This qualitative study, framed by a language socialisation perspective, explores parental language attitudes of families living in Paraguay, where Spanish and the indigenous language of Guarani coexist in what many sociolinguistics have labelled a diglossic society. During home visits, 27 parents or primary caregivers participated in individual…

This article contains a description of the Dual Proficiency (DP) program in an urban elementary school located in the heart of a large south-western city, as well as the teachers who designed and now implement DP, and the immigrant community participating by choice in DP. We write from a context where, ironically, the number of English language…

Research has identified a host of factors that likely contribute to the disparity in achievement, negating the possibility that a one-size-fits-all answer exists. Therefore, the initiatives highlighted in this issue of "Early Developments" address a variety of approaches. This issue of "Early Developments" includes the following articles: (1) The…

In this article, we take up the call for more multilayered and ethnographic approaches to language policy and planning (LPP) research by sharing two examples of how ethnography can illuminate local interpretation and implementation. We offer ethnographic data collected in two very different institutions--the School District of Philadelphia and the…

This study explored ways to increase authentic participation of Mexican American parents in the education of their children. It focused on direct dialogue between Spanish-speaking parents and English-speaking school personnel and how dialogue facilitated group development. The design of the study included phenomenological inquiry and action…

In the small border town focalized in this article, just north of the Mexican and US border stations, daily businesses, including city council meetings, retail, and public services, are conducted in Spanish. Only the schools insist upon English, this insistence backed by state proposition 200, funded primarily by Ron Unz, but passed by Arizona…

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Brief Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-II (ARSMA-II) using two samples of Mexican American children: 292 middle school students from a mid-sized culturally diverse southwestern city, and 116 third- through fifth-graders in culturally homogeneous rural elementary schools.…

The research team identified and tested six criteria that operationalize cultural responsiveness as a factor for evaluating school district Websites: cultural utility, representation of diverse cultures of target populations in graphics, percentage of website topics translated into Spanish, the content of topics translated, the level on which…

This study compared clinic-anxious Hispanic/Latino and European American youths (ages 6 to 17 years old) along sociodemographic and clinical variables. Groups were relatively similar, although significant differences emerged as a function of ethnocultural and language choice (English, Spanish) used during the assessment. Within the English…

The purpose of this working paper is to review current literature on literacy programs for parents of English language learners (ELLs). The paper includes a summary of five literacy programs for ELL parents throughout the United States of America. Four of these were system-wide interventions affecting more than one school or classroom. Each…

A cooperative project between middle-schoolers and elementary students makes clever use of a flight theme, and, as the author reports in this article, students' learning soars. In this project, the pilots are enthusiastic members of Ms. Herring's eighth-grade English class at Hampton Roads Academy (HRA) in Newport News, Virginia. The copilots are…

Purpose: Verb processing in early sequential Spanish-English bilinguals was investigated. Primary study goals were to identify potential patterns of development in relative levels of verb processing efficiency in a 1st (L1) and 2nd (L2) language and to investigate factors influencing cognitive control of the dual-language system in developing…

The Foreign Language Standards of Learning identify essential content, processes, and skills for each level of language learning in Virginia's secondary schools. Included are specific standards for levels I through IV of French, German, Spanish, and Latin, as well as generic standards adaptable for levels I through IV of other modern languages,…

(Purpose) The purpose of this study was to examine the short-term effects of a two-way bilingual education program on the literacy development of students from kindergarten to 12th grade. (Methodology) The community and groups of children were compared in terms of their academic achievement in English language arts. The Urban Landscapes included…

The purpose of the NMSBA technical report is to provide users and other interested parties with a general overview of and technical characteristics of the 2007 NMSBA. The 2007 technical report contains the following information: (1) Test development; (2) Scoring procedures; (3) Summary of student performance; (4) Statistical analyses of item and…