Effects of Dual-Language Immersion Programs on Student Achievement - Evidence From Lottery Data

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Stanley

Using lottery-based data from seven cohorts of language immersion applicants in a large urban school district, the study estimates the causal impact of dual-language immersion on student test scores in reading, mathematics, and science and on English learner (EL) reclassification. Results show positive intent-to-treat gains for reading in fifth and eighth grades, with learning impacts equivalent to about 7–9 months. Little benefit appears for mathematics and science, without negative effects. By sixth and seventh grade, ELs are less likely to remain classified as EL, especially when the EL’s native language matches the partner language.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages25

Reading Time1 h 3 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Dual-language immersion growth and rationale

Study design and lottery-based identification

Core findings on achievement and EL reclassification

American Educational Research Journal April 2017, Vol. 54, No. 1S, pp. 282S–306S DOI: 10.3102/0002831216634463 􀀂 2017 AERA. [http://aerj](http://aerj).[aera.net](aera.net) Effects of Dual-Language Immersion Programs on Student Achievement: Evidence From Lottery Data Jennifer L. Steele American University Robert O. Slater American Councils for International Education Gema Zamarro University of Arkansas Trey Miller Jennifer Li Susan Burkhauser RAND Corporation Michael Bacon Portland Public Schools Using data from seven cohorts of language immersion lottery applicants ina large, urban school district, we estimate the causal effects of immersion programs on students’ test scores in reading, mathematics, and science and on English learners’ (EL) reclassification. We estimate positive intentto-treat (ITT) effects on reading performance in fifth and eighth grades, ranging from 13% to 22% of a standard deviation, reflecting 7 to 9 months of learning. We find little benefit in terms of mathematics and science performance but also no detriment. By sixth and seventh grade, lottery winners’probabilities of remaining classified as EL are 3 to 4 percentage points lower than those of their counterparts. This effect is stronger for ELs whose native language matches the partner language. KEYWORDS: dual-language immersion, student achievement, English language learners, urban education, language education Introduction Dual-language immersion schools, which provide native English speakers and English learners (ELs) with general academic instruction in two languages from kindergarten onward, have shown recent and rapid proliferation in the United States. The Center for Applied Linguistics Dual-Language Immersion Programs and Student Achievement (2011a, 2011b) estimates that the number of immersion schools in the United States grew from 278 to 448 between 1999 and 2011, but more recent extrapolations place the latest number between 1,000 and 2,000 (Maxwell, 2012; Watanabe, 2011) . For instance, through recent statewide efforts, Utah is home to at least 118 language immersion schools and North Carolina to 94 (North Carolina Department of Education, 2014; Utah State Office of Education, 2014) . Meanwhile, the New York City Department of Education more than doubled the number of dual-language immersion programs it offers, from about 82 to 192, between the 2012–2013 and 2015–2016 school years (New York City Department of Education, 2015; Schneider, 2013) . This proliferation is notable because in contrast to many other parts of the world, U.S. public schools have not traditionally exposed students to a second language in the early grades (Devlin, 2015) . Even so, some evidence suggests that the popularity of dual-language immersion is growing internationally as well as in the United States (Tedick, Christian, & Fortune, 2011) . Domestically, this swift expansion of an approach that was recently considered boutique seems driven by several complementary forces: growth in the share of U.S. school children who are ELs (U.S. Department of Education, 2014), observational evidence that ELs in dual-language immersion programs outperform ELs in English-only or transitional bilingual programs (Collier & Thomas, 2004; Lindholm-Leary & Block, 2010; Umansky & Reardon, 2014; Valentino & Reardon, 2015), and demand from parents of JENNIFER L. STEELE is an associate professor of education at American University, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. , NW, Washington, DC 20016-8030; e-mail: [steele@american.edu](steele@american.edu). Her research addresses urban education policy, teacher quality, and transitions to college and career. ROBERT O. SLATER is a senior consultant for policy research at American Councils for International Education, where he studies programs aimed at fostering multilingualism and global citizenship. GEMA ZAMARRO is the 21st Century Endowed Chair in Teacher Quality at the Department of Education Reform at th

FAQs

How does the study estimate the causal effects of immersion programs?

It uses lottery data that randomly assigns native English speakers and English learners to language immersion, enabling causal estimates of program impact.

What outcomes show improvement for students in the study?

The study finds positive intent-to-treat effects on reading performance in fifth and eighth grades, corresponding to roughly 7–9 months of learning.

How do the results affect English learner reclassification?

By sixth and seventh grade, lottery winners’ probabilities of remaining classified as English learners are 3–4 percentage points lower, with a stronger effect when the native language matches the partner language.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Stanley