Trustees Pleased With New Program, Vote
Although short on bilingual aides and funds to pay for them, Orange Unified School District officials said they are buoyed by recent events as they begin a controversial English immersion program.
The administration is so confident, given the voters’ overwhelming support in a referendum on the issue this week, that they may approach the state soon for a long-running waiver from mandated bilingual education.
Assistant Supt. Neil McKinnon said criticism that the new program left foreign-speaking children behind was wrong.
“This is not sink or swim,” he said of the program, which “immerses” the students in English-only classrooms rather than those that instruct them in native languages. “It is a structured--a highly structured--program.”
The program includes bilingual aides, although the district needs to hire at least 10 more, preschool language classes and after-school help with English for both students and their parents.
McKinnon said the district also is seeking more federal aid.
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