Bilingual education has been an educational option in many countries for over 50 years but it remains controversial, especially in terms of its appropriateness for all children. The present review examines research evaluating the outcomes of bilingual education for language and literacy levels, academic achievement, and suitability for children…

The appropriateness of early childhood foreign language education is occasionally a debatable subject among parents, educators, public education administrators and policymakers. A large body of research has been done on this subject and conclusions sometimes appear contradictory. This article first reviews briefly the importance of learning a…

This review of the extant research literature focuses on research about content-based language instruction (CBI) programmes in K-12 foreign/second language education in the USA. The review emphasises studies on one-way language immersion (OWI) and two-way language immersion (TWI) programmes, which are school-based and subject matter-driven. OWI…

Examines the history of language issues and educational policies in the Marshall Islands. Discussion focuses on the administrative, financial, curricular, and staffing features of current language and educational programs, and an immersion model of bilingual Marshallese-English education is proposed to counteract some of the negative outcomes of…

The evaluation of bilingual education programs is complicated by such factors as the diversity of evaluation methodologies and program goals and the reliability of instruments for minority language students. Three bilingual program evaluations in foreign countries are described in terms of their different contexts and approaches in order to raise…

Critiques two theories dominating bilingual education. The facilitation hypothesis predicts long-term advantage for bilingual education over all-English instruction. The time-on-task hypothesis predicts that all-English instruction is superior to bilingual education in teaching English. Argues that bilingual programs may facilitate English…

A study of classroom interaction in Ontario's French immersion programs is summarized. Transcripts of classroom interactions were analyzed for teaching practices that tend to decrease or encourage student speech. Results suggest that the use of language in immersion classrooms is not significantly different from language use in regular classes. It…

As an instructional practice in second and foreign language education, content-based instruction is not a fully revolutionary paradigm, but a spin-off approach which derives from the evolution of Communicative Language Teaching. Sharing with CLT the same fundamental principles, CBI bases its idiosyncrasy on promoting the use of subject matter for…

Critiques the Ramirez et al. study of bilingual programs for its serious research flaws. Calls into question the findings of no consistent difference in the achievement of language-minority children regardless of how much Spanish or English is used in instruction. Proposes a reanalysis of the Ramirez data. (KS)

Following a brief history of bilingual education (BE), the author makes a meta-evaluation assessment of BE research, arguing that the findings are not so contradictory if one examines the theoretical frameworks chosen by the researchers. The equilibrium and conflict paradigms and the structural-functional theory are considered. (SJL)

Based on a literacy interdependence theory, uses findings from the Ramirez et al. study on programs for Spanish-speaking, limited-English-proficient students to refute theories opposing bilingual education. Expresses concern that all three program types in the Ramirez study reflect transmission models of pedagogy in which students have little…

Reviews the reported findings and implications of the Ramirez et al. study. Examines the validity of the operational definitions of the program types and the degree of implementation of the models. Discusses the seven major findings of the study, and some possibly misleading conclusions. (KS)

Data from three well-documented American Indian language immersion programs (teaching Navajo, Hawaiian, and Keres) and from an ongoing large comparative study of language shift/retention in six Indian school-community sites suggest that immersion schooling can serve the dual roles of promoting students' school success and revitalizing endangered…

Two-way, or bilingual, immersion education, a major innovation in the integration of language and content instruction, is intended to improve the quality of language education for language minority and language majority students in the United States. The emerging educational practice responds to the increasing proportions of language minority…

Describes dual language instruction models, and presents a paradigm for examining congruence among theoretical models, teacher beliefs, and actual classroom practices to determine program effectiveness. Examples illustrate implementation pitfalls. Analysis of Proposition 227 finds it to be a decontextualized procedural model; it has an incoherent…