Get Started for FREE
Sign up with Facebook Sign up with X
I don't have a Facebook or a X account
 Your new post is loading...
Scoop.it!
Published by The Bulletin, September 27, 2014 WINDHAM — After expanding into pre-school and seventh grade, the Companeros program is getting another boost - students can enter the program after kindergarten. The district has hosted several forums to offer information on the program and clarify how children who previously couldn’t get into the program can now earn a spot. “This will strengthen the program,” said Amy Finsmith, dual language program specialist for the district. 
No comment yet.
Sign up to comment
Scoop.it!
Published by the News Tribune, September 25, 2014 When some DePue kindergarten and first-grade students arrived for the first day of school, instead of “Good morning, welcome!”, they heard “Buenos dias, bienvenidos!”
Scoop.it!
Published by the Epoch Times, September 22, 2014 NEW YORK—It was a moment of awe for Vimarsha Sital. “I kept thinking in my mind: ‘Should I ask her? Should I not ask her?’” And then the moment came and she did and succeeded— Vimarsha took a selfie with the Queen of Spain. ... Last year city public schools had almost 150,000 students in the category of English language learners. That’s every fifth pupil. Almost half of them are foreign-born and two out of three speak Spanish. Most English learners receive specialized instruction in English. The Education Department also lists 90 dual-language programs across the city, most Spanish and English. At least 40 new dual-language programs should pop up across the city, Fariña said. Not only Spanish though. French, Arabic, and Mandarin programs are the next most popular. Also in the past two years, ever more English-speaking parents asked for dual-language education, the chancellor said. “I think that dual-language gives us an opportunity to take kids who speak only English and give them another language,” she said.
Scoop.it!
Published by Chalkbeet New York, September 12, 2014 Chancellor Carmen Fariña and her new chief of English-language learners outlined their priorities for those students Friday, including better training for teachers and more dual-language programs, just days before state policymakers vote on major changes to guidelines concerning students who are still learning English. Fariña pointed to her appointment of Milady Baez, a former principal and superintendent who has overseen dual-language programs, to head a newly independent office of English-language learners as an indication of her commitment to those students, who account for one out of seven students in the school system. “I want to tell you this is not just about words,” Fariña said in her keynote address at an education summit hosted by the Hispanic Federation, which was attended by academics, educators, and top city and state education officials. “This is a new world.”
Scoop.it!
Published by the Valdosta Daily Times, September 8, 2014 Tuesday wasn't an ordinary first day of school. It also meant the first day for the school's new Spanish dual-language immersion program, where some kindergartners and first-graders will learn in English half the day and in Spanish the other half. The school received $15,000 from the Wyoming Department of Education to help start the program this year. It is the second dual-language program in Casper.
Scoop.it!
Published by WSILTV,COM on September 5, 2014 Illinois wants to see more of its students learn foreign languages. About 10 percent of public school kids in Illinois are considered bilingual. Now, the state wants to recognize those high school graduates with a Seal of Biliteracy on diplomas. The Seal of Biliteracy started as a pilot program near Chicago. By the end of this year, the State Board of Education wants to expand the option to all the district. Illinois wants to see more of its students learn foreign languages.
About 10 percent of public school kids in Illinois are considered bilingual. Now, the state wants to recognize those high school graduates with a Seal of Biliteracy on diplomas.
Scoop.it!
Published in Chalkbeat New York, August 28, 2014 New York City Schools Cancellor Carmen Fariña announced Wednesday that Milady Baez, an expert in dual-language programs, will come out of retirement to run a newly independent office of English Language Learners. That department had previously been grouped with special education under Deputy Chancellor Corinne Rello-Anselmi. Baez’s appointment signals the department’s growing focus on dual-language education programs. More than 14 percent of city students are classified as English language learners, and most of them are enrolled in English as a second language programs, in which teachers use both the student’s native language and English. When students become proficient in English, they exit those programs. Dual-language programs have a different aim—for English-learners and native English speakers to become fluent in both languages—and students don’t have leave the programs once they are no longer classified as English learners. A 2013 report notes bilingual programs “are in the midst of a period of steady expansion.”
Scoop.it!
Published in the Corvallis Gazette-Times, August 25, 2014 (Oregon) The Corvallis School District has been increasing the scope of its dual immersion program in recent years, and now a private school and a new preschool will continue the trend
Scoop.it!
Portland Public Schools Press Release, January 28, 2014 The Portland School Board on Jan. 27 approved expansion of Dual Language Immersion programs starting this fall. Spanish and Chinese immersion programs will expand and the district will launch the state's first Vietnamese Dual Language Immersion program. Dual language immersion is a high leverage approach to close the achievement gap for emerging bilingual children and other historically underserved populations in Portland Public Schools. It will also add more schools offering highly sought-after language programs - expanding Chinese and Spanish Immersion programs to three new schools in North Portland and launching a Vietnamese program at Roseway Heights K-8 in Northeast Portland. With 27 years of experience implementing Dual Language Immersion in five languages across 11 programs and in 21 schools, PPS is recognized nationally as a leader in the immersion education field. Programs are result of collaboration PPS has established the programs in collaboration with community, university and research partners. Local data and national research shows that Dual Language Immersion is effective in closing the achievement gap for emerging bilinguals and significantly reducing the dropout rate as students can continue progressing in academic content in their native language while learning English, increasing achievement and engagement. Currently 4,000 students participate in Dual Language Immersion programs throughout PPS. The expansion will increase that by approximately 200 students in the first year. By time the first class in the new programs graduates from high school, approximately 2,600 additional students are expected to be in Dual Language Immersion programs. The expansion follows an extensive engagement process with community stakeholders, school and district staff that began in fall 2012. Read more. "We are thrilled to be able to expand our Dual Language Immersion programs," said Superintendent Carole Smith. "These programs are proven as a highly effective strategy for our emerging bilingual students and prepare all students to succeed in our increasingly diverse and interconnected global society."
Scoop.it!
Published by LA School Report, July 9, 2014 LA Unified plans to expand its dual language immersion program next fall, adding Spanish language programs to three elementary schools.
Scoop.it!
Published by the Oregonian, July 19, 2013 updated July 22, 2013 In the coming years, Portland Public Schools may become one of the few school districts in the nation with a dual-language immersion program for Vietnamese. Supporters from the Vietnamese community say the effort could keep their culture alive in younger generations and help students with increasingly globalized industries; district officials say the effort could help better serve English Language Learners, though the program will be open to all students. Immersion programs, which have been growing in popularity in the U.S., teach core subjects in both English and another language to foster fluency in students. Portland Public Schools has long been a leader in language immersion within public schools, debuting Spanish immersion classes at Atkinson Elementary School more than 25 years ago. The RAND Corp. nonprofit think tank is currently studying the effects of dual-language immersion within the district in a three-year, $1.7 million study funded by a federal grant. Local interest in language-immersion programs has further blossomed in Portland Public Schools and surrounding districts. Portland Public Schools had about 3,700 students in language-immersion programs in the just-concluded school year, and the number will jump past 4,000 next year
Scoop.it!
Published in the Huffington Post, August 16.2012 Earlier this month, Governor Pat Quinn of Illinois signed new legislation designed to strengthen the state's bilingual education programs into law.
Scoop.it!
Published in the Modesto Bee, July 28, 2012 (California) Dual-language programs have won over parents by creating strong family connections and academic excellence.
|
Scoop.it!
Broadcast by Time Warner Cable News, September 25, 2014 You may remember taking a foreign language class in school, but in Texas, many students are learning two languages at the same time. Our own Jennifer Borget shows us how a dual language program is working at one Texas school in this "Parenting Report."
Scoop.it!
Published in Learning Lab by NPR Station WBUR, September 22, 2014 Indigenous and tribal communities are working hard to preserve their native tongues and cultural practices after weathering centuries of cultural loss — and they are turning toward charter schools for the job.
Scoop.it!
Published by MagicValley.com, September 20, 2014 Gooding Elementary School launches new dual-immersion kindergarten class.
Scoop.it!
Published by the Oregonian, September 9, 2014 A week into a new school year that started with four new dual language immersion programs in Portland Public Schools, the district school board will discuss further expanding dual language options. In Portland, students can take dual immersion classes in Mandarin, Spanish, Japanese, Russian and Vietnamese. Somali could be next, according to a draft list of recommendations to be presented to the board on Tuesday. Immersion programs, in which teachers deliver lessons in both English and another language, have been lauded for closing the achievement gap between native English speaking students and their non-native English speaking peers.
Scoop.it!
Broadcast by Omaha KETV, September 7, 2014 Dual-language programs are already running in several other OPS schools, giving students the chance to continue through graduation. In all, nearly 2,500 children participate across OPS with 200 more on a waiting list. It seems that even lessons in Spanish help both English language learners and native English speakers to perform on standardized tests. OPS research shows dual-language students matched or outperformed peers in three-fourths of the data points they surveyed from 2013.
Scoop.it!
Broadcast on KEYETV on August 29, 2014 With stretched resources districts are doing what they can to keep up, knowing these students hold promise and can compete at a higher level. "What we found is that English language learners who have excelled in bilingual programs actually outperformed their peers who were never English language learners," said Dawson. "Which makes sense -- we're asking them to learn subjects in two languages.
Scoop.it!
Published in the Minneapolis StarTribune, August 26, 2014 Minnesota students who are learning to speak English held steady on both the math and reading portions of the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments.... So steady is good news. And big changes are coming soon to the way schools go about helping English language learners as a result of several new policy changes that lawmakers approved this spring. In general, those changes prompt schools to recognize the value of being bilingual. Specifically, the new law requires: schools to use strategies that teach reading and writing in the students native language and English at the same time; teacher candidates to be trained in content instruction for English learners and teachers seeking to renew their license demonstrate content instruction in English for students learning how to speak the language. "(Being bilingual) is an asset," said Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius. "The business community certainly sees the value of having a home language and that's a good thing."
Scoop.it!
Published by the Modesto Bee, May 23, 2014 The Osborn Two Way Immersion Academy celebrated two decades of two languages, marking a milestone in Central Valley history as well as a tale of achievement against the odds. What started in 1994 as a few classes in a neighborhood school has grown into a magnet campus serving 870 students. It is expected to grow to 970 students next year with the addition of an early kindergarten program, said Principal Ed Ewing, “and we’ll still have a waiting list.” The program also had to survive the 1990s anti-bilingual education movement that peaked with the 1996 passage of Proposition 227. The initiative outlawed teaching in anything but English outside of foreign language classes. Parents had to sign waivers each year to keep their children in dual language classes, and the program struggled to find enough native English speakers to balance classes. That has changed, Ewing said: With so many English-dominant students signing up, it is a challenge to balance with native Spanish-speaking kids. There are now more than a dozen two-way language immersion programs in this area. Nationwide, more than 850 such programs exist, with a surge in interest over the past three years adding 150 to 200 a year.
Scoop.it!
Published in the Medical Express, December 4, 2013 A comprehensive review of research on young Latino and Spanish-speaking children confirms that widely available public programs are helping dual-language learners make important academic gains. We also found some support across several studies both for using English as the language of instruction and for incorporating the home language into strategies that focused on language and literacy.... And none of the studies detected any negative effects of early education programs and instructional practices that target dual-language learners."
Scoop.it!
Published by PRI, December 25, 2012 The Hmong culture has been a resilient one for centuries, enduring wars, genocide and mass migration. But the culture is under threat in the United States. A new elementary school immersion program in California aims to preserve it, and make it real to the children of immigrants.
Scoop.it!
Published in Education Week, August 28, 2012 Bilingualism helps immigrant children in low-income communities overcome the cognitive challenges that poverty presents, according to a new study.
Scoop.it!
Editorial Published in South Coast Today, July 29, 2012 (Massachusetts) One of the numerous factors accounting for the troubled state of New Bedford's schools is the inability of the system to deliver satisfactory educational results for students lacking proficiency in the English language.
|
