全球智库信息集成服务系统

Key Findings

1. Portland Public Schools (PPS) students randomly assigned to dual-language immersion programs outperformed their peers on state reading tests by 13 percent of a standard deviation in grade 5 and by 22 percent of a standard deviation in grade 8.
2. Immersion-assigned students did not show statistically significant benefits or deficits in terms of mathematics or science performance.
3. There were no clear differences in the effects of dual-language immersion by students' native language.
4. English learners assigned to dual-language immersion were more likely than their peers to be classified as English proficient by grade 6. This effect was mostly attributed to English learner students whose native language matched the classroom partner language.

Dual-language immersion (DLI) programs — which provide both native English speakers and English learners with general academic instruction in two languages from kindergarten onward — are proliferating rapidly in the United States. Although precise counts of DLI programs are not available, recent estimates place the figure between 1,000 and 2,000 nationally, with substantial recent growth in Utah, North Carolina, Delaware, and New York City.