An English Program for All Students

For years, many in the education community have questioned the effectiveness of traditional bilingual education in producing students who are both proficient and literate in English. It is the goal of the Orange Unified School District to ensure that every limited-English-speaking student acquires English fluency. The future of California depends on it.

Since a federal district court has ruled that the district does not violate federal law in its English-immersion curriculum, the district is now implementing what we believe to be a better program for our students. In fact, the state Board of Education strongly endorsed the district’s English Immersion Literacy Program.

As a school district, we have a responsibility to see that upon graduation students are fluent in English, thus enabling them to enter higher education or seek gainful employment. Therefore, we researched alternative programs and selected one rooted in an English-immersion approach that is widely recognized as sound educational theory by experts. We believe it will be more effective and produce more lasting results.

The program includes an evaluation plan to assess the educational achievements of students. We want limited-English-speaking students to acquire English proficiency and suffer no irreparable academic deficits.

This program is for students in kindergarten through third grade who were previously participating in a bilingual program and receiving language instruction. Grades 4 through 12 are not included because the district has provided an English-immersion program for these grades for many years. However, the district now also provides English Language Development for kindergarten through third grade, which incorporates special instruction in English.

Experts in the field of second-language development believe that effective programs should be based on the following principles:

* Learning a second language is most effectively accomplished if it is introduced at an early age.

* The integration of second-language learning and the learning of school subjects is the most effective approach.

* The more instructional time and opportunities for interaction between limited-English-speaking students and native speakers of English, the more rapidly and effectively English will be learned.

* The teaching of the four skills concurrently--listening comprehension, speaking, and reading and writing--is essential.

The goal is that the limited-English-speaking students perform at grade level in the core curriculum after they have acquired intermediate levels of English fluency. This will be attained by providing intensive English instruction.

The following four steps outline the scenario of a child placed in the English-immersion program:

1. Identification through completion of a home language survey by each child entering the district. If the home language survey indicates either that the child learned another language first or that another language is spoken in the home, the student is referred to the district assessment center and tested for English ability. 2. Assessment of English proficiency in comprehension, speaking, reading and writing. This is done using both written and oral tests. The center staff recommends English-language-development placement, as well as primary-language-support placement, based upon the test results.

3. English immersion: A specially trained teacher works with the student’s specific English language and academic needs. In a typical day, the student will receive a schedule that includes 60 minutes of English, and 30 to 60 minutes of primary-language support previewing major concepts of the core curriculum with the bilingual instructional assistants. All primary instruction is in English.

In the review part of the lesson, students respond to questions about what they’ve learned. Checking for understanding is critical, and important points of the lesson are underscored.

Students participate daily in cooperative learning activities with English-speaking peers. These group activities promote the development of listening comprehension and speaking skills in English and provide limited-English-speaking students with the essential opportunities to negotiate meaning in English.

4. Supplemental academic support for limited English-speaking students consists of review, an after-school tutorial program, an intercession or summer school program, a pre-kindergarten program and a Parent Education Institute.

The district uses student progress reports to define whether the basic expectations and standards for English-language mastery and minimum standards of academic progress are being met. We feel that the district is providing a much more comprehensive program that will help our students to acquire English proficiency and perform well academically.

Our top priority is to provide the best education for all students, ensuring that they will have every opportunity for a successful future.