Budget woes threaten schools’ early language classes
After more than four years of learning Spanish, Lori Bryce said her daughter, Claire, is comfortable approaching native Spanish speakers and striking up a conversation.
That can be a daunting proposition after even a year or two of college Spanish, but Claire, now a fourth-grader in the HOLA dual language program at School 12 in Rochester, is evidence of the ease with which young minds can learn multiple languages.
While programs that teach second languages to elementary students are popular with parents and have been shown to improve overall academic performance, few such opportunities exist in the area. And around the country, districts are cutting elementary foreign language programs in response to budget shortfalls.
“Kids and parents look for these types of programs,” said David Baez, director of the City School District’s department of foreign language, because they promote bilingualism and cultural sensitivity.
But area parents looking for such programs might have trouble finding them, and some fear they could face elimination as the state contemplates deep cuts to education spending.
In Rochester, the K-6 programs at School 12 and School 33 host a combined 400 students, about half of whom are native Spanish speakers. Those programs, which differ slightly, have been around for decades. They teach English to Spanish-speaking children with greater success than traditional ESL programs and help English-speaking children become bilingual while providing the same foundation in other core subjects as other students.
The two programs typically have more English-speaking applicants than they can accommodate — evidence, some district administrators say, of an unmet demand.
Baez said the demand for deeper programs clearly outpaces the offerings.
“These are parents, families that are very sensitive and recognize the demographics, of course, of the United States, but also how important it is to have a second language and be able to be proficient,” Baez said. “Besides that, it’s a free program. They don’t have to buy Rosetta Stone,” a language instruction program.
The only other elementary foreign language programs in the city are introductory programs at select schools, where students learn vocabulary and bits of conversational Spanish a few times a week, but don’t get the true benefits of early language education.
“At the risk of sounding kind of silly in these grave economic times, it almost represents to me an efficiency,” because it’s very successful with both English-language learners and native English speakers, said Miriam Ehtesham-Cating, acting director of English for Speakers of Other Languages in the City School District.
But that hasn’t translated into expansion.
“Languages tend to be on the bottom of the pecking order,” said Mary Jane Curry, associate professor in the department of teaching and curriculum at the University of Rochester’s Warner School of Education.
“There are demonstrated benefits on many levels,” Curry said. “Kids who learn multiple languages at a young age … have greater cognitive ability.”
But several districts in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut recently have cut foreign and dual-language programs.
Baez, who urged school board members to consider expanding foreign language offerings in Rochester at a committee meeting recently, conceded that budget crunches have hurt programs.
“Yes, it has been affected because of funding,” Baez said. “But there are districts and states that have committed.” He cited a Connecticut school district where all students are educated bilingually in English and Spanish, with more languages offered in middle school.
In Monroe County, a handful of districts offer elementary foreign language in one form or another. The Greece school district offers a dual language program similar to Rochester’s, according to district spokesperson Laurel Heiden.
But in Brighton, plans to adopt an elementary foreign language curriculum are on hold, according to Deborah Baker, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.
“We studied this topic quite intensely last year with the idea that we would like to create our own,” Baker said. But a variety of concerns — including the budget — have shelved those plans.
Quest Elementary in Hilton and Lima Primary in the Honeoye Falls-Lima school district are two of the only other elementary foreign language programs in Monroe County.
Monroe County School Boards Association Executive Director Jody Siegle said any plans to add programs such as foreign language are on hold around the county.
“We don’t even know if we’ll be able to maintain the current programs through the current year,” Siegle said. The few elementary language programs that exist “are certainly going to be vulnerable. It depends how deep the cuts in state aid are.”
Rochester school board member Melisza Campos made language study a priority during her election campaign.
“My passion is in language,” Campos said. “When we talk about getting our kids ready for the 21st century, this is a key component.”
But she said financial realities make it impossible to seriously discuss expanding the offerings now.
And, she added, “the hardest part is having teachers to fill those positions.”
Curry, however, said that’s not necessarily true.
“In a sense I think it’s a chicken-and-egg thing,” she said. With few schools offering elementary language classes, people studying to be teachers are steered away. “My problem has been finding placements.”
Bryce, who has seen the benefits of City School District programs first hand, said she hopes the district will at least consider adding a third school to its dual language program to better serve the whole city.
“If the district sticks with this zone concept” — city schools are broken into three geographic zones — “it should each be present in all the zones,” Bryce said.
But Siegle said meaningful expansion here and elsewhere is going to require bigger change first.
Despite strong evidence that early foreign language study can improve performance across the board, she said in school districts nationally today “we see decision making that’s not driven by a real understanding of how children grow and learn.”
NRAMOS@DemocratandChronicle.com
