A Los Angeles bilingual elementary school was evaluated for the effectiveness of its dual reading program for bilingual first graders, the effectiveness of the native language literacy approach for Spanish dominants, and evidence of bias in the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS). One hundred thirty-one Spanish and English dominant children…

This paper, written from the perspective of a classroom teacher who is also the child of immigrant parents, examines issues related to teaching reading to low-literate minority students for whom English is not their first language. The paper presents background issues, examines the process of language acquisition, and focuses on the following: the…