Introduction
The present project is the result of a two-year Participatory Action Research (PAR) study designed to ameliorate transitions practices in a Southern California Two-Way Immersion (TWI) or Dual Immersion (DI) language program. The intervention unfolds into three consecutive cycles implemented by the Participatory Action Research team in a middle school. The study started with an analysis of he bilingual education background in California.
Both the names of the school and the district have been fictionalized to protect their privacy and preserve anonymity. Follow this link to watch a video presentation of the project.
Problem
The students from a Spanish Two-Way Immersion program at Mountain View* district transition from elementary to middle school after 6, 7, or 8 years of Dual Immersion instruction in Spanish and English. Generally, many students first face an achievement gap that occurs when students move from elementary to middle school (Jerald, 2007; West & Schwerdt, 2012). In addition to this gap, the students in a TWI also experience the challenge of increased academic demands of instruction in a second language. For some students, the challenge boosts their learning process. However, according to GlenValley* middle school records from 2012, for those students who have an academically at-risk profile, the challenge becomes a heavy burden that results in some individuals leaving the program before completion or failing to promote to the next level. This raised my personal interest in the suitability of immersion for all students.
This study focused on four groups of academically at-risk students that Genesee (1992) identified in DI programs: 1) ability (below average-Special Education-SpEd), 2) language (low/poor native ability), 3) Low Socio Economic Status (low SES) , and 4) ethnic minority (low group status or language minority or English Learners-EL). According to the school records, all SpEd students with an IEP required schedule adjustments during the program, resulting in most of them leaving the program before completion. Similarly, long-term EL students in the programs struggle in dual immersion classes. In addition, low SES students seem to promote at a lower level than other students in the program. Since there is a lack of research supporting the suitability of TWI at higher levels for academically at-risk students, we do not know the best transition practices for these students coming from an elementary Dual Immersion Program in Spanish into the same program in a southern California middle school. While the same applies to all groups at risk, there is minimal literature studying transitions for this particular group in Dual Immersion programs. Therefore, there exists the need to study such transition practices from elementary to middle school at GlenValley* middle school in order to help students with academically at-risk profiles to be more successful in Spanish Dual Immersion Programs.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the best transition practices for academically at-risk students coming from a Spanish Two-Way Immersion Program (TWI) into the same program in a southern California middle school.
Overarching Inquiry Question
How can we enhance the transition practices to improve the success for academically at-risk students coming from elementary into a middle school Spanish dual immersion program?
During Cycle One, the research questions focused on investigating the groups academically at-risk in dual immersion programs. As well, the surveys asked students and teachers regarding vertical articulation and transition practices that are currently taking place at GlenValley* district.
Cycle one informed the next cycle with key learnings that may be summarized as follows; to improve transitions connecting all spheres of influence, including parents and community
In this Cycle Two, the research questions have focused in reaching dual immersion parents and community to improve transition practices. Parents have been surveyed and encouraged to participate in two workshops on educational technology and study techniques. Scholars on the field of bilingual education have been interviewed and surveyed to ameliorate transitions practices.
Cycle Three revolved around the idea of implementing teacher practices that would help improve the achievement for struggling students in DuaI Immersion (DI) programs. In this effort, data-informed decisions have been made to identify the struggling students and to design the intervention. The underlying idea was that identifying and providing specific intervention for these students would help in the process of transitioning into middle school (Cauley & Jovanovich,2010; Fuchs, Fuchs, & Compton, 2012), and eventually in their achievement. Cycle Three, technology has had a double role: in a first step, it has been used as a data collection instrument at the beginning and at the end of the intervention; in a second step, as a tool to implement the intervention. After identifying the students academically at risk, the data-driven instruction has been mediated by an adaptive technological tool called i-Ready. According to the ideas developed above, a workshop consisting of online mini-lessons in math and reading has been delineated and implemented.
(*) Fictional names.
The Project
Two-Way Immersion (TWI) programs:
improving transition practices with academically at-risk students.
