Guidelines - Mesa Public Schools · teachers in order to receive content and language instruction ... Policies and Guidelines ... Can parents/guardians volunteer in a dual language

Curriculum & Instruction World Languages January 2015

Hermosa Vista Elementary

Dual Language Immersion Program

Guidelines


Mesa Public Schools

Hermosa Vista Elementary


Program Committee

John Trezise, Principal

Sherry MacEwan, Teacher

Gabriela Humes, Teacher

Stacy Murphy, Secretary

Dr. Dawn Foley, Curriculum & Instruction Director

Verónica Betance-Sandoval, World Languages Content Specialist


Program Objectives

The Dual Language Immersion program at Hermosa Vista Elementary is a program designed to

empower students to achieve at a high academic standard. The program provides students with the

opportunity to become college and career ready in a globally competitive world through academic

excellence in content areas while acquiring scholastic achievement in two languages. Student success is

ensured through content knowledge and fluency in both languages. Students are instructed according to

Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards for grade level competencies in all subject areas in both

English and Spanish. A strong partnership between parents, teachers, and administration creates

students who are bilingual, biliterate, and bicultural who will cultivate an understanding and

appreciation of diverse cultures.

Parent Involvement

A strong school-home partnership between teachers, parents, and administration is an essential

component to ensure success of our dual language immersion program and the educational success of

the students in the program. Students will typically enter the program in kindergarten and commit to

remain in the program through the sixth grade in order for the student to gain the full benefit of the

program. Parents who enroll their children in the dual language immersion program will be asked to

commit their child’s participation through the conclusion of sixth grade. In addition, parents will be an

integral part of the program as active participants in their child’s education at school and home. A signed

program agreement that explains the goals of the program, the responsibilities and commitment of the

student and parents to participate in the program will be completed at registration.


Program Design

The Dual Language Immersion Program combines a strong academic program with the most effective

and current practices of language immersion. The purpose of the program is to develop fluency and

literacy in English and Spanish through academic achievement in the content areas. The classroom

environment develops communicative competence and academic language development through an

interactive setting. The program implements 50% daily instruction in Spanish and 50% daily instruction

in English from kindergarten through sixth grade. Students are taught by a team of two teachers, one

who teaches primarily in Spanish and one who teaches in English. Students transfer between the two

teachers in order to receive content and language instruction in both languages. The structure and

process of the program fully cultivates and instills respect for both languages. Program participation

begins in kindergarten and a subsequent grade level will be added each year as students progress through

the grade levels. Students are expected to remain in the program until sixth grade to complete a seven

year commitment. The charts on the following page demonstrate the distribution of instructional time.


English Language

Arts35%

Math & Content Areas Reinforcement

in English15%

Math in Spanish20%

Content Areas in Spanish (Social

Studies, Science)15%

Spanish Language Literacy

15%

Instructional Time: Grades K-3

Math in English15%

English Language Arts25%

Social Studies10%

Math Reinforcement

in Spanish10%

Spanish Language Literacy

25%

Science in Spanish15%

Instructional Time: Grades 4-6


Policies and Guidelines

Program Eligibility 2015-2016

English-speaking students are eligible for the Dual Language Immersion Program based on the

following criteria:

Students begin program in kindergarten.

Students transferring from another dual language immersion program will be admitted based on

availability of space.

At least one parent/guardian will attend the Program Information Meeting scheduled in the

spring in order for their child to be eligible for the selection process.

The parent/guardian will complete the application process within the designated timeline to be

eligible for the selection process.

English language learners (ELL) are eligible to participate in the program. Students who are identified

as ELL by the English Language Acquisition Department and the AZELLA (the district and state

mandated assessment) will need to complete additional state required documentation.


Program Admission

In order to maintain the integrity of the instructional model, the Dual Language Immersion Program admission

will be subject to the following criteria.

1. All students that live in Hermosa Vista Elementary School's boundary may apply. Open-enrollment

students will also be accepted based on availability.

2. Parents must sign a program agreement that explains the program’s goals, parent responsibilities and

commitment to the program.

3. Program participants and their families are expected to commit to the Dual Language Immersion

Program through sixth grade. This duration of enrollment ensures full development of academic

content and Spanish and English literacy skills.

4. Students may enroll in the program at the kindergarten level. Students wishing to enroll in the

program after kindergarten may be admitted at any grade level based on proficiency levels in both

English and Spanish. Admission will be determined by the district’s proficiency assessment.

5. Siblings of children already enrolled in the immersion program will receive first priority for

placement.

6. Once enrolled in the program, students automatically progress to the next grade level in the program

unless disenrolled by parents or the school.

7. Disenrollment of a student will be performed in consultation with the school principal, program

teachers, and parents.

Kindergarten Admission Process

1. Parents interested in the Dual Immersion Program contact Hermosa Vista Elementary School.

2. Parents are notified of student’s acceptance before May.

3. Parents attend informational meeting.

4. Parents complete enrollment and commitment forms.


Program Selection Process

Students are selected to the Dual Language Immersion Program based on the following selection

process:

1. All applications shall be submitted by the school’s deadline.

2. Students will be selected through a lottery selection process if applicants exceed program

capacity.

3. Students not selected for the program will be placed on a waiting list.

4. Within the first two weeks of the start of school, any withdrawals from the program will be

replaced with students according to the waiting list order.

Screening for New Students in 1st – 6th Grade

All students are invited to enroll in our program at the kindergarten level. Students wishing to enroll in

1st – 6th grades will be administered a district proficiency assessment to make a determination if they

meet the necessary criteria to be successful in the program. The assessment/screening evaluation will be

conducted by a dual language immersion program teacher to assess the student’s language proficiency in

English and Spanish. As a result of the assessment, a decision will be made on whether the Dual

Language Immersion Program is the best placement and option for the student.

Request to withdraw

Parents and students admitted into the program make a long-term commitment to remain in the program

for its duration. Therefore, requests for withdrawal will only be considered due to extenuating

circumstances and may go through a multi-step process including conferences with the teacher and

administration.

Transportation

The Dual Language Immersion Program is an elective program. Therefore, parents will be required to

provide transportation for their child if Hermosa Vista Elementary is not the student’s home campus.


Program Accountability

The Dual Language Immersion Program will be evaluated based on the following standards:

• Curriculum-based assessments will be administered in the appropriate language of instruction

Through-out the course of the school year.

• Spanish language proficiency and performance assessments will be administered throughout the course

of the school year.

• Progress reporting will follow district timeline.

• The Arizona’s Statewide Achievement Assessment (AzMERIT) will be administered to program

students in the assigned grade levels.

• Qualitative data will be gathered through student/parent/staff surveys to gather stakeholders’ opinions

and feelings, gauge program effectiveness, and increase positive impact in the community.


Research

Further information regarding research-based language programs can be obtained by accessing the

following websites:

• American Council on The Teaching of Foreign Languages: http://www.actfl.org/

• The University of Minnesota's Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition:

www.carla.umn.edu

• The Center for Applied Linguistics: www.cal.org

• The National Dual Language Consortium: www.dual-language.org

• National Association for Bilingual Education: www.nabe.org

•Dr. Virginia Collier and Dr. Wayne Thomas at George Mason University, research on language acquisition: http://www.thomasandcollier.com/

• Dr. Jim Cummins, language development researcher at the University of Toronto: http://home.oise.utoronto.ca/~jcummins/cummins.htm

• Dr. Stephen Krashen, linguist, educational researcher at the University of Southern California:

www.sdkrashen.com/

http://www.actfl.org/

http://www.carla.umn.edu/

http://www.cal.org/

http://www.dual-language.org/

http://www.nabe.org/

http://www.thomasandcollier.com/

http://home.oise.utoronto.ca/~jcummins/cummins.htm

http://www.sdkrashen.com/


Frequently Asked Questions

What is dual language immersion?

The Dual language Immersion Program provides a way to learn academic content while acquiring another

language at the same time. Students receive math, science, and social studies instruction in a target language,

such as Spanish. The teaching strategies used support students in learning the concepts and skills for the subject

area and develop the ability to read, write, speak, and listen in another target language.

The goals are for the students to reach high levels of target language proficiency and develop cultural

competency while attaining academic achievement that is at or above their grade level.

Who can participate?

The dual language immersion program seeks to enroll students of varying backgrounds and all ability levels. All

students are capable of acquiring another language. Applications are open to all students entering kindergarten.

Is dual language immersion a gifted/high ability program?

The Dual Language Immersion Program is a general education program, not a gifted or high ability

program. Research has shown that the Dual Language Immersion Program is an effective educational option for

children from diverse backgrounds and all ability levels.

Can parents/guardians volunteer in a dual language immersion classroom?

Parents/guardians will be encouraged to volunteer in the classroom and familiarize themselves with the target

language. However, only the target language is spoken in the classroom.

Will learning two languages confuse a child or slow academic progress? Research have shown that young children have the capacity to learn multiple languages and have

demonstrated stronger cognitive abilities. According to a study by Peal and Lambert, “bilinguals have greater

mental flexibility, greater abstract thinking, greater lexical independence, superior concept formulation and

higher verbal IQ than monolinguals.”

Why is it better for a child to learn language at the elementary level?

Children tend to develop a more native-like pronunciation when language learning begins before adolescence.

Will students in the immersion classroom learn the same things in the general education classroom?

Yes. The Dual Language Immersion Program is aligned to the Arizona’s College and Career Ready

Standards. In addition to the Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards, this program integrates Arizona’s

Foreign and National World Language Standards.

Are students exposed to only 50% of the curriculum?

A common misconception about immersion programs is that students receive only 50% of the curriculum

because English is taught for 50% of the day. Students in the Dual Language Immersion Program receives

100% of the grade level core curriculum. One of the major differences in this type of specialized program is

how the curriculum is delivered.



Parent and Student Commitment Agreement

Commitment to and acceptance of the following expectations are required for all participants in the Dual

Language Immersion Program.

1. Hermosa Vista Elementary School has adopted a 50/50 Dual Language Immersion Program model.

Students will receive 50% of daily instruction in Spanish and 50% of daily instruction in English in

the content areas.

2. The Dual Language Immersion Program is a general education program open to all students. There

are no qualifying requirements for students enrolling in the program.

3. Transportation is the responsibility of the parent/guardian of students who reside outside of the Dual

Language Immersion Program school’s boundaries.

4. The success of the program requires regular and punctual attendance of the student; taking the

student out of school for reasons other than illness and family emergency is strongly discouraged.

5. It is not uncommon for students to experience some fatigue and frustration in the first few months of

the program. A student should not be removed from the program for these reasons. Students must

be supported and encouraged during these initial stages of frustration.

6. Daily assignments and homework will be assigned; including 20-30 minutes of daily reading in

English at home.

7. Research indicates an immersion program is most effective when students remain in the program for

a sustained period of time. The student will be expected to continue with the program through sixth

grade unless a team decision is made involving the parent, teacher, and administration that it is in the

best interest of the student to have a different placement.

8. Students not making adequate progress academically or behaviorally, will be evaluated by school

personnel and interventions will be implemented and documented accordingly. If interventions are

unsuccessful, reassignments to a regular classroom may be considered.

___________________________________ _______________________________________ Student Name Student Identification Number

_________________________________________________________________________________ Name(s) of Parent(s)/Legal Guardian(s)

___________________________________ _______________________________________ Signature of Parent/Legal Guardian Date

Documents

Guidelines - Mesa Public Schools · teachers in order to receive content and language instruction ... Policies and Guidelines ... Can parents/guardians volunteer in a dual language