Milpitas Unified Dual Language Immersion
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Dual Immersion registration is now open
Note: All new incoming transitional kindergarten, kindergarten and 1st grade students choosing to opt out of Randall's Spanish Dual Immersion program will automatically be assigned to Rose Elementary, but will still need to complete enrollment at Randall school office. Student files will be forwarded to the new resident school, Rose Elementary.
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Important Dates
Beginning Jan 24, 2023
Registration for Dual Language TK / K Dual Immersion Tours
Jan 19, 2023 @ 8:30 a.m. Feb 9, 2023 @ 8:30 a.m. March 9, 2023 @ 4 p.m. April 20, 2023 @ 8:30 a.m. May 18, 2023 @ 8:30 a.m. Call (408) 635-2662 to register for an upcoming tour. |
What is Dual Language Immersion? |
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What is Dual Language Immersion?
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Dual language immersion programs include native English-speaking students and native speakers of a foreign language. The goals of dual language immersion programs are to develop bilingualism/biliteracy, academic achievement, and cross-cultural competencies for all students. In dual immersion programs, students learn content through both their native language and the target language. Simultaneous translation is never used. By the end of 6th grade, all students in the program are proficient in English, proficient in the target language, and at or above grade level academic benchmarks.
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Why should I send my kids to the Dual Language Immersion Program?
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Intellectual: Bilingual students show greater cognitive flexibility that transfers into academic success
Social: Our diverse world represents many languages and cultures Economic: Increased demand for bilingual employees throughout the world |
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Why not wait for my child to learn a second language in middle & high school?
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The Critical Period Theory explains that the brain easily acquires second (and more) languages before puberty, while middle and high school foreign language programs address language learning after the onset of puberty, skipping the developmental stages of the early years and reducing the opportunities for natural language acquisition.
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Will a second language interfere with my child's English ability?
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No. Research done by Cummins (1981), Lambert, Genesee, Holobow and Chartrand (1993) show that students who acquire advanced levels of proficiency in two languages often experience cognitive and linguistic advantages when compared to monolingual students. Bilingual students perform better on tasks that require divergent thinking, pattern recognition, and problem solving, and have enhanced levels of metalinguistic awareness (Adams, 1990).
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Do dual language immersion students learn the same curriculum as the regular English-only programs?
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Yes. The standards and curriculum of Randall are the same as for all students in the Milpitas Unified School District. The only difference is the language of instruction.
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Does it matter if no one at home speaks the second language?
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No. English must be continually developed and supported in the home. Read to your children daily! Continue the literacy experiences you would naturally encourage. One of the advantages of this program is that students with strong English succeed well. Children often start to apply the literacy skills, which they have learned in the first language to the second language.
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How will my child understand if s/he does not speak the second language?
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Teachers in the dual language immersion program are specially trained to make the information meaningful through the use of visuals, objects, gestures, and specialized instructional strategies. Students also will help each other.
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What about reading in English?
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In order to avoid confusion, the language of instruction is separated and gradually shifts from mostly Spanish to half English and half Spanish. However, please read to your child at home in English or Spanish daily, and accept any attempt to read in another language on their part.
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Is any English used in the dual language immersion classroom?
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Both languages are used everyday in separate "Spanish Time" and "English Time" according to the program design. However, student expression is accepted in whichever language the student uses.
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How can I communicate with my child's teacher if she/he does not speak in English in front of the student?
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In grades K-3, students see their teachers use only the language they model, so parents are encouraged to write notes or send e-mails.
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Can parents volunteer in the classroom if they do not speak the language being used?
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Yes. Parent involvement is foundational to student success in this program, and the more a parent experiences the learning environment, the more he/she will know how to support their children's learning. Communication with parents is conducted in the language they understand.
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How can parents support their child in the program?
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Participate. Keep up the high quality English and/or Spanish at home. Read with your child in English and/or Spanish daily. Discuss what your child is learning. Listen to him/her read. Try to learn along with your child. Attend Dual Immersion meetings at Randall. Take a basic Spanish or English course and learn with your child. Spanish and ESL courses are available at the Milpitas Adult Education School.
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When will my child become fluent in both languages?
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Each child is developmentally unique, so the fluency will also develop individually. You will be informed on a regular basis of your child's oral fluency progress. You will also be informed regularly of your child's academic progress. Keeping the communication line between you and your child's teacher is the best resource to find out how well your child is doing.
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Milpitas Specific FAQs
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Can older siblings attend Randall?
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For those families with older elementary students, we will support enrolling older students at Randall as you enroll your TK/Kindergarten students in the dual immersion program. From 1st grade and up, a language assessment is required.
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Pueden asistir los hermanos(as) a Randall?
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Los hermanos(s) mayores de los ninos que se inscriben en el grado TK o grado Kinder, en la escuela Randall, tambien pueden enscribirse en la escuela.
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Why Spanish?
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Spanish is currently the second most popular language in the United States. It is also currently the second largest language group in Milpitas. Additionally, we believe we can successfully staff with both teachers and Principal a staff with experience in teaching and leading a Spanish immersion program.
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Por que el espanol?
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El Espanol ahorita es la segunda lengua mas popular en los Estados Unidos. Tambien esta lengua es el segundo grupo mas grande en la ciudad de Milpitas. Creemos que podemos tener los maestros y un principe con la experiencia necesaria para tener exito en dar una educacion bilingue.
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Why Randall?
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The Randall/Rose corridor of Milpitas contains the majority of the Spanish speakers in Milpitas. Randall is also small enough of a school for the whole school to convert to a Dual Language school.
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Por que la escuela Randall?
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La area cerca de las escuelas de Randall y Rose en Milpitas tiene la mayoria de los hispanohablantes en la ciudad. Randall es bastante pequena para cambiar a una escuela bilingue.
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Will we provide bus service?
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No. There are no current plans to provide bus service to Randall.
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Habra servicio de autobus?
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No. No habra servicio de autobus a la escuela Randall.
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Will there be a lottery to get in?
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Currently we do not plan to have a lottery unless the initial registration for the program exceeds capacity.
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Habra una loteria para enscribirse en la escuela?
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Ahora no tenemos una loteria. Si el registro para el programa es mas que se puede enscribirse, seria una posibilidad.
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Will my younger children be guaranteed a spot at Randall later on?
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While we can not guarantee a spot, younger siblings of students who attend the Dual Language program would have priority enrollment over others.
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Es una garantía que los hermanos(as) menores pueden asistir a la escuela Randall, en el futuro?
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No. No hay una garantía, pero los hermanos(as) menores de los ninos que asisten a la escuela tendrán la prioridad de inscribirse - más que otros niños.
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What changes do we expect to see in student’s socio-emotional & academic outcomes?
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Pride, sense of self worth, valuing diversity and culture.
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Que van a ser los resultados escolares, y los resultados emocionales de esta programa?
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El orgullo, la autoestima, y el valor de la diversidad y la cultura.
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Where can I get more information on Dual Immersion Programs?
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Reference Books
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Dual language Instruction - A Handbook for Enriched Education: by Nancy Cloud, Fred Genesee, Else Hamayan. Heinle & Heinle.
A parent's and Teachers Guide to Bilingualism by Colin Baker, Multilingual Matters LTD. Profiles in dual-immersion Education by Donna Christian, Chris Monstone, Kathryn Lindholm, and Isolda Carranza. Delta Systems, Inc. and Eric Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics. The Power of Two Languages 2000: Effective Dual Languages Use Across the Curriculum by Josefina Tinajero and Robert DeVillar (eds.) McGraw Hill. Dual Language Education by Kathryn Lindholm-Leary, (in Press) Avon, England: Multilingual Matters. Biliteracy for a Global Society: An Idea Book on Dual Language Education by Kathryn Lindholm. National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education. |
References
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Quick References:
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Adams, M. (1990). Beginning to read: Thinking and learning about print. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
August, D., Goldenberg, C., & Rueda, R. (2010). Restrictive State Language Policies: Are They Scientifically Based? In Gándara, P. & M. Hopkins (Eds.), English Learners and Restrictive Language Policies (pp. 139-158). New York/London: Teachers College Press. Brookover, B. (1985). Can We Make Schools Effective for Minority Students? The Journal of Negro Education, Vol. 54, No. 3, Successful Schooling Policies, Practices, Programs. (Summer, 1985), pp. 257-268. Cummins, J. (1981). The role of primary language development in promoting educational success for language minority students. In California State Department of Education (Ed.), Schooling and language minority students: A theoretical framework (pp. 3-49). Los Angeles: National Dissemination and Assessment Center. Coburn, C., Penuel, W., & Geil, K. (2013). Research-Practice Partnerships. The William T. Grant Foundation. pp. 1-37. Goldenberg, C. (2008). Teaching English Language Learners: What the Research Does—and Does Not—Say. American Educator. Summer (report). Heritage, M., Walqui, A. & Linquanti, R. (2015). English Language Learners and the New Standards: Developing Language, Content Knowledge, and Analytical Practices in the Classroom. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press. Ladson-Billings, G. (2006). From the Achievement Gap to the Education Debt: Understanding Achievement in Schools. Educational Researcher, 35(3), 3-12. Lambert, W.E., Genesee, F., Holobow, N., & Chartrand, L. (1993), Bilingual Education For Majority English-Speaking Children. European Journal of Psychology of Education 8 (1), 3- 22. Lindholm-Leary, K. J., & Howard, E. R. (2008). Language development and academic achievement in two-way immersion programs. In T. W. Fortune & D. J. Tedick (Eds.), Pathways to Multilingualism: Evolving Perspectives on Immersion Education (pp. 177-200). Oxford, UK: Blackwell. Mendoza Reis, N. & Flores, B. (2014). Changing the Pedagogical Culture of Schools with Latino English Learners: Reculturing Instructional Leadership. In P. Portes, S. Salas, P. Baquedano-López, & P. Mellom U.S. Latinos and Education Policy (pp. 192-203). New York: Routledge. Portes, A. & Rumbaut, R. (2001). Not everyone is chosen: Segmented Assimilation and Its Determinants. In Legacies: The story of the immigrant second generation (pp. 44-69). Berkeley/Los Angeles: University of California Press. P. Gandara & F. Contreras (2009). The Latino Education Crisis: The Consequences of Failed Social Policies. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Chapter 3: Schools and the Latino Schooling Experience, pp. 86-120; Chapter 4: Is Language the Problem? pp. 121-150. Valdés, G. (2003). Expanding Definitions of Giftedness. NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Chapts.1-2. Sleeter, C. (2005). Confronting the Marginalization of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy. Urban Education 47 (3), 562-584. Suárez Orozco, C., et al. (2008). Learning a New Land: Immigrant Students in American Society. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Chapter 6: Portraits of Low Achievers, pp. 228-260. |
