Dual Language - Variation Within Dual Language Programs

Variation Within Dual Language Programs

There are two main variations: 1. Amount of time spent in the partner language 2. Division of languages

1. Time Spent in Partner Language

• Full immersion, or 90/10, programs teach in the partner language 90% of the time in the primary grades (usually kindergarten and first grade) and 10% in English, and gradually adjust the ratio each year until the partner language is used 50% and English is used 50% by third or fourth grade (sometimes later if the program extends through eighth grade or beyond).
• Partial immersion, or 50/50, programs teach 50% of the day in English and 50% of the day in the partner language at all grade levels.

There is currently no research indicating that one of these methods is preferable to another, although some research indicates that students who spend more time in the partner language do better in that language (Howard, Christian, & Genesee, 2003; Lindholm-Leary, 2001; Lindholm-Leary & Howard, in press), and that language minority students (in the U.S., those whose native language is not English) do better academically when their native language is supported and developed (Thomas & Collier, 1997; 2002).

Some schools, like Alicia R. Chacon Elementary School in El Paso, Texas include a third language for a small portion of the day at all grade levels.

Full immersion (90/10) programs typically begin literacy instruction for students in kindergarten and first grade in the partner language and add formal literacy in English in second or third grade. Students do not need to relearn how to read in English; teachers help them transfer their literacy skills from one language to the other. Other 90/10 programs separate students by native language and provide initial literacy instruction in the native language, adding second language literacy by second or third grade. In partial immersion or 50/50 programs, initial literacy instruction is either provided simultaneously in both languages to all students, or students are separated by native language in order to receive initial literacy in his or her native language.

Dual language programs in middle school and high school often merge students from several dual language elementary schools and exist as programs within larger mainstream schools. They often offer dual language students the opportunity to take language arts and at least one content area in the partner language, and many prepare students to take the Advanced Placement exams.

2. Division of Languages

• Language division by schedule: Within any dual language program, students speak and study in one language at a time, and the times for each language are explicitly defined. There is great variation, however, in the specifics. In some programs, language alternates by day, by week, or by several week periods. In other schools, students speak one language in the morning and the other language after lunch. After a designated amount of time, one, two, or more weeks, the morning and afternoon languages switch. Further variation includes programs where particular subjects are always taught in one language, due to resource availability. Within a given school or program, there may be different schedules for different grades, such as at the Amistad Dual Language School in New York City, where students alternate languages less frequently as they progress through the grades and establish stronger skills in both languages.

• Language division by instructor: A dual language program may use a Self-Contained or Side-by-Side model. Self-Contained programs have one teacher for one group of students in one classroom. The teacher transitions from one language to the other along with her or his students. Alternatively, Side-by-Side programs have two or more classrooms for each grade, where one teacher teaches in the partner, or target, language and the other teacher teaches in the dominant language (English in the United States). The grade is divided into two groups of students and the groups trade classrooms and teachers according to an explicit schedule, whether daily or weekly. Finally, at some schools, two or more teachers may team teach in the same classroom, with each teacher using one language and a combination of whole group, small group, and independent activities facilitated by the teachers.