Gwinnett County’s diverse public school system is among a growing number of Georgia school districts addressing the influx of foreign-born immigrant students who know little or no English and who are lagging academically.
Jonathan Patterson, Gwinnett’s associate superintendent of curriculum and instructional support, says these students will begin work in small groups at four high schools, getting additional lessons in vocabulary, reading comprehension and math. Although they will attend four high schools in the sprawling metro county, they are students classified in what is called the “International Transition Center.” Gwinnett administrators will learn what works for these students, he says, through “experimentation.” The Washington-based ProEnglish organization, however, warns that experimenting with bilingual and multilingual programs won’t help immigrant kids.
ProEnglish Chairwoman Dr. Rosalie P. Porter says “English immersion programs give these children the opportunity to learn English quickly, move into mainstream classrooms and be successful in the larger community. Bilingual and multilingual education has proven to be a failure in California and other states, and numerous studies show that structured English immersion is the best approach to teach immigrant children English.” (Most Georgia public school employ English immersion.)
Data reveals the graduation rate for the 2014-15 school year was just 56 percent for students categorized as “Limited English Proficient.” In Gwinnett, it was nearly 49 percent. The statewide graduation rate for all public school students that year was just below 79 percent. Georgia’s graduation rate is typically below the national average.
Georgia is also adding more dual-language immersion programs that teach students all subjects in two languages. Those programs have grown from 14 in 2014-15 to 37 statewide this fall. Yet Porter issues a warning: “Bilingual education is the practice of teaching non-English speaking children in their native language while they are learning English. The idea is to teach school subjects in the child’s first language. Yet decades of research show this well-intentioned approach is an utter failure.” For more information: www.proenglish.org
