1、Dual Language Learning in the Early Years: Theory and PracticeDiane AugustCenter for Applied LinguisticsOverview of Presentation4Preschool dual language programsThree studies that shed light on the effect of school and home language use on childrens first and second language developmentResearch base

2、 that supports dual language programs4Future directions Research and development 2Preschool Programs: Dual Language Approach 4Experimental study comparing the effect of monolingual immersion compared with dual language preschool programs (Barnett, Yarosz, Thomas, Jung & Blanco, 2007)Three- and f

3、our year old children from homes where Spanish and English were spoken were randomly assigned to program typeDual language program alternated between English and Spanish on a weekly basis by rotating children between classrooms and teachersClassrooms in both conditions used the High/Scope curriculum

4、, met high standards for teacher qualifications, ratio, and class size3Preschool Programs: Dual Language Approach 4FindingsChildren in both types of programs experienced substantial gains in English language, literacy and math, with no significant differences between groupsAmong the Spanish-speakers

5、, the dual language program produced large gains in Spanish vocabulary compared with the English program4Preschool Programs: Dual Language Approach 4 Experimental study comparing the effects English High Scope Curriculum, English Literacy Express Curriculum and Bilingual Literacy Express Curriculum

6、(Farver, Lonigan, & Eppe, 2009) Sample was 94 Spanish-dominant ELL pre-school children enrolled in a Head Start program in an inner-city school Children were randomly assigned to three program types-High Scope (control), High Scope plus Literacy Express in English, High Scope plus Literacy Expre

7、ss with students beginning in Spanish and transitioning into English Literacy Express curriculum focuses on oral language, emergent literacy, basic math and science, and socio-cultural developmentgroups of 4-5three types of teacher-directed activitiesshared reading, phonological awareness training,

8、print knowledge activitiesChildren in the bilingual program transitioned into English after 9 weeks.5Preschool Programs: Dual Language Approach 4Findings Literacy Express children made significant gains compared to High Scope only childrenEnglish-only and transitional bilingual programs were equally

9、 effective for English language outcomesOnly the transitional model was effective for Spanish outcomes6Preschool Programs: Dual Language Approach 4 Experimental study comparing the effect of home story book reading in childrens L1 and English (Roberts, 2008) Participants were 33 preschool children f

10、rom low SES families Home language was Hmong or Spanish Two 6-week sessions of home combined with story book reading 12 classic childrens storybooks with translations; no other modifications noted Children assigned to one of two groups: Primary language home reading/English school reading first six

11、weeks; English home reading/English school reading second six weeksEnglish home reading/English school reading first six weeks followed by primary language chool reading/English school reading second six weeks7Preschool Programs: Dual Language Approach 4FindingsChildren learned a substantial number

12、of words from the combined home and classroom reading experiencesPrimary language home reading/English school reading as effective as English home reading/English school reading condition.Family caregiver participation in the parent-support part of the program rose from 50% to 80% in the second sess

13、ionFamily caregiver English oral language skills and the number of English books in the home related to English vocabulary learning.8Dual Language Approach: Research BaseTransfer of skills from L1 to L2: if you know something in one language you either already know it in another language or can more

14、 easily learn it in another language (Cummins, 1979; Dressler, 2006)Bilingualism itself does not interfere with academic achievement in either language (Yeung, Marsh, & Suliman, 2000) Bilingualism has other probable benefits including cognitive flexibility (Nagy, Berninger, & Abbott, 2006; G

15、alambos & Hakuta, 1988; Bialysotck, 2001) and improved family cohesion and self-esteem (Portes and Hao, 2002; Von Dorp , 2001). , 2006). 9Dual Language Approach: Future DirectionsImportant to buildi on effective L1 researchAll programs did thisMajor modification was L1 home and school useRegardl

16、ess of program type it is helpful to: Provide first language support to very limited English proficient students Additionally it is important to:Scaffold instruction for ELLs (August & Shanahan, 2010)Attend to teacher-student interactions (Dickinson, Darrow & Tinubu, 2008)10Dual Language App

17、roaches: Future DirectionsVIOLETS: a pre-school English language development program implemented in several counties in MarylandUses three-pronged approach to vocabulary developmentTeach individual wordsImmerse children in rich oral language environmentsDevelop word consciousnessProvides scaffolded instruction for ELLsFin