Dual Language - Effectiveness of Two-Way Immersion

Effectiveness of Two-Way Immersion

Two-way immersion has been referred to as the most effective bilingual program contributing to long-term academic success (Howard et al. 2003, p. 24). Thorough planning and effective implementation are crucial to the success of TWI programs, in addition to ample support from administrators and access to quality resources. In well-implemented programs, ELLs have achieved higher academic success than their peers in other bilingual programs (Dorner, 2011). Effective implementation, for one, lies in the duration of the program. In order to produce academic achievement, students ideally must be enrolled in TWI programs for four to seven years (Howard et al. 2003, p. 24). Students participating in TWI programs for this length of time have been shown to demonstrate higher academic performance than their peers in English-immersion programs (Howard et al. 2003, p. 24). On the contrary, students who receive little to no instruction in their native language, during their elementary years, struggle to attain grade level performance in the target language (Cobb, 2006).

Both Native English Speakers (NES) and ELLs are beneficiaries of the gains made through TWI. The juxtaposed use of the majority and minority language in TWI programs can enable children to transfer skills from the secondary language to their primary language and viceversa (Scanlan, 2009). Research comparing the academic achievement made by native speakers of English and native speakers of Spanish illustrates that while both groups show growth in their native and secondary language, English native speakers are more dominant in their primary language, whereas Spanish native speakers are able to achieve a more balanced form of bilingualism, that is, relatively equal in their ability to communicate orally and in writing in their primary and secondary language (Howard et al. 2003, p. 36).

The evidence of the effectiveness of TWI is consistent in programs where less common languages are maintained as well. For example, an eight year study of the Navajo/English two-way bilingual program at the Rough Rock Community School in northeastern Arizona confirms that those students who received thorough instruction in their native language as well as the target language encountered more success in school than their peers in English-only programs (McCarty, 2000). Such students too showed progress in both languages in their writing abilities on local and national measures (McCarty, 2000).

In addition to quantitative measures of effectiveness, research has further credited the two-way immersion model as creating more unified communities in public schools amongst parents and caregivers, since speakers of both majority and minority languages are grouped together in an effort to develop literacy skills in both languages and consequently foster cross-cultural relationships in both cultures (Scanlan, 2009). Furthermore, studies have shown that high school students who attended schools with two-way bilingual programs were more motivated and passionate about attaining higher level education (Cobb, 2006).

While such examples attest to the effectiveness of the TWI model, these programs are often voluntary which signifies the inherent difficulty in making comparisons across programs. Academic success and biculturalism may be attributed to the quality of the TWI program, however may also be ascribed to external factors such as a student’s inherent qualities or socioeconomic status (Howard et al. 2003, p. 12). Thus, while standardized test scores, from a policy perspective, are often used to determine the effectiveness of a program, other elements may impact the academic success achieved by many students in the TWI program (Howard et al. 2003, p. 23).