Students in bilingual education could spend nearly the entire school day learning English under a new program being eyed by Mayor Giuliani and Schools Chancellor Harold Levy.

The mayor’s task force on bilingual education – of which Levy is a member – will soon release a report on the explosive issue.

“We’re talking about a model where students spend several hours a day learning the English language,” said Randy Mastro, chairman of the task force.

For the rest of the day, students would attend classes taught in English by a bilingual teacher who could translate when needed, he said.

“We’re urging the Board of Education to develop this model,” Mastro said.

The goal is to move these students into regular English classrooms in one year, he said.

Levy and Board President Bill Thompson have endorsed giving parents the option of placing their children in intensive “English immersion” programs. The board will discuss the proposal next week.

Parents would still have the option of placing their kids in bilingual programs – where students take an English class but are taught subjects in their native language. They could also opt for English as a second language, which is a hybrid of English and bilingual instruction.

Both Levy and Mastro have stressed that the two other programs will not be eliminated.

Bilingual-education programs have come under fire – from Giuliani and others – after the board released figures showing that half of the students don’t learn English, and are not reassigned to regular classrooms for three years.



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