KATY ISD HYPE ON DUAL IMMERSION:
This is a press release sent to The Rancher by KISD. The Rancher is kind enough to print the District's press release as "news," but we all know what it is.
Katy ISD parent group seeking support to expand dual-language programs
Posted: Tuesday, April 8, 2014 4:59 pm | Updated: 5:15 pm, Tue Apr 8, 2014.
By Submitted
Proponents of dual-language education in the Katy Independent School District are in discussions with school board members, board candidates and administration about continuing this effective form of language acquisition into secondary schools.
“The first group of students in KISDs Two-Way Immersion Program in elementary school are set to graduate fifth grade,” said Nancy C. Salazar, president of the Katy Two-Way Immersion Support Team (TWIst). “The parent community, which sees the incredible benefits of this program, is excited for them to continue this success into junior high. So we have been in conversations with our district’s administration, school board and school board candidates about expansion into secondary.”
Although the KISD Board did not make clear at its January meeting that it wouldn't consider continuing Two-Way Immersion (TWI) into secondary at a later date, members' concerns had halted efforts then under way. Their main reservations focused on a tentative budget, the misconception that the program would be inaccessible to those not participating from the beginning and a tight timeframe for implementation.
Katy TWIst members and supporters responded at following Board meetings by presenting additional information to provide a clearer picture of how the program can, indeed, be implemented — and even in time for the next school year.
“We know that our school district strives to be at the forefront of excellence in education by providing ‘unparalleled learning experiences' for our students,” Salazar said. “This program — Two-Way Immersion — has proven to be one of them.”
TWI program benefits
TWI is a successful one at that. The program’s goals are those defined by the Washington, D.C.-based national Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) for a quality dual language program. The findings of an independent study commissioned by KISD demonstrate the success of the district’s TWI program in meeting these goals.
According to KISD's Office of Other Languages, elementary students in TWI who are taught in English and Spanish at two of the district's elementary schools — Memorial Parkway and Fielder — are performing at or above the level of their peers not in the program. In many cases, they are also outperforming non-participants on the state mandated STAAR reading assessment and on classroom grades in language, math, reading, science/health and social studies — all this while strengthening their cognitive abilities and establishing a foundation to becoming bilingual, bi-literate and bicultural, assets proven to be highly sought-after in today's global marketplace.
“In an interconnected, interdependent global economy, we must prepare our children for a future in which their social and economic success will depend on their ability to understand diverse perspectives and communicate with people from other cultures and language groups,” stated Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education, and Libia Gil, Assistant Deputy Secretary, Office of English Language Acquisition in a recent Los Angeles Daily News article. “This isn't a matter of getting ahead — it's a matter of catching up.”
According to CAL, TWI programs are becoming an increasingly attractive option for schools and districts that are looking for ways to strengthen and develop the language resources of all of their students. CAL, whose mission is to improve communication through better understanding of language and culture, serves — among others — school districts in need of curriculum development, professional development and assessments.
CAL states that well-implemented TWI programs are among the most impressive forms of education available in the United States. Students who participate in these programs gain grade level academic ability, well-developed language and literacy skills in two languages, and cross-cultural competence.
The need for TWI in secondary
In the recent past, KISD's mission to provide its students unparalleled learning experiences has prompted the district to take urgent measures to implement programs quickly if a need is deemed vital. Case in point is its commitment to the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) program just made in December; reports indicate program implementation this fall in a soon-to-be-completed facility. STEM is one of Texas' new House Bill (HB) 5's program “Endorsements” or pathways to postsecondary readiness.
Just as this forward-thinking request from the community was heeded for STEM, another opportunity by way of TWI in secondary is presenting itself to KISD in light of another of HB 5’s “Endorsements” — “Arts and Humanities” — which cites “Languages Other Than English” as one of three options. Beyond this is the opportunity for students to graduate with a “Distinguished Level of Achievement” designation which requires at least one endorsement. Additionally students can earn “Performance Acknowledgements” in eight areas, one of which is “Bilingualism and Biliteracy.”
To this end, students in multilingual programs in elementary and middle schools will have a head start. These students will be in a position to be able to surpass these requirements earlier than their peers, opening up the opportunity to undertake multiple endorsements. A potential KISD program could offer 8th graders the opportunity to earn high school credit, and seniors could complete high school with a college minor in Spanish.
For dual-language program students going into 6th grade this next school year, very little needs to be done to keep them in the program. The secondary curriculum already exists in KISD. Teachers are already hired. Counselors are also in place to help with last-minute schedule changes. It is mostly a matter of the district giving its approval and determining who can oversee this to implementation.
“Continuation of dual-language studies into secondary is critical,” said Julie Sugarman, senior research associate at CAL. “Just as one wouldn’t stop educating students in math, science or social studies at 5th grade, nor should dual-language instruction be truncated in elementary. Just as English-speaking students continue taking English language arts into middle school, high school and college to learn more about the language, so it is as important to do so in the TWI partner language.”
Kristin Rodriguez, who has a daughter at Memorial Parkway and formerly served a Minneapolis suburban school district as the English Learners Program Coordinator and Dual Language Immersion Program Coordinator, couldn’t agree more. “Continuation of programming into secondary is crucial in not only maintaining the skills TWI students have gained at the elementary level, but also in promoting continued development of students’ communication and academic proficiency in both languages,” she said.
Program appeal for parent and business communities
Before her family’s recent move to Katy, Rodriguez intentionally sought out neighborhoods zoned to the schools participating in the program in her relocation search. She said she encountered “bidding wars” on houses she was considering due to the popularity of the highly sought-after, but little-known program.
[Actually many homes in all areas are receiving numerous bids, and that fact has nothing at all to do with TWI.]“It’s unbelievable the demand for homes in Greenway Village since TWI started at Fielder,” said Chris Hiller, 14-year real estate consultant with Keller Williams Premier.
Greenway Village is one of the neighborhoods that is zoned to Fielder. “It’s been off the charts, the growth and demand. Homes don’t stay on the market any time at all. There’s only one problem for me in that as a realtor — the lack of inventory. And so I’m always asking everyone, ‘Do you know anyone who’d like to sell their home there right now?”
There is far more community interest in the program than opportunity. Students whose siblings are in the program are eligible to be admitted to the program, followed by students in households zoned to the two schools than by students picked in a lottery.
Only 44 students per school are admitted in each year's kindergarten class.
Informational sessions for those interested in the program for the upcoming school year were full, with approximately 150 families in attendance for the 88 available spots. That's with hardly any publicity.
Yet, unlike so many other school districts, KISD is in a fortunate position to be a growing district with the ability to improve and add programs to meet the needs of a growing and changing community.
“This is the type of education that readies students from all backgrounds to become competitive in a global marketplace,” said Lee Glaesemann, parent of a Fielder student who works in the Houston Independent School District as a multilingual specialist. “It can help a potentially at-risk population capitalize on its unique capabilities to go from ‘at-risk’ to ‘AP(advanced placement)-ready' while, at the same time, it makes the high achievers reach even higher.”
This is the type of program that also appeals to Katy's diverse workforce, which is rich in multi-lingual backgrounds, thanks to the Energy Corridor, the west campus of the Texas Medical Center and other area employers.
“Houston has become a true hub for international commerce, and this is only going to increase the demand for bilingual employees,” said Annette Monks, CTS, president of Carlton Staffing, which has provided staffing solutions for companies in Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth for the past 30 years. “More and more of our clients are wanting to have people on staff who are bilingual. With the demand only increasing for employees who can communicate in multiple languages, this will make a difference in whether or not those children (in dual-language programs) will be positioned well to gain employment and to be promoted to management positions in the future.”
It is the support of this business community that is backing Katy TWIst with funding due to the tremendous need and appeal of the program. Katy TWIst is currently partnering with a large corporation that has earmarked substantial funding through a multi-year commitment in order to help the program get established in junior high this upcoming school year.
Yet, funding needs for the program are minimal compared to other programs that require much more in terms of staffing, facilities and materials. Teachers in the program are typically paid stipends when providing instruction in more than one language.
Additional costs required for TWI in secondary include educational materials, non-target assessments and a salary for a facilitator who serves as a liaison between the district and the TWI schools' administration, staff and families.
“That's so little, providing such an incredible value for an invaluable, world-class educational opportunity for our students,” stated Salazar. “We are looking forward to the myriad of post-secondary and career opportunities TWI will bring our students.”
As stated by Duncan and Gil, “Today, a world-class education means learning to speak, read and write in languages in addition to English. We challenge our schools and communities to invest in our future leaders with biliteracy and multiliteracy skills.
“As the late Nelson Mandela said, ‘If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart. ‘To provide our children an excellent education, and to keep America competitive economically, we would do well to heed his words.”
[May I also add that everything said here with regard to the TWI program also is exactly the same thing that can be said for a TWI program just for Hispanics! Hispanics will learn better and faster if they are mainstreamed into regular elementary school classes where English is the only language spoken. They will be fluent and conversant and able to read (if taught using phonics) by the end of the first grade. How is that for a successful program? And isn't that what is supposed to be happening in an American school?]