Francis Scott Key Elementary School (Arlington, Virginia)
Encyclopedia
Francis Scott Key Elementary School is one of the eighteen elementary schools in Arlington, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C.
. It is a countywide school, meaning that it draw students from various neighborhoods in the county. It is named after Francis Scott Key
.
Spanish
-English
immersion program that has been in operation in the school since 1986. In Arlington, Spanish is the most widely spoken minority
language. Also present are others such as Vietnamese
, Urdu
, and Tigrinya. Prior to the 1986-87 school year the Key School had no "pullout classes" for minority language students. The school principal collaborated with the Public Schools Bilingual Program Office in Hartford, Connecticut
to design the program.
The two-way immersion
program begins in Kindergarten
in a classroom that consists of English speakers and Spanish speakers. From the beginning, the instruction is split between both languages. The program provides English-speaking children the unique opportunity to acquire a second language early in life through the immersion process. It provides the Spanish-speaking students the opportunity to receive education in English while enhancing their verbal and literacy skills in Spanish. Parents of Spanish-speaking children in the program indicate that their children feel a greater sense of pride and ethnic identity because of their fluency in their mother tongue. Also, since Spanish-speakers see that administrators and others in power value Spanish, they do not view their mother tongue as inferior as do some of their peers who do not have this educational opportunity.
Classes are conducted in Spanish for half of the day and in English for half of the day. The students learn math, science, Spanish Language arts, music and art in Spanish with one teacher with a different teacher instructing them in English language arts, social studies and health in English. Students switch teachers and languages at mid-day, so that some students study in English in the morning and in Spanish in the afternoon, and some have the reverse schedule. Grades K-3 do not focus heavily on grammar in the Spanish language classes; however, students in Grades 4 and 5 receive a much stronger instruction in this area. Children in the immersion program are held to the same academic standards of all Arlington County Public Schools.
Key School maintains an annual student exchange program with Escuela Americana (EA) in San Salvador, El Salvador. From nine to fifteen fifth-grade students travel to El Salvador for about ten days in January or February each year, and a similar number of EA students travel to the United States six to ten weeks later.
Most of the fifth-grade students continue their immersion studies at the immersion continuation program at Gunston Middle School
.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. It is a countywide school, meaning that it draw students from various neighborhoods in the county. It is named after Francis Scott Key
Francis Scott Key
Francis Scott Key was an American lawyer, author, and amateur poet, from Georgetown, who wrote the lyrics to the United States' national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner".-Life:...
.
Immersion program
The school is unique because it has a two-wayDual language
Dual language is a form of education in which students are taught literacy and content in two languages. The majority of dual language programs in the United States teach in English and Spanish, although increasing numbers of programs use a partner language other than Spanish, such as Arabic,...
Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
-English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
immersion program that has been in operation in the school since 1986. In Arlington, Spanish is the most widely spoken minority
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
language. Also present are others such as Vietnamese
Vietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
, Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
, and Tigrinya. Prior to the 1986-87 school year the Key School had no "pullout classes" for minority language students. The school principal collaborated with the Public Schools Bilingual Program Office in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
to design the program.
The two-way immersion
Dual language
Dual language is a form of education in which students are taught literacy and content in two languages. The majority of dual language programs in the United States teach in English and Spanish, although increasing numbers of programs use a partner language other than Spanish, such as Arabic,...
program begins in Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
in a classroom that consists of English speakers and Spanish speakers. From the beginning, the instruction is split between both languages. The program provides English-speaking children the unique opportunity to acquire a second language early in life through the immersion process. It provides the Spanish-speaking students the opportunity to receive education in English while enhancing their verbal and literacy skills in Spanish. Parents of Spanish-speaking children in the program indicate that their children feel a greater sense of pride and ethnic identity because of their fluency in their mother tongue. Also, since Spanish-speakers see that administrators and others in power value Spanish, they do not view their mother tongue as inferior as do some of their peers who do not have this educational opportunity.
Goals of the program
- To provide children with an education that is at least as good or better than the education they would have received in an English-only classroom.
- To ensure that children develop strong skills in the Spanish language
- To encourage positive cross-cultural relationships between students
Teachers and Staff
The staff includes 30 classroom teachers, almost all of whom are bilingual, 12 teacher's assistants, nine specials teachers (music, art, PE), 25 resource teachers, and an immersion specialist who serves as coordinator of the program. There are no formal requirements for language proficiency, but it is a major assessment during the interview process.Curriculum
- Two-Way ImmersionDual languageDual language is a form of education in which students are taught literacy and content in two languages. The majority of dual language programs in the United States teach in English and Spanish, although increasing numbers of programs use a partner language other than Spanish, such as Arabic,...
Classes are conducted in Spanish for half of the day and in English for half of the day. The students learn math, science, Spanish Language arts, music and art in Spanish with one teacher with a different teacher instructing them in English language arts, social studies and health in English. Students switch teachers and languages at mid-day, so that some students study in English in the morning and in Spanish in the afternoon, and some have the reverse schedule. Grades K-3 do not focus heavily on grammar in the Spanish language classes; however, students in Grades 4 and 5 receive a much stronger instruction in this area. Children in the immersion program are held to the same academic standards of all Arlington County Public Schools.
Key School maintains an annual student exchange program with Escuela Americana (EA) in San Salvador, El Salvador. From nine to fifteen fifth-grade students travel to El Salvador for about ten days in January or February each year, and a similar number of EA students travel to the United States six to ten weeks later.
Most of the fifth-grade students continue their immersion studies at the immersion continuation program at Gunston Middle School
Middle Schools of Arlington County, Virginia
There are currently five middle schools in Arlington County, Virginia, administered by the Arlington Public Schools.-Gunston Middle School:Gunston Middle School is located at 2700 South Lang Street. The principal is Margaret Gill. As of 2006-2007, there were 605 students enrolled and more than 69...
.