One Nation

Cambridge, MA – On November 3, 2012, One Nation Indivisible hosted a strategy session for educators, scholars, and supporters of two-way immersion (also known as two-way bilingual education) in Massachusetts. In two-way immersion schools and programs, children learn in two languages and a substantial share of students are native speakers of a language other than English. In an effort to broaden the network of support for these programs, we explored the following questions:

• What can Massachusetts learn from other states where elected leaders and educators have created and supported two-way immersion programs in a systematic fashion?
• What does the newest and most rigorous research say about the benefits of two-way immersion?
• What kinds of challenges would educators in Massachusetts face if they were to consider expansion of dual immersion programs and schools?
• In what ways could state education leaders provide more support to existing dual immersion programs?
• What kinds of connections – to advocacy groups or other educational or civic organizations – might bring dual immersion educators into the policy discourse and increase its visibility?

• North Carolina Study of Two-Way Immersion, Executive Summary, Year 1
• North Carolina Study of Two-Way Immersion, Executive Summary, Year 2
• “A New Rationale for Dual Immersion” in Language Magazine (2012)
• Utah’s Dual Immersion Schools and Programs
• Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity and Avoid Racial Isolation in Elementary and Secondary Schools
• National Coalition on School Diversity