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Clicking on this icon should take you to a video that explains a little more about the GCPS elementary school dual language immersion program. If you are unable to accessthe video by clicking on the icon, use this link:

http://publish.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/gcps/home/gcpstv/videos/news/focus/215674586

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Assuming a family can make a K-12 commitment to the program, a student can reachthis destination of being bilingual, biliterate, and multicultural.

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GCPS has been planning for dual language immersion for over a decade. Programs in other states and school systems were visited and consulted when creating our program. GCPS leaders designed a model that we feel is best suited for our community.

In order to best support the program and all the stakeholders involved, we have launched different cohorts as depicted on this slide. Here, you will see in bold the DLI elementary schools as well as the respective middle and high schools where the program continues. In parentheses ( ) following the name of each school, we note the year that the first cohort of students entered (or will enter) that school.

Each year, we advance by one grade level and also add a new Kindergarten cohort. For the 2020-21 school year, Kindergarten DLI will be offered at 9 different elementaryschools in three languages. We will also have DLI continuation beginning with 6th grade at 3 different middle schools.

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Dual Language Immersion has several goals as listed in this slide. We believe that all of these objectives have the potential to add value to a student and the opportunities thatawait him/her once they leave GCPS.

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Research supporting Dual Language Immersion is vast. For further reading, we recommend the extensive work of Dr. Roy Lyster, Dr. Myriam Met, Dr. Wayne P. Thomas, and Dr. Virginia P. Collier. In addition, please see below for a description of other benefits of Dual Language Immersion with recommendations of supporting research articles.ENHANCED COGNITIVE SKILLSImmersion students, due to the demands, both conscious and unconscious, of processing two languages, typically develop greater cognitive flexibility and demonstrate increased attention control, better memory, and superior problem-solving skills while, at the same time, experiencing enhanced understanding of their primary language.

Bamford, K., & Mizokawa, D. (1991). Additive-bilingual immersion education: Cognitive and language development. Language Learning, 41(3), 413-429.Maillat, D., & Serra, C. (2009). Immersion education and cognitive strategies: Can the obstacle be the advantage in a multilingual society? International Journal of Multilingualism, 6(2), 186-206.

IMPROVED ACADEMIC PERFORMANCEImmersion students perform as well as or better than non-immersion students on

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standardized tests of English and mathematics, even when these tests are administered in English.

Robinson, D. W. (1998). The cognitive, academic, and attitudinal benefits of early language learning. In M. Met (Ed.), Critical issues in early second language learning: Building for our children’s future (pp. 37-56). Scottt Foresman –Addison Wesley.Swain, M., & Lapkin, S. (1982). Academic outcomes of immersion education. In M. Swain & Lapkin, Evaluating bilingual education: A Canadian case study (pp. 56-69). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.

NARROWING OF THE ACHIEVEMENT GAPPartially as a result of the cognitive demands placed on students who learn content in two different languages, no other intervention model holds greater promise to narrow the achievement gap more effectively between high- and low performing populations than dual language immersion.

Collier, W. P., & Collier, V.P. (2012). Dual language education for a transformed world (pp. 44-46). Albuquerque: Fuente Press.Haj-Broussard, M.G. (2003). Language, identity and achievement gap: Comparing experiences of African-American students in a French immersion and a regular education context (Doctoral Dissertation). Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College.

HIGHER SECOND LANGUAGE PROFICIENCYImmersion students achieve higher levels of second language proficiency than through any other language development model. By the end of their K-12 program, students possess bilingualism and bi-literacy.

Padilla, A., et. al., (2013). A Mandarin/English two-way immersion program: language proficiency and academic achievement. Foreign Language Annals 46(4), pp. 661-679.

ENHANCED GLOBAL CITIZENSHIPImmersion students are better prepared to collaborate and communicate across linguistic and political boundaries to solve problems as a result of the demands of their learning environments, and they evidence more positive attitudes toward other peoples and other cultures.

Howard, E. (2002). Two-way Immersion: A Key to Global Awareness. Educational Leadership, 60(2), 62-64.Stewart, V. (2012). A world-class education. Alexandria: ASCD, pp. 136-141.

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GCPS has adopted Dual Language Immersion (DLI) as the name used for thiseducational option available to families. However, this slide shows additional termsthat often reference a similar method of providing students with instruction in languageand also content (subjects).The language goals are full bilingualism and biliteracy in English and a partner (sometimes called ‘’target’’) language.

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GCPS has both one way and two way immersion programs. The program objectives as described earlier in slide #5 remain the same for both. However, the name used to describe them is determined by what the native language is for the enrolled students.

A dual language program in which both native English speakers and native speakers of the target language are enrolled, with neither group making up more than two-thirds of the student population, is called a two way immersion program. In this case, students can help support their teachers and each other as they grow their language skills and proficiency in the new language.

A one way immersion program describes a setting in which students are primarily native English speakers learning the target language. With the help and support of their teachers, they build skills and proficiency in the target language. We also have a variance of this model that is called a developmental bilingual model. In this situation, students are primarily native speakers of the target language. With the help and support of their teachers, they can leverage their target language skills to build proficiency in English.

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In our elementary school model, students study language arts and other academic content in both languages over the course of the program. In the GCPS elementary school model, the target language is used for 50% of a day’s instructional time at all grades K-5. In GCPS, our Academic Knowledge and Skills (AKS) is the curriculum that we use in DLI. The AKS in elementary school is the same for DLI students as it is for students who are not enrolled in the program.

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Research supporting Dual Language Immersion is vast. For further reading, we recommend the extensive work of Dr. Roy Lyster, Dr. Myriam Met, Dr. Wayne P. Thomas, and Dr. Virginia P. Collier. In addition, please see below for a description of other benefits of Dual Language Immersion with recommendations of supporting research articles.ENHANCED COGNITIVE SKILLSImmersion students, due to the demands, both conscious and unconscious, of processing two languages, typically develop greater cognitive flexibility and demonstrate increased attention control, better memory, and superior problem-solving skills while, at the same time, experiencing enhanced understanding of their primary language.

Bamford, K., & Mizokawa, D. (1991). Additive-bilingual immersion education: Cognitive and language development. Language Learning, 41(3), 413-429.Maillat, D., & Serra, C. (2009). Immersion education and cognitive strategies: Can the obstacle be the advantage in a multilingual society? International Journal of Multilingualism, 6(2), 186-206.

IMPROVED ACADEMIC PERFORMANCEImmersion students perform as well as or better than non-immersion students on

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standardized tests of English and mathematics, even when these tests are administered in English.

Robinson, D. W. (1998). The cognitive, academic, and attitudinal benefits of early language learning. In M. Met (Ed.), Critical issues in early second language learning: Building for our children’s future (pp. 37-56). Scottt Foresman –Addison Wesley.Swain, M., & Lapkin, S. (1982). Academic outcomes of immersion education. In M. Swain & Lapkin, Evaluating bilingual education: A Canadian case study (pp. 56-69). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.

NARROWING OF THE ACHIEVEMENT GAPPartially as a result of the cognitive demands placed on students who learn content in two different languages, no other intervention model holds greater promise to narrow the achievement gap more effectively between high- and low performing populations than dual language immersion.

Collier, W. P., & Collier, V.P. (2012). Dual language education for a transformed world (pp. 44-46). Albuquerque: Fuente Press.Haj-Broussard, M.G. (2003). Language, identity and achievement gap: Comparing experiences of African-American students in a French immersion and a regular education context (Doctoral Dissertation). Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College.

HIGHER SECOND LANGUAGE PROFICIENCYImmersion students achieve higher levels of second language proficiency than through any other language development model. By the end of their K-12 program, students possess bilingualism and bi-literacy.

Padilla, A., et. al., (2013). A Mandarin/English two-way immersion program: language proficiency and academic achievement. Foreign Language Annals 46(4), pp. 661-679.

ENHANCED GLOBAL CITIZENSHIPImmersion students are better prepared to collaborate and communicate across linguistic and political boundaries to solve problems as a result of the demands of their learning environments, and they evidence more positive attitudes toward other peoples and other cultures.

Howard, E. (2002). Two-way Immersion: A Key to Global Awareness. Educational Leadership, 60(2), 62-64.Stewart, V. (2012). A world-class education. Alexandria: ASCD, pp. 136-141.

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The next several slides help explain how the DLI elementary program model is deliveredin GCPS.

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GCPS uses a two teacher 50/50 model of instruction in the elementary school grades. Also known as a side by side model, this provides a way of distributing languages for instruction in which students are instructed in one room by an English teacher and in another room by the target language teacher. Students move between the two classrooms for instruction each day spending approximately 50% of the instructional day in each room/language. Teachers teach exclusively in one language to two groups of students each day. We use a ‘rollercoaster’ schedule and alternate on a weekly basis whether English or the target language is the language of instruction for the morning or afternoon.

To illustrate this, we have created this slide. Imagine that it is the first week of school. Your child, and likely 24-27 additional classmates, would begin his/her day with Mrs. Adams who instructs exclusively in the target language (French, Korean, or Spanish). For the first half of the day this week, your child would have Mrs. Adams in the morningand be learning math and science AKS in the target language along with target langaugeliteracy skills. Meanwhile, next door or across the hall, another group of 25-28 students would be with Mrs. Thomas. Mrs. Thomas would be exclusively teaching in English and primarily be focusing on English Language Arts and Social Studies AKS (curriculum) standards. Midway through the day (depicted as after lunch in this visual),

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the groups would swap. In this example, your child would, then, have Mrs. Thomas in the afternoon and receive the same instruction that she delivered to her morninggroup.

Next week, we would implement the rollercoaster schedule. That week, your childwould BEGIN the morning with Mrs. Thomas (English) and end the day with Mrs. Adams (target language). We use this scheduling system to help maximize students’ prime learning times.

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This represents an additional visual highlighting the distribution of content and language in our two teacher side by side model just described. What is also depictedhere is the content area reinforcement that the English teacher helps support duringhis/her portion of the day. In order to ensure that students have knowledge of academic language and concepts in both the target and English languages, the DLI team of teachers has to continuously and intentionally plan and collaborate. DLI teachersalso create what we call ‘’mirror classrooms.’’ By having similar routines and procedures for doing things (examples include things like where/how to turn in assignments, where/how to find language supports in the classroom, and where/how to line up for lunch and recess), students have two uniquely different teachers eachday---yet one unifying set of operating processes.

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DLI is different than a traditional classroom in one key area---target langauge literacyinstruction. This visual shows how we address this critical component.

Read alouds (just above what students are able to understand) allow teachers to workon listening comprehension, building content area knowledge, oral languageproduction (using frequent oppotunities for students to turn and talk with a languagepartner), and explicit teaching of word work.

Shared reading (just above reading level of the class average) allow teachers to teachreading strategies, decoding strategies, and comprehension strategies

Word Work is explicit instruction on spelling/grammar, content area vocabulary, conjugations, and sight words.

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This is yet another visual representation of the side by side, 50/50 two teacher model we use in the GCPS elementary DLI program.

This also helps highlight how the intentional collaboration and planning of the DLI teaching team results in opportunities to help bridge learning across languages.

The English teacher supports math instruction with math word problems and the target language teacher supports literacy with read aloud and phonics in the target language. This helps create POSITIVE transfer between languages. The English teacher can also support science through a nonfiction read aloud while the target language teacher supports social studies with a read aloud on the topic.

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We know that focusing on the native language first helps students acquire a second language. GCPS has designed a literacy approach so that students learn to read and write first in their native language starting in kindergarten. For the first two years of their dual language immersion experience, kindergarteners and first graders focus on developing their oral language proficiency in the target language. It’s not until second grade that these students begin learning to read and write on a daily basis in the target language.

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We use the language proficiency benchmarks from the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) to identify what a student is able to do withtheir language skills. Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced are terms ACTFL uses to describe levels of language proficiency.

In the first several months of the program, students are in the silent period. The silent period is very similar to where an 8-18 month old baby is in terms of language. They understand a lot of what you are saying, but they know very few words. When a child finally says his or her first words, teachers are so excited! We try to move them from one or two words to complete sentences as quickly as we can.

In the novice period, a typical student understands and responds to most simple questions first with one and two word answers. Eventually, in this novice level, a student understands and uses appropriate vocabulary and uses simple phrases and short sentences.

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Students stay for the longest at the intermediate fluency stage. That’s because students acquire greater and greater proficiency in the language in specific domains: science, social studies, literacy, and math. At an intermediate level, a student should be able to follow almost all teacher input including some age appropriate specialist and technical references that are presented in context. Students at this stage typically show confidence in conversational exchanges. They can ask and answer simple questions on familiar topics and handle a simple situation or transaction.

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Students at an advanced level can narrate and describe in past, present, and future time/aspect as well as navigate a complicated situation or transaction.

A LONG TERM COMMITMENT (K-12) is needed for students to achieve advancedlanguage proficiency. This is a perfect opportunity to stress that parents consideringDLI for their children should keep this fact in mind.

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This is a listing of some AKS (curriculum standards) that all GCPS kindergarten studentsare expected to learn. In the case of DLI, students will learn these standards in the target language. In this slide, just replace the ____________ with French, Korean, or Spanish.

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In a high school foreign language program, the emphasis is more on oral language than written language. In typical, traditional foreign language programs, students are not given a lot of time and opportunity to be exposed to and practice language from a variety of domains.

In DLI, students will master vocabulary from not just everyday life, but also core subject areas like math and science.

This graph illustrates the typical levels of language proficiency that can be obtainedafter learning a language for the time period depicted. We have also listed samplecareers that require the specified level of language proficiency in order to successfullynavigate within the language typically used in that career.

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DLI allows students to start learning language earlier, across multiple contexts, and for a much longer period of time. This, ultimately, allows students to obtain higher levels of meaningful proficiency.

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This graph illustrates the K-12 perspective and the level of language proficiency that canbe obtained if students and parents are willing to make the commitment in terms of time and effort. We also highlight how our pioneer cohort of 4th graders (at the 3 elementary schools that first started the program) peformed on an independentlanguage assessment that was given in the fall of 2018. We gave the same assessmentto the next cohort of students who were in 4th grade in 2019 and saw similar results. We annually evaluate our 4th grade DLI students in order to measure and report to parents student language proficiency, and similar language assessment measures are implemented in other years from elementary through high school. This data also helpsinform our efforts to support teaching and learning as it pertains to DLI.

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Learning a new language looks like a funnel. The student learns basic words first (the Novice levels depicted at the bottom of the funnel shown here), and then sees the bigger picture as language skills improve. Students move up the funnel as their language proficiency grows.

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This is an example of how in just one domain—science--students will deepen their language skills. This represents K-5 AKS (curriculum), and could go much further as a student progresses through grades. Note how we start with nouns in K then move up to verbs (2nd and 3rd grades), and ultimately classification/synthesis in 5th.

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How will do we track student achievement? In GCPS, we have many different ways. This chart depicts a list of state, local, and national assessments/measures that we use to evaluate our teaching and learning. All students in DLI take the same assessments as their peers who are in traditional regular education classrooms. There is one exception to this. DLI students take one additional assessment. In DLI, we track and report progress on students’ language skills. DLI teachers provide Immersion LanguageCommunication reports at the same time as report cards are issued. This report givesparents insight on how their child is progressing in the target language in the areas of speaking and listening (K-5) and reading and writing (2nd- 5th). In addition, in 4th grade, DLI students take a language assessment from ACTFL in the areas of speaking, reading, and listening in the target language. Results are shared with parents.

Students who already speak another language other than English are consideredEnglish Learners and eligible for ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) support. DLI is a state recognized ESOL delivery model. It can provide a great way for speakers of the target language to continue to grow their native language while also becomingproficient in English. Students who already speak a language other than English or the target language can become trilingual and triliterate over the course of the program.

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DLI in elementary school in GCPS was designed as a self contained program. This means that we try to avoid pulling students from DLI classrooms in order to maximizethe time available for instruction in the target language. Since our program teacheslanguage and content simultaneously, any time spent outside the immersion setting istime and opportunity lost when it comes to making gains in language proficiency.

We must take the information above into account if/when students become eligible for additional supports or programs offered in our DLI elementay school settings. Wesupport gifted and ESOL identified students exclusively within the DLI classroomsettings. If a child is determined to be eligible for and in need of special educationsupports, working as a team that includes the parent, we craft Individual Education Plans (IEPs) that will best meet the needs of the student. If it is determined thatstudent needs are best met by the student receiving support outside the DLI classroomat such a frequency/intensity that the target language immersion environment is no longer possible, it may be necessary to remove a student from DLI. All the rules and regulations that govern special education services will be taken into considerationwhen crafting IEPs for DLI students.

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Gwinnett County Public Schools honors its commitment to DLI parents and students with a seamless K–12 language program. As students move into middle school and on to high school, we never lose sight of our goals stated from the first day of kindergarten… Students in the GCPS DLI Program will become bilingual and biliterate, and able to successfully navigate multiple cultures in their lives and careers. Language learning is a process, and these results can be expected only if students and families are able to make a LONG TERM commitment to the program.

The 50-50 side by side two teacher model is what students experience from K-5. DLI continuation opportunities for 6 – 12 are detailed in the following slides.

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From kindergarten through 5th grade, your student has been learning the target language in the context of Gwinnett’s Academic Knowledge and Skills (AKS) curriculum, specifically mathematics, science, and literacy in the new language. The next step in your student’s language journey involves more focused instruction in spelling, grammar, sentence structure, and syntax in the target language. During middle school, students will continue to learn the target language in a culture-rich immersion environment with additional focus on refining these language skills. The three goals of Gwinnett’s DLI Middle School Continuation Model: Pivot: Students will pivot out of content-only instruction and toward a balance that pairs exploration of countries and cultures with focused instruction in spelling, grammar, and other language skills. Precision: Through this balanced model, students will develop the precision needed to demonstrate advanced language proficiency, including strong reading, writing, and conversational skills in the target language. Preparation: These skills will ensure that students are prepared for the next stage of their language development, whether this is pursuing Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) studies, entering a dual-enrollment program at the college level, or using their language skills in the workplace.

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In middle school, DLI continuation students have the opportunity to take a third of their scheduled courses in specialized DLI classes.Year-long Connections Courses (Required)Most students will be automatically enrolled in these courses, with an exception for students who need additional academic support in core classes. 6th GradeDLI Advanced Language and Literacy 6th GradeThis course will focus on development of precision and language proficiency in speaking, listening, reading, and writing in an engaging, language-rich immersion environment. Special focus will be placed on themes that students will explore later in Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) language courses.7th GradeHigh School Level 3 (First half of course)This course will follow the first half of the curriculum for High School Level 3 Foreign Language in the DLI language studied. Special focus will be placed on themes explored in AP and IB language courses. 8th GradeHigh School Level 3 (Second half of course)This course will follow the second half of the curriculum for High School Level 3 Foreign

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Language in the DLI language studied. Special focus will be placed on themes explored in AP and IB language courses. Students will earn a high school credit (High School Level 3 Foreign Language) upon completion.Semester-long Connections Courses (Optional)Content varies each year, allowing students to study different aspects of the course themes during grades 6, 7, and 8.DLI Culture and HistoryThis course will feature deep discussion of the cultures and histories of countries and groups representing the language studied. Students will dive deep into cultural products and practices, comparing and contrasting with their own and those of other cultures. Through lively discussion, students will develop and defend opinions using the target language.DLI Media LiteracyStudents will engage with and critically evaluate authentic media curated from the countries and cultures in which the target language is spoken. They will create their own authentic media products using the target language.

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Educating the Whole Student Middle school is a time of exploration for students. While we hope that most of our DLI students sign up for all three DLI courses offered each year, we understand that some students may wish to explore other options— for instance, a connections class in band or computer science— so the program will offer flexibility in scheduling. That said, students who take all DLI continuation courses may see an improvement in language development more quickly than those who take fewer. This graphic shows possible options for a 6th grade DLI continuation student.

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The goal for DLI students is to be successful in taking Advanced Placement course workin their 10th grade year of high school. In order to help sufficiently prepare studentsfor that expectation, we are designing our middle school continuation classes withAdvanced Placement and International Baccalaureate themes in mind. This slide illustrates how we intend to integrate AP/IB themes along with the focus of each course and grade level leading up to and including 10th grade. Options for 11th and 12th grade will be explained in the next slides.

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Gwinnett County Public Schools honors its commitment to DLI parents and students with a seamless K–12 language program. As students move into high school, we never lose sight of our goals stated from the first day of kindergarten… Students in the GCPS DLI Program will become bilingual and biliterate and able to successfully navigate multiple cultures in their lives and careers if they are able to make a LONG TERM commitment to the program.

In high school, we turn our attention and focus to connecting students’ learning to the career and/or college options that await them upon graduation.

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Students successfully leaving 8th grade DLI continuation will have earned a Carnegie Unit credit for high school level 3 language. As 9th graders, they can enroll in level 4 language study. In 10th grade, students will enroll in the Advanced Placement Language course (or IB if offered). The AP program offers high school students college-level course work with an accompanying exam. Taking AP courses in high school couldgive students an advantage in college by letting students: earn college credit, earnadvanced placement (potentially skipping introductory courses in college), save money and time (potentially opening up time in a college schedule or even allowing for possible early graduation), and standing out to colleges (AP or IB on a high schoolstudent’s transcripts shows colleges that college level work has already been tackled).

11th and 12th graders have additional options to continue language study as illustratedin this slide above. Dual enrollment is a program that allows high school students to earn college credit while working on their high school diploma. At present, the state pays all tuition and additional costs associated with this program potentially allowing students and parents to save even more time and money.

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DLI is a separate registration process from kindergarten registration. All parents interested in DLI must also register their student for kindergarten at the HOME school. Please access the webpage of the DLI elementary school for a link to the registration packet for that school’s DLI program. That information contains program details including registration deadlines, student lottery information, and other vital program specifics. You will also find a link to the DLI Program Guidelines that contains additional information.

DLI is an optional program that we are happy to offer within GCPS. Whether or not DLI is part of your future, we wish you and your student(s) success as you embark on kindergarten and beyond. Thank you very much for your support!

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