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‘They’re little sponges’: Kids who start kindergarten without English proficiency often do better in school than peers, University of Chicago study finds

Chicago Public Schools students who aren’t proficient in English when they enter kindergarten tend to have better attendance and in some cases higher test scores than their peers who are native English speakers, according to a new study by the University of Chicago.

Researchers and officials in CPS, where about a third of students are identified as English learners at some point during their schooling, said the findings should help dispel misconceptions that children in English learning programs are less likely to succeed academically than their peers.

The findings are a “major milestone” for these students, said CPS CEO Janice Jackson during an announcement and panel Tuesday morning at Socorro Sandoval Elementary in the Southwest Side’s Gage Park neighborhood, where district figures show more than 95% of students are Latino and nearly 60% are English learners.

Jorge Macias, CPS’ chief officer of Language and Cultural Education, spoke of sharing a “new narrative” regarding bilingual education in Chicago.

“This is a story that we hope resonates not just in our district but nationwide,” Macias said.

According to the new research, more than three out of four CPS students who started kindergarten as English learners were proficient by fifth grade, but few reached proficiency in upper grades.

The study is the first that looked at the long-term trajectories of English learners, following the progress from kindergarten to eighth grade of 18,000 CPS students who began school without English proficiency, according to authors of the study by the Consortium on School Research. Prior studies focused on moment-in-time snapshots of students who had not yet reached English proficiency, according to the researchers.

At Sandoval, about 60% of students are English learners, but Principal Wilma David said the school approaches all of the students as learners of academic English — and that starting school without English proficiency is not a barrier to achievement.

“Our students are capable, they have the potential. They’re little sponges and they’re able to do it,” David said.

CPS officials said the study findings show the benefits of the district’s bilingual supports and programming. Macias said Jackson has championed the expansion of bilingual education initiatives. Since 2015, more than 5,500 CPS students have graduated with a nationally recognized designation that they’re proficient in English and another language, according to CPS.

New CPS students may be screened for English learner programs based on their parents’ answers to surveys asking about languages spoken at home and by the student. Screening includes an English language proficiency test tailored to the student’s grade and age. Depending on their scores, students may be placed in a transitional bilingual education program, according to CPS. Both English learners and English-proficient students can seek enrollment in a Dual Language Program.

CPS since 2016 has more than doubled the number of schools that, like Sandoval, has a dual language program, according the district. Students in these programs learn core subjects in both their native languages and English, an immersive approach educators say helps them with literacy, fluency and cultural understanding. Now 41 schools offer dual language programs or are on the path to having one, Jackson said, noting this year CPS allocated $12 million for supports for bilingual education.

She said it’s important to celebrate the rich heritage bilingual students bring to schools, nodding to families who have maintained their native language and culture at home while supporting their children’s education. A theme among speakers Tuesday stressed the role parents can play in school communities.

“When there is parent presence in a school, you see progress,” Board of Education President Miguel del Valle said, pointing to decorations in the gymnasium as evidence of parent involvement at Sandoval.

Large red flowers had been affixed to a basketball hoop behind the stage, with chains of red and green paper streaming down to a platform lined with potted poinsettias and small pine trees.

Ahead of the main presentation, a group of Sandoval students wearing jeans, bolo ties, cowboy hats and boots performed the calabaceado, a dance from Baja, California. The students lined up in rows and performed the traditional kicks, stomps and turns.

Next a group of students wearing all black clothing, sneakers and red or black hats did a breakdance-heavy routine to “This Is How We Do It,” finishing by clapping in a circle and taking turns in the middle.

CPS Chief Education Officer LaTanya McDade, who moderated the panel discussion of researchers and educators, called the research “groundbreaking.”

While statistics reported publicly often suggest English learners are behind English-proficient students, the new research indicates on average these students had similar achievement and growth through eighth grade and similar rates of ninth graders considered “on track” to graduate, according to the study.

When families look at the Illinois State Board of Education’s report cards to see how CPS English learners are doing, they’re likely “to come away thinking bilingual education is a failure,” said panelist Elaine Allensworth, the Lewis-Sebring director of the UChicago Consortium.

“The opposite is actually true,” Allensworth said. “We need to have data out there that represents all … not just a tiny subset of students.”

Most statistics about English learning students are based on students considered “active English learners” and don’t capture those who started out as English learners but became proficient, according to the study.

The 2019 ISBE report card did show English learners in CPS had a lower rate of chronic absenteeism than the student population overall. But it also recorded current English language learners having lower proficiency rates than their peers in math, science and language arts, and being less likely to meet or exceed standards on standardized testing.

Among the consortium study’s other findings:

* Students who started out as English learners and were proficient by eighth grade actually had better attendance, math scores and grades in core classes than students who were never English learners, and had similar scores on reading tests.

* But students who don’t attain proficiency in English by the time they finish fifth grade aren’t likely to get there before high school.

* The majority of students who don’t reach proficiency by eighth grade are boys, and they are more likely to have been identified as needing special education services. They also showed declining attendance, lower grade averages and lower rates of on-track freshmen.

The study suggested that future research could work toward a way of identifying those students early and finding ways to more effectively support them.

“More effective supports are needed to serve these students, and the authors suggest there may be an opportunity to identify these students early on — in kindergarten or first grade,” according to a summary of the study.