Ingles Y Espanol Brighton Students Excel in Bilingual Education
Shelley Gonzales Outside Patsy Salazar's classroom in Brighton's North Elementary, 5-year-olds rattle on in Spanish about their morning endeavors and impending lunch. "Hola, Senora Wilkes," the kids gush when their principal passes. They hug Jeanette Garcia Wilkes and tug at her immaculate long, red fingernails. "Are they real?" they ask. The ease with which they alternate between Spanish and English seems as natural as their curiosity, which is exactly the way Wilkes wants it. While many bilingual programs concentrate on teaching foreign students in their native language with the overriding goal of teaching them English, all students at North Elementary are not only encouraged but expected to pick up a second language, English or Spanish. The school's dual-language program is the only one of its kind in the metro area, funded by a five-year $1.125 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The program is anchored in the belief that students learn best in their primary language. The concept is controversial. Californians this year approved Proposition 227, which effectively eliminated bilingual education in public schools. Bilingual opponents say educating children in their native language only delays the teaching of English. "Sometimes these children never do learn proper English," said Sheri Annis of English For the Children, the organization that led Proposition 227 to victory. "Exposing a child to a new language in the early years is the best chance that child has of developing a solid academic knowledge of that language." Critics argue that test scores of students taught in their primary language are consistently below those of their English-speaking counterparts. "It's a disservice and a failure," Annis said. She said Colorado is among several states exploring anti-bilingual initiatives like California's. Whether the state will move in that direction is unknown, but Denver Public Schools is already reining in bilingual programs, hoping to mainstream non-English speaking students in three years or less. Such tough-love tactics result in the alienation and abandonment of a huge segment of children in America who don't speak English, said Jaime Zapatas of the Washington D.C.-based National Association for Bilingual Education. Any weaknesses in bilingual education are more an indication of inadequate funding and lack of community support, rather than a faulty idea, he said. "We know it works," said Zapatas, himself a student who thrived in a bilingual program. "This kind of an environment gives children a chance to succeed academically and puts them ahead in a marketplace that more and more seeks out those who can speak at least one (other) language." He said properly implemented programs, such the one North is working on, are held up as hallmarks in the pro-bilingual movement. Wilkes said North, which sits in one of the most economically depressed areas of Brighton in Adams County, is demographically ripe for a dual-language program. Eight of 10 students are Hispanic and of those, half speak only Spanish. The grant, now in its fourth year, has enabled North to stock its library and classrooms with both English and Spanish materials, and beef up its staff development in bilingual education. Though the school lags below state standards, school leaders said students are showing slight improvement in reading, writing and math. Wilkes credits strong instruction in their primary language. The dual-language program begins in preschool with the introduction of some foreign words. Kindergartners are taught in their native language and given more exposure to a second language with conversational and some reading expected in the subsequent grades. "Our goal is that our fifth-graders will do a lot of instruction in both languages," Wilkes said. Students in each grade are assigned to English- or Spanish- speaking classes in the mornings for basic instruction. Then, each afternoon, all children participate in dual-language activities, including the computer lab and library, in which they are exposed to a second language. Wilkes said she has seen progress not only in the classroom but on the playground and hallways where kids speak both Spanish and English with equal aplomb. Third-grader Raul Herrera spoke only Spanish until he was three when friends began teaching him English. At 9, Raul has a halting command of both languages and still acts as an interpreter for his aunt, who only speaks Spanish. "She wants me to tell her what they're saying on TV but sometimes they talk too fast," he said. Raul is assigned to an English-dominant class at North, learning the fundamentals of reading and writing in his second language. With a year and a half remaining in the grant, school officials said the bilingual resources and materials are almost in place for the program to continue when the federal funds stop. At least three teachers are pursuing or have acquired master's degrees through the program, while many have gotten bilingual endorsements, Wilkes said. Consultants work with all teachers on improving teaching strategies and curricula, while two community liaisons have made inroads in getting parents more involved. Of the school's 19 certified teachers, 11 are bilingual, as are 20 of the 25 paraprofessionals, including janitors and aides. To be truly bilingual, someone must not only speak the language but know how to write and read in a second language, Wilkes said. In the library, children's classics, such as The Polar Express and Hansel and Gretel, also are available as El Expresso Polar and Hansel Y Gretel. "Everything we buy, we try to get in both languages," Wilkes said. "Unfortunately, Spanish-language reference books are harder to come by." The computer lab uses bilingual software and the school's video collection includes both English and Spanish titles. The popularity of North's program already has generated a waiting list. "That hadn't happened before," said former principal Dan Montoya, who spearheaded the dual-language program and now is director of human resources for the Brighton School District. "This has more than met the expectations. The professional development of North's teachers has been a benefit for the entire district." Ultimately, North's staff hopes the bilingual skills students hone now will encourage them to explore other languages as they continue their education. The task will be made easier with a new federal grant awarded this year to Brighton's two middle schools to beef up their bilingual programs. "It certainly will help in the continuity of our students' education," Brighton's executive director for student services Becky McClure said. The three-year grant is worth $525,000. Former national bilingual teacher of the year Sylvia Latimer works at Denver's Fairmont Elementary and is a bilingual consultant at North. She said the influence of dual-language instruction has an even longer reach: "People need more than one language to compete in today's world," she said. "The earlier you start a foreign language, the more children will flourish in it." |