Mend Bilingual Ed, But Let's Not End It
Throughout the past century, New York City has been the destination of choice for immigrants from all over the world. As custodian of the children of new arrivals, the Board of Education offers these children opportunity by providing a free, quality education. No educational programs directly affect them more than bilingual education and English as a second language (ESL). Reliable research shows that most English language learners benefit greatly from these programs. But not all of them share the same experience. Far too many students, particularly those coming to us in later grades and those in special education, are struggling to master English and succeed academically. Therefore, we must preserve what works about bilingual education and repair what does not in a manner that does not bind us with decades of orthodoxy or propel us by political winds and educational fads. What works? Well, our own study of bilingual education, the most in-depth and substantive study conducted nationwide, illustrated that 75% of students entering the system between kindergarten and third grade who received consistent service in ESL or bilingual education graduated from the program within three years. More significantly, after leaving the program, these students generally outperformed general-education students on citywide reading and math exams for the rest of their school careers. That's an impressive accomplishment. Therefore, we know that bilingual education works for young students, who make up more than two-thirds of English language learners, and it works best when children receive one method of instruction. So what must we fix? There are a number of reforms: * End the seesawing of children between bilingual and ESL. Such mixed-program instruction hasn't proven beneficial. * Tackle the system's failure to prepare students arriving in middle school and high school for Regents requirements. An alarming 55% of students entering our system in sixth grade failed to exit the bilingual program within eight years, and students who entered later have great difficulty gaining Regents credit. This cannot be tolerated. We must devise educational strategies to help these students. * Greatly improve bilingual special education, where children face the greatest challenges in learning English and advancing academically. Across all grades, 78% of bilingual special-education students do not reach English proficiency within three years, with a disturbing 30% still enrolled in bilingual education after seven years. That's unacceptable and cries out for improvement. We must ensure that recent efforts to improve special education through the new continuum of services touches these students as well. * Develop new tests for determining when children need bilingual/ESL services and when they are prepared to exit. * Expand exemplary practices, such as dual language programs that are working throughout the city. * Address the distressing shortage of certified bilingual/ESL teachers by intensifying recruitment and promoting creative certification programs, with the state Education Department's assistance. But we should go one step further and provide parents with an additional intensive English language option within the ESL framework. Rather than a misdirected sink-or-swim alternative, this option should provide real educational supports to facilitate quick English acquisition while not losing valuable subject-specific classroom time. This may not be easy. It may necessitate extended school time, additional resources and demands at every level of the school system. But we cannot shy away from traveling down the right road merely because the path seems difficult. Instead of arguing about what we cannot or should not do, let us act on reforms that rest on solid educational research, respect the role of parents, promote multilingualism and, most importantly, improve the educational experience of all students throughout New York City. Thompson is the president of the Board of Education. |