Espanol, English Mingling in Md. Classroom

"We think that bilingual education is the mistake that keeps on giving," said Jim Boulet Jr., executive director of English First, a Springfield-based group committed to establishing English as the official language of the United States and eliminating mandatory bilingual-education programs.

English First is especially critical of dual-language programs for non-English speaking students, he said, because they are taught in their native language.

At least four states -- California, Massachusetts, Arizona and Colorado -- have had ballot initiatives to limit or do away with such programs. Colorado's initiative on bilingual education was the only one to fail.

Dual-language immersion received support in 2000, when then-Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley praised it for encouraging bilingualism.

Researchers who looked at dual-language immersion programs said that by the fifth grade, children achieve at roughly the same level or better than those who participate in standard bilingual programs.

Non-English speakers master English while still maintaining their native language. And English speakers maintain their English while gaining some knowledge of a second language.

On a recent afternoon, the students at Kemp Mill finished worksheets before starting their math lesson. Around the tables, children chattered in a mix of English and Spanish.

At one point, an English speaker asked his Spanish-speaking classmate a question. The boy replied in English, only to have his classmate scold him.

"You're supposed to talk in Spanish so we can learn," he chided, wagging an index finger at the boy.

Holmes said they encourage the children to lean on each other to help translate. But every once in a while, the translation goes a bit astray.

When the students at one table started to get a bit unruly, Mahler leaned over and whispered to one of the boys in Spanish. The boy looked up, uncertain, and then turned to his classmate, who translated.

"He called you 'Dummy,' " the boy's classmate told him, a knowing look on his face.