A Meta-Analysis of the Rossell and Baker Review of Bilingual Education Research

Abstract In 1996, Christine Rossell and Keith Baker conducted a review of the literature on the effectiveness of bilingual education and concluded that the majority of 75 methodologically acceptable studies showed that bilingual education was not beneficial. This study re-examines their literature review to verify the Rossell and Baker list of methodologically acceptable studies. After identifying only 11 studies that actually meet the standards for being methodologically acceptable, this study aggregates the results of those studies by a technique known as meta-analysis. The conclusion of the meta-analysis is that the use of at least some native language in the instruction of limited English proficient children has moderate beneficial effects on those children relative to their being taught only in English.