While much of the literature regarding Spanish as a heritage language has focused on higher education institutions and areas of traditional immigration in the United States, less research has specifically examined Spanish heritage language learner (HLL) policies in states like Tennessee that have recently experienced an exponential rise in the…

Native Spanish speakers from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala, who are also English language learners, are a growing population of students in the K-12 classrooms throughout the United States. This particular group of students is oftentimes placed in Spanish-as-a-foreign-language classes that fail to meet their linguistic development…

An extensive body of research documents the successes of immigrant groups in establishing community language schools. Studied within this tradition, Latino immigrant communities appear to come up short, because of the scarcity of such schools for Spanish-speaking children. However, as we show in this paper, Latino immigrant communities do have…

Problems are discussed and recommendations made for developing programs and materials for Spanish instruction of Spanish speakers. General and specific suggestions are made for material selection and class activities, including spelling, composition, self-editing, dialog writing, transcription, translation, student-teacher conferences, journals,…

The paper investigates how adult immigrants with low literacy levels are being taught language skills in Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. Particular attention is paid to the reasons why large English-as-a-Second-Language programs (ESL) in the area do not offer native language literacy (NLL) courses and why some students seek NLL…

This guide is intended for use in the development of an English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) course, and civics. The guide was produced in response to the high proportion of amnesty applicants illiterate in Spanish, their native language, and in need of instruction in ESL and civics, which are necessary for legalization. The guide consists of five…

A cooperative literacy education program involving Mexico and the United States' border states is documented. The project has three objectives: to (1) implement the Mexican literacy agency's approach to promoting literacy among native Spanish speakers; (2) coordinate U.S./Mexico literacy task force activities; and (3) develop an immigrants' rights…

Rapid demographic changes and an increasing recognition of the critical need for professionals who are proficient in languages other than English have led to an interest in developing language programs and classes for "heritage language learners" students who are raised in a home where a non-English language is spoken and who speak or at…

In its second year of Title VII funding, James Monroe High Schools's Proyecto Nuevos Horizontes (Project New Horizons) served 344 limited-English-speaking recent arrivals from Latin America and the Caribbean, in grades 9 through 12. The program has built on the strengths of the high school's extensive computer-assisted instruction (CAI) program,…

Liberty High School (New York City) enrolls newly arrived immigrant students with limited formal schooling. Its Spanish Dual Language Literacy Program focuses on teaching content areas in Spanish while developing literacy skills in both languages. Discusses provision of both academic and social support, experiential investigations of the city,…

An evaluation was done of the New York City Public Schools' Project Porvenir. During the 1990-91 school year, Project Porvenir operated at 4 elementary schools and served 501 Spanish-speaking students in grades 4, 5, and 6, of whom 85 percent were eligible for the free lunch program. The students were of limited English proficiency and were served…

An evaluation was done of the New York City Public Schools' Choosing Optional Infused Career Education for Students in High School Bilingual Programs (Project CHOICE). During the 1990-91 school year, Project CHOICE served 437 Spanish-speaking limited English proficient (LEP) students at Fort Hamilton High School and Springfield Gardens High…

An evaluation was done of New York City Public Schools' Alternative Learning Methodologies through Academics Program (Project ALMA) for Spanish-speaking students. Project ALMA served 407 9th and 10th graders at 2 sites (Queens and the Bronx). All of the students spoke Spanish, and 75.7 percent of them were eligible for the Free Lunch Program. The…

In its fourth year, Project Nuevos Horizontes served 315 limited-English-speaking, native Spanish-speaking students in fall 1988 and 300 in spring 1989. The majority of participants came from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. The program's goal was to provide students with the academic and support services needed to ensure completion of…

An evaluation was done of the New York City Public Schools' Career Awareness Resources in Education Project (Project CARE). During the 1990-91 school year, Project CARE operated at 4 schools serving 710 immigrant students of limited English proficiency in grades 6, 7, 8, and 9. The program provided instruction in English as a Second Language,…