Perceptions of a Two-way Immersion Program:
Spanish BCLAD Teachers Tell Their Stories
Debra A. Luna
San Francisco State University
Introduction
Two-way immersion programs that promote bi-literacy, biculturalism and high academic achievement, via the integration of English native speakers (ENSs) and Spanish native speakers (SNSs), continue to increase in California’s public schools (Howard & Loeb, 1998; Sugarman & Howard, 2001; Senesac, 2002; Howard, Sugarman, & Christian, 2003). In an extensive review of the literature, Howard, Sugarman and Christian have noted consistencies in the benefits, motivation and challenges experienced by teachers in these programs. Benefits have included autonomy, the creation of new curricula and assessments, team teaching, and the opportunity to use Spanish. Motivational factors have included elevating the status of heritage languages and their native speakers and greater participation of heritage language parents. Challenges, on the other hand, have been many. They include: a) the labor involved due to working in two languages, b) making content comprehensible to language learners, c) scheduling, d) working with a team teacher, and e) dealing with parents daily.
Although the findings in two-way immersion programs echo common points among the teachers’ experiences, the call for continued study of experiences by school officials, teachers, students and parents continue to be needed as ways of improving two-way immersion programs. For example, based on the fact that these programs bring together a “highly desirable primary language” for heritage language speakers and a “second language enrichment program” for English native speakers, Larocco (2003) cautions educators about ensuring equity, both in instructional and programmatic issues, especially for the SNSs. Larocco’s findings challenge the claim that two-way immersion programs provide equitable academic and linguistic gains for both groups (Cummins, 1989; Harley, Allen, Cummins, & Swain, 1990; Senesac, 2002). Thus, the quality of such programs might depend on the details of each particular program.
Like any other instructional program, the areas of concern in two-way immersion programs can be viewed from a number of individual perspectives. The intention of this particular study is to document the ongoing concerns of five new Spanish bilingual teachers in one two-way immersion program in northern California. What makes this cohort unique is that they completed the same Multiple Subject Credential Program with a Bilingual Cross-cultural Academic Development (BCLAD) Emphasis and they are teachers at the same two-way immersion school. Furthermore, the school’s program is widely known to be a highly supportive environment, as shown by the experiences between the elementary school and university officials. Through an open dialogue, espousing reflective inquiry of day-to-day events in the school environment, teachers were asked to relate their experiences in a fluid group dialogue. The value of listening to teachers will in turn inform teacher preparation programs and two-way immersion programs about their effectiveness in educating two distinct groups of children. Again, this study is ongoing, with intentions to document the teachers’ perceptions through one calendar year.
Meet the Teachers
In addition to graduating from the same teacher preparation program and teaching at the same two-way immersion school, the five teachers in this study are Latinos. The two male teachers are of Peruvian heritage, with one having immigrated as an adult, after spending four years in England, and the other having immigrated with his parents at the age of nine. One female is of Guatemalan heritage and she immigrated in her teens. The other two females are of Mexican heritage, one having immigrated at the age of six, with the other having been born in the USA of Mexican immigrant parents. Although the five teachers have varying degrees of proficiency in the Spanish language, they are considered to be “highly proficient”. Besides the teachers’ linguistic match to their students, they also reflect cultural knowledge that allows them to empathize with their students’ educational experiences.
As previously noted, all five teachers graduated from the same teacher training program: three in fall 2005, one in spring 2006, and one teacher scheduled to complete the program in fall 2006. Other than the teachers having learned the “excellent reputation” of this two-way immersion school, the close communication between the school principal and the BCLAD Coordinator at the university further generated the teachers’ attraction to the school. At the start, one teacher candidate began her student teaching in fall 2004. In spring 2005, she took on a team-teaching position and by fall 2005 she had her own classroom. Simultaneously, another candidate joined the school as a student teacher in spring 2005 and by spring 2006, she became the teacher of record. In spring 2006, one more teacher, who had substituted at the school site, was hired, followed by two more in summer 2006. Thus, within two years the five individuals came to be teachers at the school site.
Unlike the situation whereby new teachers from various teacher-training programs are hired at a variety of schools, the concentration of these five teachers at the same school and their teacher training commonalities make their impressions a unique source of information. First, their familiarity with one another presents a camaraderie that feeds into the collaborative approach to teaching that is underscored at the school. Second, as novices to the teaching profession, their challenges reflect new teachers’ experiences as they navigate the demands of teaching and other duties. Third, as recent graduates of the same teacher-training program, their feedback mirrors the program’s strengths and areas in need of improvement. Fourth, due to their cultural and linguistic match to their students and students’ families, their perspectives might shed light on details of the program that others, who do not share this cultural and linguistic match, might not be aware of as teachers in a two-way immersion program.
Spanish Bilingual Teachers’ Reflections
Benefits of the two-way immersion program. The major benefit that surfaced in the open dialogue between the five new teachers was support in the following areas: a) time for planning, b) school personnel, and c) access to professional development. As with all schools in the district, this school allows for one minimum day per week in which one or more meetings are held. They include faculty meetings, workshops, trainings, and grade level meetings. Teachers underscored the helpfulness of regularly scheduled grade level meetings where the idea was to plan for the upcoming weeks. This facilitated long term planning by knowing “what was coming”. In addition, a one-time per year grade level meeting of six hours is held in order to plan a school year at a time. One goal of this meeting is to ensure that the California standards are covered in the curricula.
Another area of support involved various school personnel including the principal, “vice principal”, and fellow teachers. The principal’s strengths were cited as being “bilingual, helpful, encouraging, available,” and one who shows “consistent concern”. Teachers also described her “parent rule” which required that parents with concerns about any aspect of the school program had to go through her rather than approaching teachers and other personnel on site. One teacher described her as “great at dealing with parents from my class”. Teachers told about her support of family life courses that focused on showing parents how to work academically with their children. She was also noted for explaining the educational program to parents, making sure they understood the theories and concepts behind second language acquisition and the current research on two-way immersion programs.
Teachers spent a considerable amount of time telling about the “vice principal” or the “teacher in charge” in the principal’s absence. This person supported teachers by modeling teaching strategies and methods, observing and providing feedback, and encouraging teachers to observe their colleagues and substituting for them when they did so. For example, one teacher described how he needed guidance in organizing and planning the continuation of lessons. After discussing the daily plans for a single lesson, the teacher-in-charge modeled the continuation of a lesson for him, using his students as the learners. The teacher-in-charge was described as a “great mentor” by the group – dedicated to children’s success, always providing ideas and advice, organizing school events, and maintaining a close positive relationship with Latino parents.
Considerable time was also spent describing fellow classroom teachers as mentors. One kindergarten teacher told how another K-teacher across the hall coaches him regularly concerning writer’s workshop. A second mentor teacher meets with him regularly, demonstrating approaches to “guided reading”. One Friday she models techniques with his students and the following Friday she observes and provides feedback on his efforts at using guided reading. All five teachers described the other teachers as receptive to questions concerning all aspects of their responsibilities, particularly those associated with certain subject matter. The new teachers remarked that these fellow classroom teachers made them feel like they were “part of a team”.
Yet another aspect of support was the opportunity to participate in workshops of professional growth. A second grade teacher summarized her participation in the following conferences and workshops: Noyce Foundation training for eight days, two California Association of Bilingual Educators (CABE) conferences, a reader’s workshop for one week, and a national math seminar; all of these events took place within one year. In addition, she recalled workshops on classroom management and literacy.
Challenges of the two-way immersion program. Challenges noted by the five teachers centered on three areas: a) English proficiency of Spanish native speakers, b) programmatic issues associated with language development and academic gains, and c) exclusive usage of the heritage language (Spanish) as outlined by the program. Together, these concerns caused one teacher to express his anxiety over standardized testing.
The concern for first and second grade teachers was that ENS were “becoming more bilingual” than SNSs. And, that the SNSs had no access to English in the home environment. The second grade teacher felt that more English instruction, beyond the 20% designated by the program, was needed for SNSs. Due to this matter, the team of second grade teachers decided to teach “a bit of phonics and writing”. The third grade teacher noted that the SNSs had “good” oral language skills, but they were not reading and writing at grade level. She had concerns about comprehension, spelling, and vocabulary.
For English Language Development (ELD), children are taught in separate groups according to their proficiency levels. As a result of this, the teachers felt that the SNSs were not benefiting from the linguistic interaction in English with NESs. They felt that SNSs needed other speakers, other than their teachers, as role models of the English language. On the other hand, teachers felt that the ENSs were benefiting tremendously from the time they spent with their Spanish-speaking classmates, using the Spanish language both in academic and social settings. This made the teachers consider that the efficiency of a dual language program that maintains a 50% English/50% Spanish allotment throughout the grades might be a better model for reaching bilingualism for both groups. In addition, they were concerned about children being able to retain subject matter due to breaks at this year round school. The school is in session for three months, followed by a break of three weeks.
One teacher expressed a challenge specific to him, which was teaching in a split-level class of second and third graders. He felt some anxiety about being able to provide appropriate grade level material for the students. However, his participation in a type of “team teaching”, where his third graders would leave the classroom to join other third grade students for certain subjects, presented him with an even greater concern than meeting the expectations of a split-level grade. This reduced the time he had to build authentic relationships with his students, which went against his teaching philosophy. He believed that solid teacher-student relationships are foundational to a teacher’s ability to build trustful, healthy learning environments. He was convinced that the absence of such grounded relationships was contributing to behavioral issues.
Advantages to a group dialogue. An unexpected finding, and one which underscores the value of an open group dialogue, surfaced in this study. Teachers expressed thankfulness at being able to “speak freely”. One commented that it was good not to have their veteran colleagues involved in the dialogue. This was not because they wanted to hide any of their thoughts; rather, it was simply a good feeling to talk as newcomers to the field of education and to not feel intimidated by others with more years of experience.
The group dialogue was also a time for them to share learning “outside of the school site”. Spontaneously, one teacher shared some realities of public schooling stemming from a recent lecture in one of his Master’s courses. The information served as a springboard to a discussion about educational equity in public schooling. This lead to a clarification of what constitutes scripted teaching and the accountability factors associated with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001. One teacher in particular felt that their school might lose their autonomy if test scores were to fall below a certain level. He had heard about another school in the district that had fallen into this category. However, another teacher was able to put him at ease. She had substituted at the school in the past and assured him that the “two-way immersion” program was in complete disarray, making the academic outcomes fall short of meeting standardized testing expectations.
One teacher explained that the open dialogue made her reflect on what she says in the classroom while another remarked that the session caused her to question her responses to what children were saying in the classroom. As a result of coming together, the third grade teacher invited the second/third grade teacher to join the third grade level meetings for the purpose of addressing specific curricula and behavioral issues. She was not aware that the team-teaching arrangement was impacting his ability to work effectively with his students.
Networking among new teachers. On a more personal level, the fact that these teachers had established relationships in their teacher-training program and as newly employed teachers at the same school, enabled them to be a resource in other ways. For example, one teacher told how he had informed another individual, also from their teacher-training program, as to how to become a substitute teacher for their school. Bilingual substitutes are almost impossible to find and the group was happy to hear about this person. Yet another example of networking surfaced when one teacher connected another with the apartment of a friend in the area of the school. This helped to alleviate the anxiety of relocating, allowing him to focus on his teaching.
Discussion
Although the open dialogue between these five teachers is scheduled to be a long-term study, this initial session provided insight about this particular school site. In addition, the information parallels some of the research on two-way immersion programs. The information gathered should be helpful to the school’s program and to the teacher training institution.
There is no doubt that this group of five teachers would benefit from a deeper understanding of second language theories and their expected outcomes in a two-way immersion program where two distinct language groups are moving towards bilingualism. This need can be fulfilled both through their teacher-training period and the school’s mission. Since this school already values a deep understanding of the research on language acquisition and two-way immersion programs, it would be to the benefit of the school to hold faculty meetings that target these areas of concern. The fact that the second grade teachers decided to introduce “more English” shows that veteran teachers, as well as the new teachers have concerns about their SNSs’ English acquisition. One necessary feature of quality two-way immersion programs is that teachers need to support the philosophy and goals (Howard & Loeb, 1998; Sugarman & Howard, 2001; Armendáriz & Armendáriz, 2002) and to become advocates for heritage language students (Senesac, 2002).
Professionals could be invited as guest speakers to explain second language acquisition theories and to address the stages of language learning and how this correlates with the lag on speaking, reading and writing. Beforehand, teachers would be asked to note their concerns so that the speaker would be sure to address these points. Professionals in bilingual education could speak about other dual immersion programs that use a different percentage of the two languages, and how they compare to two-way immersion programs.
In addition, educators who are working in successful two-way immersion programs could be invited to speak on the details of their programs, and therefore, address the concerns that have arisen in this study. For example, the five teachers are concentrated in the lower grades and therefore, are witnessing the beginnings of language acquisition. They have a definite concern about their SNSs’ proficiency in English, primarily the academic gains that the students must acquire to reach the level of their English native speaking counterparts. Coupled with this concern is the challenge of making sure students are using the heritage language (Spanish) throughout most of the school day. Educators, who have experienced cohorts of children moving up the grade levels, can better explain the overall progression in the two-way immersion model.
A matter of educational equity arose when the teachers expressed that SNSs students were not becoming as bilingual as their counterparts and that the students were not up to grade level. While it is widely known in language acquisition theory that academic use of the language takes much longer than conversational use of the language, these teachers felt that the SNS students were somehow “not getting enough”. The example put forth was that ENSs benefited from time with SNSs in academic-related activities where Spanish was being used, whereas the SNSs were not experiencing this same time in English. Even though parental involvement did not surface in this study, Larocco (2003) addresses the issues of language learning, academic attainment and parental participation in two-way immersion programs:
The intent is to caution educators that unless they carefully plan language instruction and thoughtfully address the parent participation component, these asymmetrical relationships between language minority and language majority students have the potential to guide instructional practices to favor the academic and linguistic development of the ENSs at the expense of SNS students. (p. 2)
Despite the school’s commitment to a philosophy that espouses language learning in a two-way immersion program, the aforementioned concerns reveal that new teachers and veteran teachers alike need more understanding of the program. As one teacher stated about new teachers, “they have to believe in the program” (Howard & Loeb, 1998, p. 4).
Another issue that arose in the discussion was that of meeting the learning expectations of a split-grade level, in this case second and third graders. This challenge is compounded when the teacher is new to the profession. Even though the teacher was receiving extended support from an excellent mentor, the challenge was compounded by his newness to the profession. In general, a split-grade level should be avoided at all costs, and more so, when it involves a new teacher. Although the “team-teaching” was thought to alleviate some of the pressure, the new teacher found that it counteracted his ability to know his students in authentic ways and thus, prevented him from establishing solid interpersonal relationships. As Cummins (1996) noted, “Human relationships are at the heart of schooling” (p. 1). The teacher expressed that he would rather deal with the complexity of meeting the academic needs of both grades, rather than “give up some students” to a team-teaching schedule.
Conclusion
Given the fact that this study was based on an open dialogue between five teachers, some of the findings echoed the results found in other studies on two-way immersion programs, while other points arose that are specific to the particular program. Benefits in the form of support included: a) time for grade-level planning, b) school personnel as mentors, and c) access to professional development. Within this supportive environment, challenges noted in other studies were not found due to the working relationships between teachers and the administrators’ attentiveness to program implementation and dedication to parents. Challenges included: a) English proficiency of Spanish native speakers, b) programmatic issues associated with language development and academic gains, and c) exclusive usage of the heritage language (Spanish) as outlined by the program. Unlike the benefits, challenges in this study paralleled those found in other studies. Together, the challenges call for the teachers’ deeper understanding of the theories and concepts in second language acquisition, which are foundational to two-way immersion programs.
Also within the challenges is the concern that SNSs are not receiving sufficient time with their English speaking counterparts, as a way of gaining exposure to the language being learning. This in turn caused teachers to consider that SNSs might not be prepared for the academic hurdles ahead of them. This awareness might stem from the fact that four of the five teachers had to acquire English as a second language, while the fifth teacher came from a bilingual home. Consequently, the teachers were able to empathize with their English learners and seemed to take on the role of “advocates” for them.
While information gleaned from research can be used to enhance educational programs, the value of bringing teachers together in an open dialogue cannot be over emphasized. Allowing teachers full expression of their profession, especially at the start of their careers, can serve as a supportive measure that shows teachers that they are not alone in their fears and doubts. The odds of the profession are such that new teachers often find themselves in the position of being “the new kid on the block”, and therefore, isolated from interpersonal relationships that might help a teacher further embrace the profession. Thus, this study underscores the value of teachers telling their stories and listening to their colleagues’ stories.
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