English Learners Report Roundup

Different ELL Programs Found Effective

By Lesli A. Maxwell — March 25, 2014 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

By the time they reached 5th grade, English-language learners in San Francisco’s public schools were equally proficient in English, whether they had been in a bilingual program or had received all their instruction in English, a recent study from Stanford University researchers has found.

Though ELLs who were in bilingual education programs in San Francisco lagged in the earlier grades, they scored similarly on the state’s academic tests and had virtually the same rates of reclassification to English-fluent status by 5th grade as their ELL peers who were in the district’s English-immersion program.

Growth in English Proficiency

BRIC ARCHIVE

Source: San Francisco Unified School District, Stanford University

One notable exception: By 5th grade, higher numbers of Latino ELLs in bilingual programs reached the “midbasic” level of achievement on California’s English/language arts exam than their Latino ELL peers in English-immersion. That is the required minimum to be considered for reclassification to English-proficient status, among other criteria.

The study—commissioned by the San Francisco district and conducted by researcher Sean Reardon—compared the progress of English-learners as they moved from kindergarten through elementary grades and into middle school.

The study’s sample was 18,000 English-learners who entered kindergarten in San Francisco between 2002 and 2010. About 37 percent of the district’s student population are English-learners.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the March 26, 2014 edition of Education Week as Different ELL Programs Found Effective

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Assessment Webinar
Reflections on Evidence-Based Grading Practices: What We Learned for Next Year
Get real insights on evidence-based grading from K-12 leaders.
Content provided by Otus
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Student Well-Being Webinar
Creating Resilient Schools with a Trauma-Responsive MTSS
Join us to learn how school leaders are building a trauma-responsive MTSS to support students & improve school outcomes.
School & District Management Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: We Can’t Engage Students If They Aren’t Here: Strategies to Address the Absenteeism Conundrum
Absenteeism rates are growing fast. Join Peter DeWitt and experts to learn how to re-engage students & families.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

English Learners Data Political Divides Shape Educators’ Views on English Learners’ Rights
Educators are divided along political lines on rights for English learners and immigrant students, an EdWeek Research Center survey found.
Custom illustration of an open book with the left side showing the blue and stars of the American flag and the right side of the book showing the red stripes of the American flag with the silhouette of a sad young boy behind the stripes/bars. His head is looking down and he is wearing a school book bag.
Taylor Callery for Education Week
English Learners Trump Has Made English the Official Language. What That Means for Schools
Experts spoke with Education Week about the potential challenges and opportunities an official U.S. language creates.
6 min read
An illustration of a speech bubble on a blue background. The American Flag takes up the entire inside of the speech bubble.
iStock/Getty
English Learners How Schools Can Expand Dual-Language Immersion Programs
Bipartisan state and local demand for dual-language immersion programs continues to grow.
4 min read
042523 Cardona Bilingual 3 EdDe BS
One of the last projects U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona oversaw was the publication of playbooks on how to establish and sustain dual-language immersion programs across the country.
Courtesy of U.S. Department of Education
English Learners Q&A How English-Learner Standards Can Help Teachers Help Students
Jenni Torres is the new executive director of WIDA, the organization that oversees English learner assessments in most states.
3 min read
Fifth graders work on their math problems in a bilingual classroom at Sandoval Elementary School in Chicago on Dec. 3, 2019.
Fifth graders work on their math problems in a bilingual classroom at Sandoval Elementary School in Chicago on Dec. 3, 2019. Jenni Torres, the new executive director of WIDA, hopes to expand upon professional development to support all teachers working with multilingual students.
Jose M. Osorio /Chicago Tribune via TNS