak little or no English, for its registration and testing center, which evaluates students’ language abilities before they register for school.

Santa Ana Unified bilingual director Rose Marie Fontana said the district has been successful because it has incorporated programs that teach immigrant children in their native language.

“Their primary language should be nurtured and celebrated,” Fontana said. “It used to be taught that English should be the only way. It’s now a different perception. The native language is an asset you don’t want to rub out.”

The report recommended that county school districts encourage students to become bilingual teachers, develop courses for parents so they can help in their child’s education, and bring in more Latinos and Asians as role models.