Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Emergent Bilingual topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
District falls three students short of bilingual program threshold, officials say
Summary
GISD has 131 emergent bilingual students but no bilingual program because no single grade meets the 20 same-language students threshold; 8th grade has 17 students, and the district discussed pull-out ESL and content‑based options.
District officials told trustees that Gladewater ISD is close to meeting the state threshold to require a bilingual program but remains three students short in a single grade. "We are currently at 17 students in 8th grade," Executive Master Teacher and CAO Kim Dolese said, noting the state requires 20 students in one grade who speak the same non‑English language to trigger a bilingual program.
Dolese described two approaches to serving emergent bilingual (EB) students: a content‑based model, in which one teacher covers core subjects at elementary/primary levels, and a pull‑out model where students attend an ESL classroom. She said GISD currently serves about 131 EB students districtwide, most ELAR teachers are ESL‑certified, but 7th grade lacks a certified ESL teacher and therefore uses pull‑out services.
Trustees heard the status as informational; no change to programming was approved that night. Dolese said district leaders continue to monitor enrollment and certification to determine whether and when to implement a bilingual program.
