In kindergarten through 5th grade classrooms at Allen Jay Elementary School, students learn subjects like reading, math, and science in English, and in Urdu.
The school, in High Point, N.C., offers dual-language immersion programs in Urdu and Spanish, reflecting the two most commonly spoken world languages in the local community.
The programs follow a 50/50 model: Half of the day’s lessons are taught in English, the other half in either Urdu or Spanish. A teacher may be speaking in English, but a student may initially respond in Urdu if the answer is easier to first grasp in that language, or vice versa.
“We are not pro translating. We are more trying to build from the first or second language to continue on to the other language, or the target language,” said Milay Alvarez, the school’s dual language curriculum facilitator.
Though President Donald Trump signed an executive order earlier this year declaring English as the nation’s official language, some experts have pointed to the value of dual-language programs for students’ linguistic and academic development.
The Urdu program at Allen Jay is mainly staffed by credentialed teachers from the local community.
When the program started, teachers purchased textbooks and workbooks in Pakistan when visiting family. The school itself then started buying books for the program, but educators quickly found that the material was more advanced than expected. For example, books intended for 4th grade were better suited for 5th graders, Alvarez said.
The first group of students to enter the program in kindergarten are now in 6th grade this school year.
The school now has interventionists, teacher assistants, and administrative support personnel who can communicate with families and students in Urdu, Alvarez added.
The program continues to evolve, with improvements in scheduling, learning plans, and access to instructional resources—all with district support.
“We have seen that we are preserving heritage languages in our community, not only Urdu, but also Spanish,” Alvarez said. “We have seen that there’s more awareness of the importance of maintaining these heritage languages for maintaining those traditions, those cultures, the contact with those other countries.”
