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Language Immersion Goals

CUSD Language Immersion Goals

 
CUSD has promoted language immersion instruction since 1992 and currently offers programs in Spanish and Mandarin. The Two Way immersion program in Spanish is offered at four elementary sites while the One Way immersion program in Mandarin is offered at one elementary site. Students from both programs matriculate into middle and high school programs that support them with further study in target languages. The goals of the language immersion program are:
 
Goal 1: Bilingualism/Biliteracy: Students develop high levels of language
proficiency in both program languages.
Goal 2: Academic Achievement: Students demonstrate high levels of academic
achievement in two languages.
Goal 3: Sociocultural Competence: Students develop an appreciation for and
an understanding of diverse cultures.


Why Choose Language Immersion?


Making the decision to enroll a child in a language immersion program is one of the more important educational decisions that parents will make. Benefits of a language immersion education include:
 
  • Students develop language proficiency in English and the target language while
    engaging with grade level content.
  • Students develop a respect and appreciation of other cultures through academic
    and extracurricular activities.Studies link acquisition of a second language to cognitive benefits such as
    enhanced critical thinking skills and non-verbal problem solving abilities.
  • Students are able to communicate with people from diverse linguistic and cultural
    backgrounds.
  • Biliterate skills open up opportunities for future careers.
 

Commitment to the K-12 Program

 
The opportunity for a child to become bilingual and biliterate is priceless and requires commitment and investment on the part of parents. It is widely understood that it takes 5-7 years for students to reach native-like fluency in a second language. Parents are asked to commit to the language immersion program through fifth grade at minimum,and optimally to the K-12 program to ensure that their child has the time needed to fully develop their abilities in both languages.
 

Language Immersion Program Models

 
CUSD is proud to offer two models of language immersion. Each program is considered “additive bilingual”, meaning the child’s first language continues to be strengthened and augmented while he/she acquires a second language.
 
  • Two-Way Language Immersion programs strive to include approximately equal
    numbers of students who are monolingual or dominant in English at the time of
    enrollment and students who are monolingual or dominant in the partner
    language at the time of enrollment. CUSD offers this program in both the 80/20
    and 50/50 models.
  • One-Way Language Immersion programs are those in which the majority of
    students are monolingual or dominant in English at the time of enrollment. These
    programs are also known as foreign or world language immersion programs.
 
Regardless of program model, the curriculum used in CUSD’s language immersion programs is aligned with the vision and goals of bilingualism/biliteracy, academic achievement, and sociocultural competence, and includes authentic literature across the grades. Additionally, the curriculum is:
  • aligned with state standards and assessments
  • academically challenging
  • enriching
  • integrated with technology
  • horizontally and vertically aligned