Spanish Program for Children Speaks Volumes

When it was time for Cheryl Scott to send her son Robert to kindergarten, the Santa Paula resident faced a choice:

Place the youngster in an English-speaking classroom where he would learn in his first--and only--language, or enroll him in a Spanish-language program where he would learn a new language.

Setting aside her fears that Robert would fall behind in English, Scott enrolled him in the Spanish-speaking class.

Now five years later, Robert, whose first three years in school were taught in Spanish, is the only person in his family who is bilingual, and he is doing better academically than his two siblings who attend a regular classroom.

“This has been one of the best things I did for Robert,” Scott said. “He speaks Spanish without a trace of accent, and that has boosted his self-esteem and motivated him in school.”

Scott is one of about 100 parents who have enrolled their children in a two-way intensive language program at Glen City School in Santa Paula.

The program, also known as Spanish Immersion, was implemented five years ago and is the only one of its kind in Ventura County, said Cliff Rodrigues, director of bilingual education for the county superintendent of schools office.

Since the program began, about 30 students at kindergarten age have enrolled in the dual-language classes every year.

A recent study of students who have remained in the program since its inception shows that their academic skills are either equal to or above those of their peers who attend a regular classroom. The report also showed that students in the program are fluent or nearly fluent in both languages.

“The program has been very successful,” said Larry Salmon, who conducted the study. “We are very pleased with the results we have seen so far, and our goal is to continue offering this opportunity to our students.”

About 180 students are now involved in the program, but the study involved only eight who have been in the Spanish Immersion classrooms since the program’s first year. Some of the original students have moved out of the city and others have been removed from the program by parents.

The school launched the program shortly after the school district made Glen City into its multicultural magnet school, Principal David Luna said.

The goal of the program is to instill in youngsters an understanding of different cultures and provide them with the opportunity to grow up bilingual, Luna said.

“We are thrilled with the learning opportunities our magnet school offers,” Luna said. “It’s a tremendous advantage to have a global world view and bilingualism really facilitates that.”

Before starting the program, several administrators and teachers visited schools in Los Angeles County where children were enrolled in a two-way intensive language program.

At Glen City, students are taught in Spanish from kindergarten to the end of the second grade in every academic subject. At the beginning of the third grade, classes are primarily in English with some Spanish, Salmon said. Most of the children involved speak Spanish as their first language, but each class has a few English speakers.

One of the main concerns of parents is fear that the youngsters will have difficulties catching up with English skills, Salmon said.

“However, kids have shown to have no problems learning how to read and write in English after they have learned Spanish,” Salmon said. “We were really surprised how quick most children switched from Spanish to English.”

Indeed, a study of the eight students who have completed four years in the program showed they achieved above grade-level status in both reading and math classes taught in English, Salmon said.

For Antonio Banuelos, 10, whose first language is English, the classroom transition from Spanish to English was easy.

“I had no problems at all,” Antonio said. “Now I think both in Spanish and English, and I like both languages a lot.”

Scott said she has been so pleased with the program that two years ago she enrolled her youngest daughter, Jennifer, 7.

“What I regret is that my older children did not have this opportunity,” Scott said, referring to her two sons, one now in middle school and another in high school. “It’s just too late for them to learn another language at their age.”