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A COMPARISON OF THE MONOLINGUAL ENGLISH IMMERSION AND THE BILINGUAL EDUCATION APPROACHES ON THE ENGLISH READING SKILLS OF LIMITED-ENGLISH - PROFICIENT CHILDREN, GRADES 1, 3, AND 5.

Author
MONZON, NANCY LEE
Physical Description
151 pages
Additional Creators
Pennsylvania State University
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Summary
The purpose of this study was to investigate two different methodological approaches: (1) the transitional bilingual education program (BE), and (2) the monolingual English immersion program (ME), in the teaching of English reading to Puerto Rican limited-English-proficient (LEP) children.
The sample population consisted of pupils in grades 1, 3, and 5, all of whom attended elementary school in the same southeastern Pennsylvania community. The pupils were divided into two groups at each grade level according to their participation in the BE or ME programs.
Both groups at each grade level were administered the appropriate level of the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests, Second Edition (GM), consisting of two subtests, vocabulary and comprehension, which together yielded a total reading score. The groups were then compared according to subtest and total reading score in order to compare progress in English reading achievement. The data were analyzed by means of regression analysis and appropriate follow-up tests.
The findings of the study were as follows: (1) The analyses of the grade-by-program-type interactions indicated that the Puerto Rican LEP children in both programs were learning to read English; however, those children in the ME program showed significant improvement in vocabulary development as compared with those children in the BE program. (2) The analyses of the program-type main effects indicated that the performance of the Puerto Rican LEP children in the ME program was significantly greater than that of the Puerto Rican LEP children in the BE program in vocabulary, comprehension, and total English reading. (3) The analyses of the grade main effects indicated that the Puerto Rican LEP children in both programs were increasing their knowledge of English reading skills over several grades. Significant differences were found on the comprehension subtest between grades 1 and 3 and between grades 1 and 5, and on total English reading between grades 1 and 3.
The findings of the study suggest that the more exposure, over time, which the Puerto Rican LEP/ME pupils had to English reading skills, greater was their learning of English reading skills, as compared with the Puerto Rican LEP/BE pupils who had less exposure over time to English reading skills and who performed less well. If increased proficiency in English reading skills is a primary goal, regardless of the methodological approach used, then perhaps more emphasis needs to be placed on the teaching of these skills.
Other Subject(s)
Dissertation Note
Ph.D. The Pennsylvania State University 1981.
Note
Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-09, Section: A, page: 3897.
Part Of
Dissertation Abstracts International
42-09A
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