The low birth weight criterion and other factors used for entry in 1971 into the Responsive Environment Program for Spanish-American Children (RESPAC), yielded predictions of school failure for nearly all RESPAC students. A significant finding of the 10-year follow-up study was that 86 percent of RESPAC students had normal school progress. (JHZ)

This document was created as a resource for educators and policymakers regarding English Language Learners (ELLs) in U.S. public schools, providing a synthesis of the research on teaching and learning to read in English as it relates to students in U.S. public schools who speak little or no English. Focusing attention on children of primary…

This digest describes a research and development program being carried out in transitional bilingual education programs at five elementary schools in the Los Angeles area. Researchers have been collaborating with teachers and project advisors to develop, implement, and describe instructional strategies that improve the chances of students in these…

An innovative English and Spanish instructional program for grades six through eight in a south Texas district integrates language and content areas, uses both languages, implements literacy strategies typical of elementary programs, accommodates varying Spanish and English proficiency and limited prior schooling, and employs Mexican teachers as…

Traces the entry and exit criteria of transitional bilingual education programs through federal court decisions, laws, and regulations over the past decade. Examines the validity of the rules used to decide who needs transitional bilingual education. (MLF)

To study impact of bilingual education programs on reading and mathematics achievement, 278 Mexican-American seventh and eighth grade students were examined over a three-year period. The effects of the following variables on posttest scores were examined: (1) pretest scores; (2) gender; and (3) group (bilingual or mainstream). (BJV)

Examines the perspectives of bilingual teachers, teacher assistants, school administrators, and an outside researcher on the 10-year development of a Navajo-English bilingual/bicultural program at Rough Rock Elementary School in Arizona. The transformation in curriculum and pedagogy, as well as the social and political processes by which…

Using comparative data from two Navajo community-school contexts, this article details the conditions within these and similar contexts that enable schools to authentically use and validate the local language. Six social engineering strategies are presented as a means to build dual-language programs. (seven references) (MDM)

Discusses the ways in which various American Indian community schools and programs have addressed the concept of language and cultural maintenance and renewal, focusing on the role of bilingual programs, classroom interactions, community involvement, and indigenous teachers. The perspectives of the Yupik Indians on indigenous education are…

A review of five types of bilingual programs finds that maintenance and dual-language programs best foster bilingualism, academic achievement, and cultural pluralism, but program implementation and organization also determine effectiveness. Input from bilingual teachers indicates that building administrators must develop and communicate a clear…

The educational system in many schools fails to meet the academic needs of minority students. The dramatic shifts in student demographics are demanding changes in the ways teachers are teaching them. It is essential to understand the long term effects of past educational practices and bilingual programs. Research indicates that there are many…

A survey investigating public beliefs about teaching methods of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) and bilingual education is reported. An introductory section chronicles the political history of ESL and bilingual education in the United States, describes major program designs, and reviews literature on public opinion concerning these programs.…

This paper describes Bilingual-Bicultural (BiBi) instructional programs for students with hearing impairments and proposes a model for BiBi instruction which uses parents as partners with instructors to develop the linguistic abilities of hearing-impaired students. In the model, traditionally spoken languages are conveyed via cued speech instead…

A study assessed and compared the effectiveness of two distinct approaches of bilingual education used within a single school district in El Paso (Texas). The program designs, one a traditional transitional bilingual and the other a bilingual immersion, were implemented under similar conditions of resources, school year length, class size, and…

This paper presents some of the overall findings of the Cooperative Reading Project (CRP), a collaboration between six teachers in a bilingual Spanish/English elementary school and a team of university researchers to examine and improve upon cooperative learning literacy instruction. The CRP took a social constructivist learning stance toward…