Dual Language Learners (DLLs) comprise 33% of children under the age of 8 (Child Trends, 2016), a demographic trend reflected in early childhood education (ECE) programs, preschool to grade 3. Twenty-six percent of infants and toddlers in Early Head Start programs come from homes where a language other than English is spoken (Administration for Children and Families, 2013) and 29% of those, ages 3 to 6, who attend Head Start, are classified as DLLs (U. S. Department of Health & Human Services & U. S. Department of Education, 2016). DLLs now comprise 16% of the total student enrollments grades K to 3, a number that will continue to increase given that children from non-white racial and ethnic groups are the fastest growing segment of the U. S. population. ECE programs target children from low income backgrounds because these children tend to perform significantly below their peers on assessments of physical health, cognitive abilities, and language development. Low scores on these indicators are predictive of grade retention, special education placement, and school attrition (Engle & Black, 2008). We argue that high-quality preschool programs can counteract negative schooling outcomes by ensuring that children are academically ready for kindergarten and that continued success is dependent on access to high quality programs in the primary grades. Unfortunately, DLLs do not always have access to effective ECE programs because of the shortage of qualified teachers who are also certified as bilingual education and/or English as a second language teachers. Inadequately prepared teachers make instructional decisions based on misconceptions about DLLs and about the process of second language acquisition which hinder children’s academic and social success. These occurrences, in concert with the lack of culturally and linguistically responsive preschool curricula and related instructional materials validated for DLLs, may explain why the benefits of preschool education are not always sustained as children transition to elementary school. In other instances, DLLs have excellent preschool experiences, but do not continue to thrive because they may be enrolled in low quality bilingual and ESL programs in K-3.

中文翻译：

---

合编者介绍：双语学习者的幼儿教育项目：机遇与挑战

双语学习者 (DLL) 占 8 岁以下儿童的 33%（儿童趋势，2016 年），这一人口趋势反映在幼儿教育 (ECE) 计划、学前班到 3 年级。26% 的婴儿和学步儿童早期启蒙计划来自讲英语以外的语言的家庭（儿童和家庭管理局，2013 年），其中 29% 的 3 至 6 岁参加启蒙计划的人被归类为 DLL（美国卫生与人类服务和美国教育部，2016 年）。DLL 现在占 K 到 3 年级学生总入学人数的 16%，鉴于非白人种族和族裔群体的儿童是美国人口中增长最快的部分，这一数字还将继续增加。ECE 计划针对低收入家庭的儿童，因为这些儿童在身体健康、认知能力和语言发展方面的评估往往明显低于同龄人。这些指标的低分预示着成绩保留、特殊教育安置和学校自然减员（Engle & Black，2008 年）。我们认为，高质量的学前教育计划可以通过确保儿童在学业上为进入幼儿园做好准备，并且持续的成功取决于小学年级获得高质量课程的机会，从而抵消负面的学校教育结果。不幸的是，由于缺乏同时获得双语教育和/或英语作为第二语言教师认证的合格教师，DLL 并不总是能够获得有效的 ECE 计划。准备不足的教师根据对 DLL 和第二语言习得过程的误解做出教学决定，这会阻碍儿童的学业和社交成功。这些事件，再加上缺乏对文化和语言敏感的学前课程和针对 DLL 验证的相关教学材料，可以解释为什么学前教育的好处在儿童过渡到小学时并不总是持续的。在其他情况下，DLL 拥有出色的学前教育经验，但不会继续蓬勃发展，因为他们可能会在 K-3 阶段就读低质量的双语和 ESL 课程。与缺乏文化和语言响应的学前课程和相关教学材料相一致，可以解释为什么学前教育的好处在儿童过渡到小学时并不总是持续的。在其他情况下，DLL 拥有出色的学前教育经验，但不会继续蓬勃发展，因为他们可能会在 K-3 阶段就读低质量的双语和 ESL 课程。与缺乏文化和语言响应的学前课程和相关教学材料相一致，可以解释为什么学前教育的好处在儿童过渡到小学时并不总是持续的。在其他情况下，DLL 拥有出色的学前教育经验，但不会继续蓬勃发展，因为他们可能会在 K-3 阶段就读低质量的双语和 ESL 课程。