New Way to Learn the Language

[Harold F. Schiffman]

>>From the Hollister (Calif.) Freeland

New Way to Learn the Language

Monday, April 24, 2006

By Danielle Smith/Staff Writer

Hollister - In an effort to address the sizable achievement gap between
students that primarily speak Spanish and their classmates, the Hollister
School District will spend about $300,000 next year to implement several
new programs designed to help the struggling students learn English. "Many
of our students are not achieving the way they are supposed to and need to
be," HSD Director of Instruction Anita Franchi said. "That's a clear sign
that things need to change. According to the most recent figures available
from the California Department of Education, more than 1,400 of HSD's
4,400 students are "English language learners," meaning that no English is
spoken in the student's home environment and he or she is essentially
unable to learn in a normal, English-speaking classroom. Roughly 150
English learner students are identified or join the district each year and
many are first-generation Americans or migrant students, said Franchi.

The district's ELL students score 87 points lower on their Standardized
Testing and Reporting (STAR) exams than the district's average of 698, and
176 points lower than Caucasian students, who scored 787 in 2005. The
statewide goal for 2005 was 800 out of 1,000 points. When school began in
the fall, HSD, with the help of the district's English Learner Parents
group, created a laundry list of new materials and programs for the
district to invest in that they believe will allow ELL students to thrive
and close the achievement gap with their fellow students. "With a little
extra attention and language development, these kids can be successful,"
said Franchi.

Currently, ELL students attend regular classes and are expected to develop
English proficiency as they go along, which is fine, Franchi said, but not
for the entire day. After-school interventions - essentially staffed,
structured English study time - are available, but only if the student's
parents know to request them. Beginning next year, all ELL students will
spend a portion of their day receiving instruction in English speaking,
reading, writing and listening before they are returned to their regular
classes. And all HSD teachers are being trained in new methods to reach
their ELL students when they do return to class. "If the funding is there
and we really adhere to our new master plan, and continue to use the
district's assessments, I believe that these children will see a lot of
improvement," Assistant Superintendent Peter Guitierrez said. "And we owe
that to our children, our parents and our community."

The jewel in the crown of these reforms, however, is the newcomer's
center, a special half-day class designed for students who recently
arrived in the country. Class sizes will be fewer than 20 students and a
center will be created at every HSD campus. "We want to make sure they
have intensive help and support before we put them in an English speaking
classroom with so many other kids," said Franchi. The district's efforts
also target parents. Next year, several workshops will be held to ensure
that the families of ELL students understand the options they have in
educating their children, and students will also be sent home with Spanish
and English textbooks in subjects such as math, so that their parents will
still be able to help them regardless of their native language.

"I don't think we've been very good about making sure parents have access
to information they need in the past," said Franchi. "Sometimes they need
a little help, or they just forget." All told, the reforms will cost the
district approximately $300,000, in restricted funds and will require
three or four staff positions to be effective. The move is not without
controversy, however - HSD Trustee Dee Brown voted against the decision to
move forward with the new programs in late March, on the belief that the
programs push students to learn English too quickly. "I believe in
teaching English as fast as possible, but research shows that it takes 5
to 7 years to learn a language," she said. "You can't teach a baby to walk
before they roll over, sit up, crawl and all of that."

Franchi says, however, that she has personally worked at other school
districts who have utilized similar programs and seen great success. "If
we can help these students understand English, we are supporting our
teachers, who can focus on helping every student," she said. "This is
something every parent should be excited about, not just English learner
parents."

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