An evaluative study was done of California's Bilingual Education Program, the goal of which has been to teach English and other academic skills to more than half a million students with limited English backgrounds. While the State Department of Education provided no comprehensive evaluation, there is evidence that some components have been extremely successful. Where students are instructed by a bilingual teacher, academic subjects are introduced in a language students understand and English is taught simultaneously, gains were demonstrated. Schools using this approach report English fluency for most students within 2 to 3 years. Areas for concern include the following: (1) only about one-third of students in bilingual programs are enrolled in bilingual classrooms and only about-half of these are staffed by bilingual teachers; (2) most children in the program are served through individual learning plans or other methods for which there is no good evidence of effectiveness; and (3) although bilingual classes are the most cost effective method of providing instruction, efforts to implement fully this method on a statewide basis have been limited. The main impediment to implementation is a shortage of bilingual teachers. Five figures supplement the text and three appendices provide two graphs and two tables showing the concentration of limited English students statewide and teacher demand figures and projections. A list of 12 references is also provided. (JB)