Research shows that bilingual instruction (including dual language instruction and dual language immersion) supports the long-term success of dual language learners鈥攊n both languages, and beyond.
How do we best support those students?
More precisely, how are we serving our emergent bilingual students so that they can develop their biliteracy? This is a question posed by biliteracy expert and 抖阴成人版app product specialist Alestra Flores Men茅ndez.聽And in our recent webinar , she and other experts attempt to answer it.
The power of biliteracy
Knowing more than one language is a powerful tool for opening up new worlds, meeting different people鈥攐r even just asking directions in an unfamiliar place.
But that鈥檚 not all. Bilingualism itself is a cognitive strength. Research conducted in 2015 by Claude Goldenberg and Kirstin Wagner links bilingualism to increased control over attention, improved working memory, greater awareness of the structure and form of language, and better abstract and symbolic representation skills.
鈥淥ur multilingual learners really are using their brains differently,鈥� says Flores Men茅ndez.
And as with all students, we need to start early to make sure they鈥檝e got their best shot at literacy.
The number of emerging bilingual students in our classrooms is growing, with 15.5% of them in grades K鈥�3. That group includes the key developmental year鈥攖hird grade.
Third grade is seen as the last year students learn to read before they start reading to learn. Without proficiency by fourth grade, they鈥檙e at risk of struggle across subjects.
And for many students, literacy is biliteracy. So how to make sure they get there?
Helping all multilingual learners succeed
鈥淏ilingual instruction has been proven to be the most effective,鈥� says 抖阴成人版app biliteracy specialist Ana Torres, M.Ed., citing research by Virginia Thomas and Wayne Collier.
Other models (English immersion, transitional bilingual) are a fit for students with certain language profiles. As Torres notes, 鈥淲e have to be intentional and purposeful to make sure there are positive outcomes for all students.鈥�
But the proven impact of the bilingual model shows this: Knowledge of, and in, a second language builds from the first.
Foundational skills, vocabulary, and knowledge are essential, and all transfer to the second language鈥攖hrough explicit, research-based instruction.
Key elements of that instruction:
- Assessing literacy in both languages. 鈥淎ssessing what [students] know in their native language is crucial to their success in acquiring that second language,鈥� says Torres.聽A 2019 study at the University of Oregon looked at phonological awareness among Spanish-speaking pre-K students. (Phonological awareness represents the understanding that words are made up of a series of discrete sounds.)聽When assessed in English, 63% of students needed Tier 2 or 3 intervention. But when assessed in Spanish, only 21% did.聽鈥淲e need to look at the overall picture of students鈥� literacy,鈥� Torres says. 鈥淥therwise they鈥檙e going to get the wrong instruction.鈥�
- Deliberately bridging from the native language to the new one. Spanish and English share many elements, among them letter sounds. If students know the sounds of the letter m in Spanish, they鈥檒l be able to map that sound onto the same letter in English.
- Grounding in the Science of Reading. The Simple View of Reading has been validated in more than 150 studies across multiple languages. Foundational skills, vocabulary, and knowledge can all transfer through explicit instruction.
- Honoring students鈥� home languages, cultures, and community experiences. 鈥淚t鈥檚 well documented that when children feel a sense of belonging, they鈥檙e more motivated to learn and experience more success in school,鈥� says Men茅ndez. 鈥淪tudents should see themselves reflected positively in any curricular material.鈥�
- Emphasizing knowledge. Perhaps you鈥檙e familiar with the iconic baseball study. Students with prior knowledge of baseball greatly outperformed their peers on reading comprehension鈥攅ven those peers who were stronger readers. 鈥淏uilding knowledge is absolutely essential for literacy development,鈥� says Men茅ndez.
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