Arizona State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Horne, continues to press that some school districts are teaching dual language illegally , specifically for the students who are still learning English and are not fluent.
One of the models that is being taught in Arizona schools is the 50-50 model in which half the day, students learn in English and the other half in another language, typically Spanish.
However, since Horne took office, he’s continuously maintained that schools that use this model for students, who are not fluently-tested in English, are breaking a voter-approved proposition passed in 2000.
Horne specifically points to a certain provision in that proposition:
All children in Arizona public schools shall be taught English by being taught in English and all children should be placed in English-language classrooms.
The battle over dual language continues with new developments in the last month. Horne’s office sent a letter to all school districts that they recommend schools to send out parental waivers for English language learner students to be in dual language immersion.
“It was advice, but it was not a requirement. It was just saying to them, ‘Listen, you may want to consider doing this because we think we'll win this lawsuit, and if we do, you'll have to get waivers anyway for students who want to have them do dual language,’” Horne explained.
The lawsuit Horne is referring to is one that was brought on by a Scottsdale parent who is suing a Phoenix school district, one the student does not attend, saying they’re illegally operating the 50-50 dual language immersion program. The attorney representing the parent is Horne’s wife.
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That lawsuit was filed in March, weeks after Horne’s own lawsuit was dismissed by a judge who said he had no legal standing to sue. The lawsuit filed by Horne’s wife is still going through the court.
According to the Arizona State Board of Education, which oversees the Arizona Department of Education (ADE), parental waivers for English language learners to be in 50-50 dual language immersion are not required as it was affirmed in an Arizona State Attorney General opinion issued last year.
That opinion was released after state representatives asked the AG’s Office to clarify the law as Horne tried to reiterate that the current model some schools use is breaking the law.
The letter sent last month for the recommendation comes after seven school districts were placed on corrective action after routine audits in the Spring. Those districts were initially Glendale Elementary School District, Kyrene Elementary School District, Phoenix Elementary School District, Mesa Public Schools, Laveen Elementary School District, the Creighton Elementary School District, and the Mexicayotl Academy, according to ADE.
In that corrective action, it said that schools needed to have parental waivers for those students. However, after that was sent, ADE fixed the situation after the Arizona State Board of Education sent ADE a reminder that it is not required. State Board of Education executive director Sean Ross said ADE fixed the issue immediately.
After that fix, the Phoenix Elementary, Mesa Public Schools, Laveen Elementary and Creighton Elementary school districts were removed from corrective action status. The others remain on corrective action but for other issues not in relation to the specifics of parental waivers.
The Phoenix Elementary School District says it has paused its dual language immersion program for this school year, wanting to revamp the program after 20 plus years of it going on in the district. While those plans to look at the program were already in the works, a district spokesperson said ADE’s audit also helped solidified the district’s decision in moving forward to rework it.
“This was a time we thought within reason to take a pause and ensure that we have stakeholders that will be part of a committee to ensure we implement a good, solid program,” said Mary Lou Gonzales, the coordinator of language acquisition at the Phoenix Elementary School District.
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