Release #473-00

 

Contact:	Sunny Mindel /Michael Anton (212) 788-2958	View the Press Conference Download
	Read Mayor's Report on Bilingual Education	Read the Mayor's Weekly Column

MAYOR GIULIANI, SCHOOLS CHANCELLOR LEVY,
AND TASK FORCE CHAIR RANDY MASTRO RELEASE REPORT OF
MAYOR'S TASK FORCE ON BILINGUAL EDUCATION

Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani-joined by members of the Mayor's Task Force on Bilingual Education, including Task Force Chairman and former Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, Schools Chancellor Harold Levy, Corporation Counsel Michael Hess, Multicultural Radio Broadcasting Vice-President Yvonne Liu, and Wildcat Service Corporation President and former New York City Board of Education Member Amalia Betanzos-today released the Task Force's report.

The report concludes that the current methods used by the New York City Board of Education to teach non-native English speaking children English are in need of serious reform. The report also provides a comprehensive analysis of the current system of bilingual education, and outlines several recommendations for reform.

"New York City is the gateway for thousands of immigrants each year, and immigration has long been a source of our City's greatest strength," Mayor Giuliani said. "It's essential that we do everything possible to give the children of immigrants every chance to succeed. It is essential to communicate in English to succeed in business in the United States and the world today. We must therefore make sure that every child learns English as quickly and effectively as possible.

"That is the goal of every one of the recommendations of this Task Force. This document is a blueprint for reform of bilingual education. I want to thank Randy Mastro, chair of the Task Force, Chancellor Levy, Michael Hess, and all the members of the Task Force for their hard work," the Mayor continued.

Schools Chancellor Levy said, "The Task Force Report is very constructive and I welcome this effort to improve the instructional program for ELL."

Task Force Chair Randy Mastro said, "Our report contains recommendations to the Mayor and the Board of Education for the reform of bilingual education with the goal of returning to the original intent of these programs-to make all students fluent in English. We look forward to working with the Board and the Chancellor to see that these reforms are implemented."

For the past 25 years, New York City has offered non-English speaking children of both immigrants and native-born parents programs of special instruction to aid their learning of English. In New York City, there are currently two main types of programs: a Bilingual Education transitional program, which serves about 51% of our general education English Language Learners, and a free standing English as a Second Language Program, known as "ESL," which serves the other 49%. In each program, students spend at least two periods a day studying English, depending on their level of English proficiency.

Transitional bilingual classes, which are for speakers of the same native language, initially offer monolingual native language instruction in content areas along with some ESL instruction in non-content areas. While students initially receive the majority of their subject area classes in their native language, the use of English increases slowly over time as students gain proficiency in the language. In ESL programs, English is the language of instruction throughout the day, and classes often include speakers of different native languages.

Years of uneven progress by both programs at teaching children English have highlighted the need for reform. For instance, according to Board of Education data:

• More than 50% of the students enrolled in bilingual education do not exit their programs within three years, which is the State's presumptive standard;
  
  
• 17.5% of students who entered bilingual programs in kindergarten in 1991 were still enrolled 9 years later;
  
  
• 22.6% of students who entered bilingual programs in the 1st grade were still enrolled 9 years later;
  
  
• 28.4% of students who entered bilingual programs in the 3rd grade were still enrolled 8 years later;
  
  
• 54.8% of students who began bilingual programs in the 6th grade in 1991 had not transitioned into a mainstream classroom by 1999; and
  
  
• 85.4% of the students who entered bilingual programs in 9th grade in 1991 did not transition out within four years, or by the traditional end of high school.

To address these problems, Mayor Giuliani formed the Bilingual Education Task Force in January of 1999. Over the past 18 months, the Mayor's Task Force on Bilingual Education has performed an extensive analysis of the state of bilingual education in the City of New York.

The Task Force's chief recommendations include:

• Meet and Beat a Three Year Goal of Transition for All Students - In all programs, the Board of Education should aim to beat the general standard established by State law, which calls for transition of all English Language Learners [ELLs] to English language classes within three years. The practice of granting an automatic waiver from the State standard should be ended. In the cases where students do not make the transition within three years, there should be a concerted emphasis on remediation. Moreover, students beyond the first year of instruction who do not make expected gains should be encouraged to enroll in summer or after-school programs with English Language instruction.
  
  
• Increase Parental Choice - Parents of English Language Learners should be given the option of enrolling their children in an Accelerated English Language Acquisition Option, which would aim to transition children to mainstream, English-speaking, classrooms within one year through intensive English language instruction. Parents should also have the option to enroll their children in summer-school programs offering intensive English language instruction.
  
  
• Ensure Informed Parental Choice - Currently, placement in bilingual programs often precedes parental notification, and parents typically are not informed about their right to opt out of Bilingual education and have their children receive ESL instruction until after the school year has already begun. Instead of school districts placing children automatically in any one program, the districts should ensure that parents exercise the right to make the choice in the first instance.
  
  
• Improve Quality of Instruction - The recruitment drive for qualified Bilingual and ESL teachers should be dramatically expanded. In addition, the Board should require the certification of all new and existing teachers to ensure that students will have access to the highest quality of instruction, and to ensure that teachers will speak English, since English proficiency is a requirement of certification.
  
  
• Revise Entry and Exit Criteria - Criteria for exit from bilingual programs should be changed from a percentile score on a standardized test to performance-based criteria that will provide a more accurate and individualizes assessment of a student's readiness to move into an English speaking, general education classroom. Under the current percentile-based system, by definition, 40% of all students - including native English language speakers - would never be able to meet the criterion for exit.
  
  
• Review Status of English Language Learners in Special Education - English Language Learners are referred to special education 2.5 times more frequently than English-speaking students. To ensure that English Language Learners are not referred to special education unnecessarily, all assessments of English Language Learners should be conducted in both English and the student's native language. Consideration should be given to educational/experiential background and language proficiency in order to differentiate a language difficulty as opposed to a true disability.
  
  
• Continuous Measurement of Student Achievement - The Board of Education should document system-wide transition rates for all ELL students by instructional methodology, language group, district, school, grade, as well as the students' academic success in and beyond bilingual services. Socioeconomic factors, which can be measured through available data, such as qualification for the federal lunch subsidy, should also be measured to facilitate further studies, and allow New York City to develop the most comprehensive database of English Language Learner achievement in the nation.

In addition, Task Force Chairman Randy Mastro recommends, in an Appendix to the report, that the City and the Board of Education move to vacate the 26-year-old federal court Aspira Consent Decree. This would enable the Board of Education and the Chancellor to set bilingual education policy, consistent with State law, just as they make decisions on other issues of importance faced by the City's public schools.

The full set of recommendations, plus data regarding bilingual education, are contained in the Task Force Report. Copies of the Report are available through the Mayor's Press Office.

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