In bilingual education, students are taught in two (or more) languages. It is distinct from learning a

second language A person's second language, or L2, is a language that is not the native language (first language or L1) of the speaker, but is learned later. A second language may be a neighbouring language, another language of the speaker's home country, or a fo ...

as a subject because both languages are used for instruction in different content areas like math, science, and history. The time spent in each language depends on the model. For example, some models focus on providing education in both languages throughout a student's entire education while others gradually transition to education in only one language. The ultimate goal of bilingual education is fluency and

literacy Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, hum ...

in both languages through a variety of strategies such as

translanguaging Translanguaging can refer to a pedagogical process of utilizing more than one language within a classroom lesson or it can be used to describe the way bilinguals use their linguistic resources to make sense of and interact with the world around th ...

and recasting.

Bilingual education program models

There are several different ways to categorize bilingual education models, one of the most common approaches is to separate programs by their end goal. This is the approach used below, though it is not the only possible approach. For a more comprehensive review of different approaches to bilingual education worldwide see bilingual education by country or region and intercultural bilingual education.

Maintenance bilingual education

In a maintenance bilingual education program, the goal is for students to continue to learn about and in both languages for the majority of their education. Students in a maintenance bilingual education program should graduate being able to have a discussion about any content area in either language. Two common forms of maintenance bilingual education are two-way/ dual language immersion and developmental (late-exit) bilingual education. Both programs are considered

language immersion Language immersion, or simply immersion, is a technique used in bilingual language education in which two languages are used for instruction in a variety of topics, including math, science, or social studies. The languages used for instruction ...

programs.

Dual language programs

In a dual language program, students are in mixed classrooms with a balance of native speakers for each language. One common model for dual language programs is the 90/10 model. In this model, 90% of instruction in the early grades is in the student's home language and 10% is in their second language. This proportion changes as the student ages until there is an equal amount of time spent in each language. This can be contrasted with the 50/50 model which starts with an even (50/50) balance between languages from the very beginning of a student's education.

Late exit programs

In a late exit or developmental program, students all have the same native language. They tend to follow the 90/10 model described above and gradually transition from a majority of instruction in their home language to a more balanced split between languages as they progress through primary school.

Bimodal-bilingual programs

In a bimodal bilingual program, students are taught in two languages in two different modalities, typically a spoken/written language and a signed language. This type of program is common at schools serving deaf and hard of hearing students.

Transitional bilingual education

In transitional (early-exit) bilingual education programs, the goal is to provide education in a child's native language to ensure that students do not fall behind in content areas such as mathematics, science, and social studies while they are learning the new language. Unlike in maintenance bilingual education programs, when the child's second language proficiency is deemed satisfactory, they transition to using only that language. This approach is based on the Common Underlying Proficiency model of bilingualism which posits that many of the skills learned in the native language can be transferred easily to the second language later. While the linguistic goal of such programs is to help students transition to mainstream, single language classrooms, the use of the student's primary language as a vehicle to develop literacy skills and acquire academic knowledge also prevents the degeneration of a child's native language.

English as a second language

English as a second language (ESL) programs are not considered bilingual education programs because they do not aim to have students become bi-literate in two (or more) languages. The goal of ESL programs is for English-language learners learn English after having acquired one or more native languages. ESL is a supplementary, comprehensive English language learning program common in English-speaking countries and countries where English has an important role in communication as a result of colonialism or globalization. One common approach in ESL programs is Sheltered English instruction (SEI).

Bilingual education strategies

Translanguaging

Translanguaging Translanguaging can refer to a pedagogical process of utilizing more than one language within a classroom lesson or it can be used to describe the way bilinguals use their linguistic resources to make sense of and interact with the world around th ...

or language mixing is a strategy that emphasizes using all languages a student knows to support their learning. One example of this is allowing students to express themselves in either or both languages when discussing different academic content. Practicing translanguaging can help students more easily switch between languages.

Language separation

In a classroom, language separation involves designating one language to a specific time, content, or activity. The goal of language separation is to encourage students to focus on skills in a specific language. Many bilingual programs use a mix of translanguaging and language separation practices to support students in becoming bi-literate.

Scaffolding

Instructional scaffolding Instructional scaffolding is the support given to a student by an instructor throughout the learning process. This support is specifically tailored to each student; this instructional approach allows students to experience student-centered learning ...

can be used in all types of education, not only bilingual education. A teacher scaffolds instruction to provide the necessary support for students to learn the content. In a bilingual education classroom, this could look like pre-teaching content in the student's native language before teaching the same content in the second language.

Recasting

When a teacher recasts something a student has said, they repeat what the student said but correct for any grammatical or pronunciation errors, similar to what a parent often does as their child acquires their first language. This can be contrasted with explicit correction in which a teacher explicitly tells a student about an error in their statement, which can also be used in bilingual education.

Effects of bilingual education

This section focuses on the effects of bilingual ''education'' specifically, see Cognitive effects of bilingualism for information about the effects of bilingualism or

multilingualism Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...

Benefits of bilingual education

The most obvious benefit of bilingual education is proficiency and literacy in two (or more languages). Fluency in multiple languages can lead to increased employment options as well as create more opportunities for intercultural communication. Bilingual education can also support minority language speakers by communicating the value of their home or

heritage language A heritage language is a minority language (either immigrant or indigenous) learned by its speakers at home as children, and difficult to be fully developed because of insufficient input from the social environment. The speakers grow up with a ...

, resulting in increased self-esteem. Additionally, bilingual education models have been shown to improve student engagement and attendance as parent involvement in school activities. Bilingual education supports students in becoming literate in both languages, which has been shown to increase reading scores for students in both languages. Researchers have proposed that this could be due to students in bilingual programs having an increased awareness of languages and their writing systems. While there has been significant research on the "bilingual brain," research specifically on how bilingual education impacts brain structure and activation is fairly limited''.'' Though much of the research on bilinguals shows that the benefits of bilingualism are maximized when children are exposed to multiple languages at an early age, as they are in many bilingual education programs. However, some initial research has shown preschool children in bilingual education programs have similar brain activation patterns in response to known and unknown languages as adults who have been learning a second language for several years. Bilingual education can also support

language revitalization Language revitalization, also referred to as language revival or reversing language shift, is an attempt to halt or reverse the decline of a language or to revive an extinct one. Those involved can include linguists, cultural or community groups, o ...

efforts in countries with

endangered languages An endangered language or moribund language is a language that is at risk of disappearing as its speakers die out or shift to speaking other languages. Language loss occurs when the language has no more native speakers and becomes a "dead langu ...

Disadvantages of bilingual education

In many English-speaking countries, standardized tests are in English, so there is a push to maximize the time spent learning English. Proponents of this framing advocate for Structured English Immersion in which students spend the majority of their day learning about English and in English with scaffolded supports based on their current English knowledge. Bilingual education requires teachers to be fluent and literate in both languages, as compared to

English as a second language English as a second or foreign language is the use of English by speakers with different native languages. Language education for people learning English may be known as English as a second language (ESL), English as a foreign language (EFL ...

programs that only require teachers to have English fluency and literacy.

References

*Anderson, Barbara A., and Brian D. Silver, "Equality, Efficiency, and Politics in Soviet Bilingual Education Policy, 1934–1980." ''American Political Science Review,'' Vol. 78, No. 4 (December 1984), pp. 1019–1039 *Baldauf, R.B. (2005). Coordinating government and community support for community language teaching in Australia: Overview with special attention to New South Wales. ''International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 8'' (2&3): 132–144 *Carter, Steven (November 2004). "Oui! They're only 3." Oregon Live.com *Crawford, J. (2004). Educating English Learners: Language Diversity in the Classroom (5th edition). Los Angeles: Bilingual Educational Services (BES). *Cummins, J. & Genzuk, M. (1991). Analysis of Final Report: Longitudinal Study of Structured English Immersion Strategy, Early Exit and Late-Exit Transitional Bilingual Education Programs for Language-Minority Children
USC Center for Multilingual, Multicultural Research
*Dean, Bartholomew (ed.) (2004), "Indigenous Education and the Prospects for Cultural Survival", ''Cultural Survival Quarterly'', (27) 4. *del Mazo, Pilar (2006). "The Multicultural Schoolbus: Is Bilingual Education Driving Our Children, and Our Nation, Towards Failure?" 006 Education Law Consortium The article is available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20160303214202/http://www.educationlawconsortium.org/forum/2006/papers/delMazo2006_1.pdf *Dutcher, N., in collaboration with Tucker, G. R. (1994). ''The use of first and second languages in education: A review of educational experience.'' Washington, DC: World Bank, East Asia and the Pacific Region, Country Department III. *Gao, Helen. (November 2004). "Fight over bilingual education continues." The San Diego Union-Tribune. *Gonzalez, A. (1998). Teaching in two or more languages in the Philippine context. In J. Cenoz & F. Genesee (Eds.), ''Beyond bilingualism: Multilingualism and multilingual education'' (pp. 192–205). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters. *Grimes, B. F. (1992). ''Ethnologue: Languages of the world'' Dallas, TX: Summer Institute of Linguistics. *Hakuta, K. (1986).''Mirror of language: The debate on bilingualism.'' New York: Basic Books. *Harris, S. G. & Devlin, B. C. (1996). "Bilingual programs involving Aboriginal languages in Australia". In Jim Cummins and David Corso (eds), ''Encyclopedia of language and education'', vol 5, pp. 1–14. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. * Hult, F.M. (2012). Ecology and multilingual education. In C. Chapelle (Gen. Ed.), ''Encyclopedia of applied linguistics'' (Vol. 3, pp. 1835-1840). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. *Kalist, David E. (2005). "Registered Nurses and the Value of Bilingualism." Industrial & Labor Relations Review, 59(1): 101–118. *Kloss, Heinz (1977, reprinted 1998). ''The American Bilingual Tradition.'' (Language in Education; 88) McHenry, IL: Center for Applied Linguistics and Delta Systems. *Krashen, S. D. (1999). ''Bilingual Education: Arguments for and (Bogus) Arguments Against''

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

professor's article is available online at *Parrish, T.; Perez, M; Merickel, A.; and Linquanti, R.(2006). "Effects of the Implementation of Proposition 227 on the Education of English Learners, K-12, Findings from a Five-Year Evaluation: Final Report." Washington, DC: AIR and San Francisco: WestEd. The complete report is available free a
http://www.WestEd.org/cs/we/view/rs/804
An abbreviated, more accessible summary of the findings is available a
http://www.WestEd.org/cs/we/view/rs/825
*Seidner, Stanley S.(1981–1989) ''Issues of Language Assessment.'' 3 vols. Springfield, Il.: State Board of Education. *Summer Institute of Linguistics. (1995). ''A survey of vernacular education programming at the provincial level within Papua New Guinea.'' Ukarumpa, Papua New Guinea: Author. *Swain, M. (1996). Discovering successful second language teaching strategies and practices: From program evaluation to classroom experimentation." ''Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development'', 17," 89-104. *Thomas, W. P., & Collier, V. P. (1997). Two languages are better than one. ''Educational Leadership,'' 55(4), 23–26.

External links

U.S. Department of Education Office of English Language AcquisitionNational Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilingual Education Education by subject Linguistic rights Multilingualism Bilingualism