FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: 1-800-548-4998
Scientific Evidence Indicates that
Bilingual Approaches Produce
Higher Reading Achievement for English-Language Learners
BALTIMORE, MD. – January X,
2004 – Calling for an end to ideological debates
on teaching English language learners to read, a new
report analyzing more than three decades of research
finds that bilingual education programs produce higher
levels of student achievement in reading than English-only
approaches for this rapidly growing population. Today,
about 20 percent of students in the U.S. come from homes
in which English is not the primary language spoken.
The report’s findings stand
in direct contrast to actions taken by the federal government
and states such as Arizona, California, and Massachusetts,
which have limited the amount of instruction ELL students
may receive in their native language.
The analysis, conducted by Robert
Slavin of Johns Hopkins University and Alan Cheung of
the Success for All Foundation, also found that students
participating in paired bilingual programs – those
offering ongoing instruction in a native language and
English at different times of the day – made the
most dramatic gains in reading performance compared
to their English-only peers.
The report, Effective Reading Programs
for English Language Learners: A Best-Evidence Synthesis,
found that among 17 studies on elementary reading that
met the report’s criteria for scientifically-based
research, most found significant positive effects of
bilingual education on reading performance and others
found no difference. “In no case did results from
an English-only strategy exceed those from a bilingual
strategy,” the report says.
Of these studies, nine were conducted
over multiple years. Five of these found greater gains
through bilingual education, four found no difference,
and none favored English-only.
To be included in the analysis, studies
had to compare bilingual instruction to English-only
instruction with English language learners, and there
had to be evidence that the two groups were comparable
in reading performance before the treatments began.
The treatments had to be in place for at least one year,
and a quantitative, objective measure of reading had
to be used.
The report’s findings offer
important insight to the politically-charged debate
over ELL students who are among the groups most at-risk
of not achieving new federal and sate goals for Adequate
Yearly Progress (AYP) now required by the No Child Left
Behind Act.
“Thousands of schools cannot
meet their AYP goals…unless their English language
learners are doing well in reading,” states the
report. “More importantly, American society cannot
achieve equal opportunity for all if its schools do
not succeed with the children of immigrants.”
Today, most non-English speaking immigrants
in the U.S. are Hispanic, part of the fastest-growing
sector of the population but one that has chronically
under-performed academically. Only 44 percent of Latino
fourth-graders scored at or above the “basic”
level on the most recent National Assessment of Educational
Progress (NAEP) reading exam, compared to 75 percent
of white students.
The report also found the quality
of literacy instruction for English Language Learners
to be at least as important a determining factor in
student performance as the degree of native language
instruction that these programs provide. The researchers
examined a number of specific, replicable programs that
have been evaluated with ELL students, using the same
general criteria for inclusion used to analyze the bilingual
and English-only programs.
The researchers found “consistent
positive effects” from beginning reading programs
using systematic phonics and one-to-one and small-group
tutoring models, methods central to Success For All
and Direct Instruction, two literacy programs that were
featured in much of the research. The report also notes
that all but one of the programs found to be successful
with English language learners were adapted from programs
found to be successful with English-dominant students.
“While the number of high-quality
studies is sufficient to draw some conclusions about
the most effective methods and strategies for educating
language learners,” says Slavin, “the field
desperately needs more studies that conform to the highest
standards of scientifically-based research.
Robert Slavin, Ph.D., is the Co-Director
of the Center for Research on the Education of Students
Placed at Risk (CRESPAR) at Johns Hopkins University
and the Chairman of the Success for All Foundation,
a non-profit organization linked to Johns Hopkins University
that develops, evaluates, and disseminates programs
for disadvantaged students. Alan Cheung is a Research
Scientist at the Success for All Foundation.
The Center for Research on the Education
of Students Placed At Risk is a collaborative effort
between Howard and Johns Hopkins Universities. The research
and development center is funded by the Institute for
Education Sciences and has launched an important comprehensive
school initiative designed to enhance the achievement,
academic environment, and quality of life for students,
teachers, and parents. Other reports on educational
approaches for English language learners and available
at CRESPAR’s Web site include Developing Transitional
Programs for English Language Learners, Supporting the
Development of English Literacy in English Language
Learners, and Trends in Two-Way Immersion Education.
Please visit CRESPAR on the web at
address: www.csos.jhu.edu.
Effective Reading Programs for
English Language Learners: A Best-Evidence Synthesis
can be accessed directly at www.csos.jhu.edu/crespar/techReports/Report66.pdf.
Back To Top
|
