The present dissertation brings together research on heritage language acquisition and bilingual education and makes inroads into the limited research on heritage language development in school-aged bilingual children. This study explores how bilingual education, patterns of exposure, and lexical frequency shape adolescent Spanish heritage…

The Latino English Language Learner population continues to rise each year in our schools, currently accounting for over 10% of all K-12 students in the United States (Cheung, 2019). Even with this growth in population, Latinos continue to lag behind other races in academic attainment and advancement in postsecondary success (NCES, 2019). This…

Providing instruction in a student's home language through bilingual education has proven to be academically beneficial for multilingual learners (MLLs). The present study contributes to this literature by examining the possibilities and limits of a professional development program (Mathematics and Language Literacy Integration [MALLI] in Dual…

There is strong controversy over the application and effects of the Linguistic Immersion Policy in Catalonia, a policy that established that the Catalan language should constitute the only vehicular language during the different levels of compulsory schooling. While some of the effects of this policy have been determined, the evidence on other…

This paper focuses on the use of language during the emergency eLearning period due to COVID-19 in the Basque Autonomous Community. Specifically, the main objective of this study is to analyze how the use of Basque (local minority language), English (foreign language), and Spanish (local majority language) changed during this period among children…

Children who speak one language at home and a different language at school may be at higher risk of falling behind in their academic achievement when schooling is disrupted. The present study examined the effects of COVID-19-related school disruptions on English language and literacy development among monolingual and bilingual children in the US.…

The purpose of this study was to investigate Spanish-speaking multilingual learner (MLL) students' long-term academic outcomes after participation in an early childhood education (ECE) program with English instruction. The study included 359 Spanish-speaking MLLs who qualified for Free and Reduced Lunch from Grade 1 to Grade 6. Participants…

Written bilingualism represents a particular type of bilingualism that is not frequently approached. The aim of this study was to investigate the writing and reading abilities of second-generation immigrants, Spanish-English bilinguals in South Florida. 58 participants (36 females, 22 males; 18-39 years of age) were selected. Both parents were…

This manuscript-based dissertation is comprised of three interrelated longitudinal studies on Spanish language growth and deceleration and its impact on English language growth and English reading skills in bilingual children. Chapter 1 introduces the manuscript-based dissertation and provides the background on existing, longitudinal work of dual…

This study examined the role of visual cues (facial expressions and hand gestures) in second language (L2) speech assessment. University students (N = 60) at English-medium universities assessed 2-minute video clips of 20 L2 English speakers (10 Chinese and 10 Spanish speakers) narrating a personal story. They rated the speakers'…

This paper reports on a writing programme I started at Bronx Community College to improve academic success among recently immigrated Spanish-speaking students by linking ESL courses to Spanish academic literacy courses within the framework of a learning community. My reflection begins by articulating the pedagogical rationale for looking beyond…

Although the core element in CLIL and immersion programmes is the integration of content and language, it is challenging to achieve a balance between the two to meet the dual-objective of CLIL. Research on the beliefs teachers have about CLIL and the way they understand the role of content and language in their classes is crucial to achieve that…

The purpose of this cluster randomized group study was to investigate the effect of multitiered, dual-language instruction on children's oral language skills, including vocabulary, narrative retell, receptive and expressive language, and listening comprehension. The participants were 3- to 5-year-old children (n = 81) who were learning English and…

Although CLIL (content and language integrated learning) programmes are now globally expanding, the number of studies that have examined their impact on both multiple language learning (students' L1, L2 and English as a foreign language) and content learning are scarce. This study investigates the effects of a CLIL programme implemented in a rural…

This paper investigates students' performance in content-subjects in the framework of CLIL programmes in Spain. So far, CLIL research has focused primarily on language attainment in the L2 and the L1, but students' achievements as regards content-subjects have been largely ignored. Competence in Science in the L1 is analysed by comparing pupils…