Oceanside Unified Seeking Kinder Students for Two-Way Bilingual Immersion Program

OCEANSIDE – Oceanside Unified School District is opening enrollment for incoming kindergartners to enter the dual-immersion program, which develops biliteracy in both native English and Spanish-speaking students from a young age. A virtual interest meeting is being hosted Thursday, May 7 at 6:30 p.m., with more details at www.oside.us/bilingual.

The OUSD two-way bilingual immersion program is designed as a full immersion program. Students enter kindergarten or first grade and spend 90% of their day in Spanish. As students progress through grade levels, Spanish is decreased and English is increased so that by 5th grade, they have a 50/50 day.

Dual-immersion classrooms are a unique environment that bring together English Learners students and students who are already proficient in English, with the goal of reading, writing and speaking in two languages, and exchanging their cultures. After continuing the program through high school, students receive a seal of biliteracy on their diploma.

“Children love the challenge of learning a second language. It is a joy to watch them develop their bilingual skills and to see them build relationships with other children,” Reynolds Elementary Principal Juanita Hernandez said. “The two-way immersion program is a collaborative approach to learning language and it’s exciting that we offer this experience in the Oceanside Unified School District.”

OUSD’s bilingual immersion program opened seven years ago with one kinder class, and currently enrolls 293 students in grades K-6. Data such as state testing scores have already demonstrated that our bilingual students are achieving at or above their peers. Compared to other programs, OUSD follows what is known as a “true inclusive model” by the Association of Two-Way & Dual Language Education, meaning that both English speakers and English learners are brought together, which is important because it allows both groups of students to learn from each other and develop native-like language proficiency.

Learn more in this video featuring our two-way bilingual immersion program. Parents can also use the following interest survey link, and a staff member will connect with them to answer questions and provide more information.

Click here for Spanish version.