A Bilingual Surprise
Editorial
For defenders of bilingual education, test scores from Ocean-side are surprising. Students there were required to follow the mandates of Proposition 227, approved by voters two years ago. Spanish- speaking youngsters attended classes taught in English. Meanwhile, in nearby Vista, Spanish-speaking students were allowed to waive out of English immersion and continue with bilingual instruction. Two years later, students in Ocean-side are scoring higher on standardized tests than their counterparts in Vista. The Oceanside school superintendent, who was among those who predicted a catatastrophe if Proposition 227 passed, now says he was wrong. "I thought it would hurt kids," Ken Noonan told the New York Times. "The exact reverse occurred, totally unexpected by me." It's too early to declare that these results mean bilingual education doesn't work as well as English immersion. Situations vary from city to city. During the same time period, class-size reduction programs made an impact, and phonics replaced whole language as the preferred method for reading instruction. Still, the Oceanside experience provides reason for school boards, teachers, families and students to revisit old assumptions about how kids learn. A century ago, immigrants learned English the hard way -- by attending classes taught in English -- and, just maybe, the old way has a place in modern education. |