Date of Award
2003
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Programs for Higher Education
Advisor
Sidi Lakhdar
Committee Member
Pete Stone
Committee Member
Barbara Packer
Keywords
2-way bilingual immersion program, adapted curriculum, bilingual education, curriculum revision, elementary education, English, English curriculum, English instruction, English materials, English medium of instruction, English reading comprehension, English as a secondary language, faculty, first-grade students, immersion instructional model, instructional strategies, limited English proficiency, Lycée Franco-American, parent communication, parents, reading instruction, second-grade students, student achievement, student retention, teacher training, teachers, third-grade students, two-way immersion, withdrawal rate
Abstract
During the 2000-2001 school year, 30.76% of the 1st- through 3rd-grade students performed below grade level in the English reading comprehension test. Consequently, 35% of the students withdrew from Lycée Franco-American during the 2000-2001 school year because their parents feared that their children would not perform at or above grade level in English.
This writer conducted an initial analysis of the study in May of 2001, which revealed the following causes for the low performance in English reading comprehension: (a) teachers’ lack of training and experience in 2-way bilingual immersion programs, (b) the English program was too cumbersome and did not meet the needs of students in a 2-way bilingual immersion program, (c) the English curriculum was not adapted to the needs of students of limited-English proficiency, (e) the English medium of instruction in other subjects was limited to 16.66%, and (f) parents were not informed about the characteristics of a 2-way bilingual immersion program.
To address the problem, this writer and members of the faculty revised and adapted the 1st- through 3rd-grade English curriculum to the Lycée Franco-American's 2-way bilingual immersion program. Instructional strategies, methods were designed to teach the curriculum effectively. Teachers utilized English materials and resources used in successful 2-way bilingual immersion programs. The English teachers attended training on the revised English curriculum, instructional strategies to teach the curriculum effectively and on the English materials available to execute the new program. The total percentage of English instruction hours for 1st- through 3rd-grade students was increased from 16.66% to 20.00%.