Do dual language experiences benefit the academic and literacy outcomes of Spanish speaking ELs?

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Abstract

Nearly one in three children in the United States live in households where a language other than English is spoken (Child Trends, 2019). Students in this category are identified in a myriad of ways—English learners (ELs), English language learners, dual language learners, emergent bilinguals, etc. NAEP data indicate that only 9% of ELs were at or above English proficiency (U.S. Dept. of Education, 2017) and have a 40%-age point achievement gap in reading by fourth grade (Murphey, 2014). Even as research on ELs has expanded in the last decade, the National Academies Report on ELs (2017) highlights several areas in need of research, including (1) understanding ELs normative developmental trajectories across domains, (2) deepening understanding of the role of language in the development of ELs, and (3) expanding knowledge of evidence-based practices for supporting EL outcomes. The papers in this symposium cut across these research areas by examining the association between language programs and early academic and linguistic outcomes. Paper 1 examines how Spanish language and learning activities in the home and school relate to the language and learning outcomes of preschool dual language learners; Paper 2 compares academic outcomes for elementary age students participating in 50/50 vs. 90/10 dual language programs; and Paper 3 focuses on the association between English language program participation in first and second grade (i.e., DLI, sheltered instruction, ESL) and students’ third grade basic early literacy outcomes. Our discussant will address implications of this research for policy and practice related to dual language learners.

Sub Unit

• Language, Communication

Chair

• Natalie Lynn Bohlmann, Interactions Matter

Discussant

• Lisa Maria López, University of South Florida

Individual Presentations

• Dual language-learning environments for dual language learners: Language and learning at home and school - Presenting Author: Heather Quick, American Institutes for Research - California; Deborah Holtzman, AIR; Lisa Hsin, American Institutes for Research; Lisa White, American Institutes for Research - California; Iliana Brodziak de los Reyes, American Institutes for Research; Karen Manship, American Institutes for Research - California

• Educational gains for students in dual language programs: Effects of language proficiency and program model - Presenting Author: Doré R. LaForett, Child Trends - North Carolina; Adam Winsler, George Mason University; Ximena Franco-Jenkins, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Sabrina Zadrozny; Ulda Gibelli Maldonado-Arias, George Mason University; Diego Ordoñez Rojas, George Mason University

• A Propensity matched comparison of early literacy outcomes for elementary-age ELs in different language programs - Presenting Author: Natalia Palacios, University of Virginia - Charlottesville; Natalie Lynn Bohlmann, Interactions Matter; Bethany A. Bell, University of Virginia; Yitong Yue, University of Virginia