PHOENIX — There are differing opinions on how to best teach students who are English language learners in the state. The Arizona School Boards Association (ASBA), a group that advocates for schools and has districts as part of its membership, typically goes to state lawmakers and recommends policies each year.
The group, and their school members, figure out different priorities every school year and on the list this year is to possibly amend Proposition 203, the voter-approved proposition back in 2000 that mandated how English language learners are taught the language.
Chris Kotterman, the director of government relations with ASBA, said districts have told them the way English immersion is being taught now, they feel students are falling behind.
“We think that Prop 203 has brought about some unintended consequences in terms of the ability of teachers to impart language skills to students in the best in the way that's best for that students,” Kotterman said.
He added that they’re fine with keeping a mandate on teaching students English.
“That's part of our fundamental responsibility,” Kotterman continued. “But, we don't want it to be a way in which the legislature can prescribe in minute detail how students are to be taught English.”
The group wants more flexibility, wanting it to be up to the teachers for best practices for each individual student. Kotterman says there needs to be a better way to help students who are learning English and they have gotten some flexibility approved in past years. There are several ways Structured English Immersion is being taught now. The different models are approved by the Arizona State Board of Education which oversees the Arizona Department of Education.
“What they're proposing is very negative for the students’ academic development and it shows immersion in ideology, rather than concern for the students,” Superintendent Tom Horne told ABC15.
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The number of students, who are learning English, and passing the state’s English language assessment test has been declining over the years.
According to data provided by the Arizona Department of Education, in Fiscal Year 2009, under the four-hour English immersion model, it was at 29%. In fiscal year 2011, it grew to 33% then started its decline. In 2015, it was at 27% where the ADE said there were some changes made by the State Board of Education.
In Fiscal Year 2020, it declined down to 14%. That was the same year the two-hour immersion model went into effect. The tail end of that fiscal year was also the start of the pandemic. The number continued to decline over the years and the State Board of Education approved the new models for English immersion in Fiscal Year 2021. In 2023, the passing rate was at 12%.
“What we need to do is arrive at a compromise, I guess, as to what it actually means to be able to be proficient in English,” Kotterman continued. “Enough to go back into the classroom ... and not fall far behind. And the 50-50 model is an attempt to try to get that content delivered to students as they're learning English as well.”
Horne maintains that the 50-50 model, where students typically learn half the day in English and the other half in another language, continues to violate Prop 203. He’s been fighting that and a judge found he had no legal standing to sue. So, his wife filed a lawsuit, representing a Scottsdale mother who is suing a Phoenix school district over that program. That case is still going through the courts.
Kotterman said the representing members of school districts part of the association will be getting together at an annual delegate assembly in early September and will vote on priorities this upcoming year. He said the topic of English immersion had been a priority in years past.
If any changes happen to Structured English Immersion as it is under Prop 203, it would need to be approved by the state legislature, and voters and go through the State Board of Education with the State Superintendent, Kotterman said.
