Contesting math as the universal language: a longitudinal study of dual language bilingual education language allocation

Implementing the Science of Math in a Culturally Sustainable Framework for Students With and at Risk for Math Learning Disabilities

“…Math is often thought of as being a universal language, meaning that it can be understood regardless of the language one speaks based on its symbolic and numerical visual nature (e.g., Cavanagh, 2005; Lee & Lee, 2017; Morita-Mullaney et al, 2021; Waller & Flood, 2016). However, math requires additional language-specific vocabulary learning.…”

Political Turmoil Influencing Bilingual Education in the 1980s

“…In stark comparison to the 1980s, in the year 2020 there are a multitude of studies in the area of bilingual education programs and their benefits. Study after study has demonstrated that students in dual language programs as opposed to programs where the native language is nonexistent, or used to a minimum, score higher academically over time [28,29,64]. In the most comprehensive of studies with longitudinal data of over 30 years, Thomas and Collier [15] have shown that "English-only and transitional bilingual programs of short duration only close about half of the achievement gap between English learners and native English speakers, while high quality long-term bilingual programs close all of the gap after 5-6 years of schooling through two languages."…”

Obscuring Equity in Dual Language Bilingual Education: A Longitudinal Study of Emergent Bilingual Achievement, Course Placements, and Grades

“…Past studies of emergent bilinguals’ performances within DLBE programs lack investigation of how language(s) of instruction in each academic subject might influence academic performance. Secondly, past comparative and longitudinal analyses of different programs have not analyzed program‐level differences, such as language allocation, student constitution, and assessment of English and the partner language (Arteagoitia & Yen, 2020; Morita‐Mullaney et al, 2020; Ortiz, Robertson, & Wilkinson, 2018). Third, historic studies have not examined emergent bilingual’s course placements in relation to emergent bilingual student achievement and grades.…”

“…Also, many of these studies do not identify the language of assessment. When the language of assessment is consistent with the language of instruction, the assessment more closely reflects the instruction than otherwise, which enhances construct validity (Abedi, 2004; Morita‐Mullaney et al, in press). By contrast, if math is taught in Spanish but assessed in English, for example, then the assessment might underestimate a student’s math ability (Abedi & Lord, 2001).…”

“…Eight of these longitudinal DLBE studies focused on the ELA and math achievement of emergent bilinguals with one study looking at science (Steele et al, 2017). With the exception of Steele et al (2017) and Morita-Mullaney, Renn, and Chiu (2020), none of these studies specifies the percentage of instruction time in which each language was used in each course, highlighting a gap in how DLBE studies are conceptualized and measured. Further, the proportion of the two languages (e.g., Spanish and English) may shift over time, yet programs identified as DLBE 50/50 or DLBE 80/ 20 in language allocation generally claim their initial designation, not acknowledging how the percentage of each language used by teachers and students can change over time.…”