Contact: David Gersten
(202)639-0803

(Washington) – U.S. Senator Jon Kyl (Arizona) will join Center for Equal Opportunity President Linda Chavez at a press conference in room SC-4 of the U.S. Capitol at 9:00 a.m. on May 24 to call attention to a new publication for teachers that helps them use English immersion to instruct their language-minority students.  CEO will release The ABC’s of English Immersion: A Teachers’ Guide to enable school administrators and teachers to reform their failing bilingual education programs.  Arizona, where voters have followed in California's footsteps by voting for English-immersion programs, will be the recipient of most of the printed copies of the new guidebook.

The comprehensive guide provides school districts with the information on the best way to teach English to non-English-speakers.  Requests from teachers for training in how to implement English immersion have steadily increased as school district after school district abandons bilingual education.

“Most teachers, even those in school districts where English immersion has been adopted, have had scant training and resources at their disposal to implement quality immersion programs in their classrooms, until now,” said Senator Kyl.  “This publication is a great resource for the teachers in Arizona and around the country.”

Linda Chavez, a long-time proponent of English immersion, said: “With the publication of The ABC’s of English Immersion: A Teachers’ Guide, schools will finally have a blueprint for teaching non-English-speakers our nation's language.  This guide will be part of the cure for failing bilingual education programs that have hampered language minority children for too long.”

The essays contained in The ABC’s of English Immersion provide specific suggestions by teachers and education experts for implementing immersion programs. 

Contributing authors of the guide include: Dr. Rosalie Pedalino Porter of the Institute for Research in English Acquisition and Development, Dr. Christine Rossell of Boston University, Dr. Russell Gersten of the University of Oregon, Kevin Clark of Clark Consulting Group, and English-as-a-second-language teachers Douglas Lasken, Richard Munro, and Janet Siano. The “Bibliography of Successful Reading Texts” section of the guide lists recommended materials for English immersion.

The guidebook is available on CEO’s website, www.ceousa.org, and hard copies can be ordered by contacting CEO at (202) 639-0803.  The Center for Equal Opportunity is a nonprofit research and educational organization based in Washington, D.C.  It focuses on civil rights and language issues nationwide.