The Sociolinguistic Environment of a Bilingual School: A Case Study Introduction

Currently, much of the literature on school reform and renewal cites the need to look at reform from the level of the school as unit. Therefore, it is necessary to study programs such as bilingual programs in the context of the larger school environment in which they exist. The larger school context can greatly impact what goes on in bilingual classrooms within the school. This study reports the results of a case study of a school that labels itself as a “bilingual school”. The study examines and describes language use in bilingual classrooms in the school and language use in the larger school environment outside of the classroom. The study asserts that if bilingual programs are to be places where children truly become bilingual and biliterate, then the environment outside of the classroom must encourage and support the use of two languages with the same enthusiasm as the environment inside bilingual classrooms. Further, each language must have the same status outside the classroom in a bilingual school. Results of the study conclude that, while two languages are used both inside and outside bilingual classes at this school, they each serve different functions. Further, while both languages are used, they do not share equal status. Evidence for these results is provided in the study.