San Marcos CISD will introduce a new two-way dual-language program for kindergartners and first-grade students in the fall semester.

Under the new program, students entering kindergarten and first grade in the fall will have the option of taking classes that are taught partially in Spanish and partially in English. Half the students in each class will be native English speakers, and half will be native Spanish speakers.

“It’s a better way to meet the educational needs of our students and the community,” said Monica Ruiz-Mills, assistant superintendent of teaching, learning and assessments. “We have fluent Spanish speakers and English speakers, so how can we best serve both populations?”

The program will be expanded into grades 2-5 as the kindergarten and first-grade students who begin the program next year advance into new grades in coming years. Officials say they hope to expand the program into middle school and high school.

“That is critical because we want that balance of classes to maintain as they move up, and research says it takes seven years to really acquire the language, so we want these kids to really gradually increase and acquire their language,” Director of Bilingual Education Benjamin Grijalva said.

The district’s current model for teaching English to Spanish-speaking students is focused on having the students become fluent in English, which can be detrimental to the development of their native language, Grijalva said. Research shows if a student has a good foundation in his or her native language, he or she will be much more likely to successfully learn a second language, he said.

“The whole idea of bilingual education or dual-language is to maintain both languages and be biliterate and bilingual,” Grijalva said. “That means reading, writing, speaking, listening and comprehending in both languages.”

Students act as teachers in some regards, Grijalva said. Spanish speakers help English speakers during Spanish-intensive lessons, and vice versa. The program will also teach students about diversity and how culture and language influence each other, Grijalva said.

In May, the SMCISD board of trustees approved an increase in the annual stipend offered to bilingual education teachers from $2,500 to $4,000.

The program will be offered at De Zavala, Bowie, Hernandez and Mendez elementary schools. Non-bilingual students at Crockett and Travis elementary schools will have the option of applying to the program and moving to one of the four campuses offering the two-way dual-language program. If such a student from Crockett or Travis is accepted into the program, that student’s parent or guardian will have to arrange for transportation to the campus.

Because of federal rules regarding bilingual services provided by school districts, bilingual students within the Crockett and Travis attendance zones will be offered transportation to one of the four campuses offering the program if they choose to enroll in it.

Grijalva said parental involvement is going to be crucial to the program’s success. The district is taking that point seriously enough that it is inviting parents of students in the program to professional development in August that is typically reserved for teachers.

“The critical area in dual-language is the way these programs are supported,” Grijalva said. “It’s not by administration. The foundation, the consistency, starts with our parents. If they’re informed, then there will be consistency year after year with the program.”

For more information, parents and guardians can call their student’s campus administrator or Benjamin Grijalva at 512-393-6974.