With the 2015 passage of the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA), the oversight of language policy in U.S. schools shifted from federal to state governance. Although the education of students officially designated as English learners (ELs) has historically been grounded in federal law, we argue that ELs' educational experiences are also…

Second language literacy development is a significant factor influencing immigrants' opportunities to integrate with the host society. To examine the opportunities that different immigrant groups have had for obtaining both, we selected four published studies that had been originally analyzed through a sociocultural perspective, a prominent…

The effects of birth order have been debated in many disciplines and have been shown to be important for a number of outcomes. However, studies examining the significance of birth order in language development and practices, particularly with regard to minority languages, are few. This article reports on two sets of data collected among Spanish…

Discontinuities are often found between top-down language education policies and local language policy enactments, as de facto language policymaking results from stakeholders' negotiation and interpretation of policy mandates. Teachers occupy a particular role in the execution of language education policies, as they are the "final…

This study examines how public debate can shape school district policy. Using qualitative methods and an interdisciplinary framework that weaves an interpretive approach to policy implementation with the language policy and planning literature, the analysis demonstrates that immigrant voices were mostly absent in a debate over a new dual-language…

This article considers immigrants' perspectives on language immersion education. Data are drawn from a longitudinal research project that examined one suburban school district's construction of a two-way immersion (TWI), bilingual education policy. Analyses focus on 18 months of participant observation with six Mexican immigrant families who had…

As part of the school reform legislation of 1985, the Illinois State Board of Education established State Goals for Learning in six fundamental learning areas: language arts, mathematics, science, social science, fine arts, and physical development and health. The next step is to develop standards that will more clearly define the knowledge and…

The recent renewed interest in second language and international studies is viewed from a national perspective and from the perspective of statewide planning in Illinois. According to the review, one reason for the increased interest in the relevance of foreign language and international studies is a series of national and state reports…

Leaders in government and business are expressing a need for stronger programs in foreign language education that address national and state needs in defense, diplomacy, and commerce. The deterioration in foreign language capabilities in the United States results from declining participation in foreign language and cultural education. No concrete…

This paper explores the range of ways in which school districts are using Title I funds for early education through kindergarten and examines how the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has impacted those investments. It also makes recommendations for local education agencies (LEAs) interested in creating Title I-funded early education…