On Tuesday, March 29, 2022, we held our APS DLI Prospective Parent Virtual Town Hall. Click the links below to access the information that was shared.
DLI Prospective Parent Virtual Town Hall Slide Deck: Download DLI Prospective Parent Town Hall March 2022
Zoom Recording: Download Video1843858205
Fore questions, reach out to Dr. Margaret McKenzie, Director, Multilingual Programs + Services via email at mamckenzie@atlanta.k12.ga.us
The Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education (3rd edition) is an a tool developed by the Center for Applied Linguistics for all aspects of DLI implementation.
Download your copy from the CAL website: https://www.cal.org/resource-center/publications-products/guiding-principles-3
There are many myths and misconceptions about language acquisition. Check out this article from Dual Language Schools: https://duallanguageschools.org/columns/myth-busters-in-dual-language-learning/
Even if parents don't speak one of the target languages of their child's DLI program, parents still support language development at home. We must understand that children will often be reluctant to "perform" in the second language for adults.
Some of the key ways parents can support and foster a language-rich environment are listed below:
•Create a supportive learning environment in the language of the home; read, write, listen, and talk to your student in your own language.
•Read WITH and TO your child in your native language EVERY day.
•Ask open-ended questions. (Use question words such as "how," and "why.")
•Encourage curiosity by teaching children to question the world around them.
•Emphasize the value of acquiring another language.
•Applaud their efforts in the language immersion.
•Develop effective study skills.
•Volunteer in the immersion classroom or help with materials, activities, or field trips.
•Extend cultural experiences beyond the classroom.
•Expose your student to the language through technology and media.
•Later, encourage your child to participate in an exchange or service program that will require interaction with people in the target language.
Learning a language is very different than learning content areas. In order to determine success with language, language teachers must ascertain the proficiency levels of their students. Many often confuse proficiency with performance or achievement. Quite simply put, proficiency is the ability to use language in a real-world situation. Performance is the ability to use language in a limited and controlled situation such as a classroom or controlled situation-based exchange, and Achievement is the ability to repeat language elements that have been taught and mastered at some level. Each of these areas, proficiency, performance, and achievement has a role in language learning, but only proficiency is what people use to communicate in the real world. In language learning, proficiency is the KEY. It allows us to know what students can do with the language in spontaneous, unrehearsed, real life situations.
ACTFL, the American Council for Teachers of Foreign Language, is the national organization that has defined language proficiency for K - 12 settings. More information regarding ACTFL and proficiency can be found on the ACTFL website: https://www.actfl.org/publications/guidelines-and-manuals/actfl-proficiency-guidelines-2012
DLI and world language programs often have establish Proficiency Targets in all four skills: listening, reading, speaking, and writing. These targets assist teachers in creating an instructional focus and establishing expectations for student output. Because there are many factors that influence language acquisition, not all students are expected to attain the targets in all four skills.
Linguistic distance is a concept that explores how different one language is from another. Studies have shown that this can impact the length of time it takes to become proficient in the second language. Take a look at the chart below:
Source: https://www.languagetesting.com/how-long-does-it-take
In 2013, according to State Superintendent John Barge, the state of Georgia established the goal of expanding dual language immersion (DLI) programs in Georgia to twenty schools by 2020.
Click here to access more info from GaDOE about the Dual Immersion program.
For the 2022 - 2023 school year, there will be over 70 dual language immersion programs in Georgia. APS has the distinction of having seven DLI program schools that provide Dual Language Immersion over one thousand students. Each year in APS, the DLI program rolls up a grade level. Plans are in place to expand the DLI program through 12th grade to support the biliteracy development of our students. The schools, language, and grade levels for the APS DLI program for the 2022 - 2023 school year will be as follows:
Benteen Elementary School (Spanish - Pre-Kindergarten - 4th)
Bolton Academy Elementary School (Spanish - Kindergarten - 5th)
E Rivers Elementary School (Spanish - Kindergarten - 5th)
Garden Hills Elementary School (Spanish - Pre-Kindergarten - 5th)
Morris Brandon Elementary School (Spanish - Kindergarten - 5th)
Sarah Smith Elementary School (Spanish - Kindergarten - 5th)
Sutton Middle School (Spanish - 6th - 7th)
The STAMP assessment will be administered to APS DLI students in 1st grade and up. We will only administer the listening and speaking portions of the assessment. The results will provide our DLI Spanish teachers with additional evidence of student progress as reviewed by an external evaluator.The STAMP assessment is computer adaptive and will meet the students based on where they are in the language. The STAMP assessment is not based on any textbook, but rather uses real world scenarios to prompt the student. STAMP is valid and reliable as it is based on extensive field testing and expert panels. This is not a test for which students can study.
To assist our parents in understanding the STAMP assessment, we are creating a video that will be posted here soon.