A Meta-Analysis of Selected Studies on the Effectiveness of Bilingual Education

Abstract

A meta-analysis of selected studies on the efficacy of bilingual education was conducted and the results were compared with a traditional review of the same literature. When statistical controls for methodological inadequacies were employed, participation in bilingual education programs consistently produced small to moderate differences favoring bilingual education for tests of reading, language skills, mathematics, and total achievement when the tests were in English, and for reading, language, mathematics, writing, social studies, listening comprehension, and attitudes toward school or self when tests were in other languages. The magnitude of effect sizes was influenced by the types of programs compared, language of the criterion instruments, academic domain of the criterion instruments, random versus nonrandom assignment of students to programs, formula used to calculate effect sizes, and types of scores reported in the studies. Programs characterized by instability and/or hostile environments were associated with lower effect sizes. The synthesized studies contained a variety of methodological weaknesses which affected the magnitude of the effect sizes. Initial group differences-in language dominance, in environmental language exposure, in need for the bilingual program-were not uncommon. In some cases, comparison groups contained bilingual program "graduates." In others, experimental groups changed in composition during the study through the exiting of successful students and their replacement with newcomers subsequent to pretesting and prior to posttesting. Although the technique of metaanalysis allows for statistical control of methodological inadequacies, the methodological inadequacies in the synthesized studies render the results less than definitive and highlight the need for quality research in the area of bilingual education. Problems inherent in conducting research on bilingual programs are discussed in relation to the outcomes of this synthesis, and guidelines for future research are proposed.

Aboriginal Languages in Quebec: Fighting Linguicide with Bilingual Education

“…Thus far, the present results provide evidence that minority language speakers benefit from early instruction in their heritage language, a pattern also obtained in other studies (Crawford, 1989;Cummins, 1989;Willig, 1985). As the support for heritage language education grows, some authors claim that greater use of heritage languages in school is a necessary remedy for present patterns of school failure among minority students (Cummins, 1989(Cummins, , 1990McLaughlin, 1989).…”

“…Second, their Inuktitut language skills should be enhanced cognitively by school instruction in Inuktitut (Crawford, 1989). Third, the assumption is that any cognitive gains students make in Inuktitut will be transferred quickly to other languages such as French and English (Lambert, 1983;Willig, 1985).…”

Impact of bilingual education on student achievement

“…Studies can be cited to support either side of the debate on whether bilingual education programs work better than English-only programs; early meta-studies are [2], [3]. Many of the studies fail to deal with the non-random selection of limited English proficient students into bilingual education programs.…”

Language-in-education Policies in the South Pacific: Some Possibilities for Consideration

“…There is growing evidence that minority-language children who undertake the early part of their formal education in their mother tongue and initially learn the majority second language as a subject in the curriculum learn the second language as well as, if not better, than those students who begin their education in a second language (Greene, 1997;Ramirez et al, 1991, cited in C. Baker, 2001Willig, 1985). This area is, however, not without debate, particularly in the USA (see, for example, K. Baker & de Kanter, 1983;K.…”