by PRP Group, on 03/07/2024
Dual-language immersion programs may have their own unique challenges, but literacy development isn’t one of them. In fact, although a bit more patience is often required to see success, students in dual immersion programs may actually have an advantage when it comes to learning to read: The more proficient students are in their primary language, the faster they transfer those skills to a new language.
Georgia Brown Elementary School, the dual immersion school in California where I have the privilege of serving as principal, has more than 620 students who work with 23 teachers and eight intervention teachers. We have a waiting list and use a lottery to determine who gets in. At the end of the 2022-23 school year, we had 95% of kindergarten, 72% of first-grade and 68% of second-grade students reading at or above grade level. We’ve also seen excellent progress among our English learners, according to the California School Dashboard.