Instructional practices in English-Chinese and English-Spanish kindergarten dual language immersion classrooms

Dual language immersion (DLI) programs in the United States have been rapidly increasing in recent years. However, very little research to date has investigated what DLI instruction looks like and what opportunities for learning are available in DLI classrooms. The current study contributes to understanding in these areas by investigating teachers' instructional practices in English-Chinese and English-Spanish kindergarten DLI classrooms. Video, audio, and observation data were collected from eight kindergarten DLI classrooms using a 50/50 model in which 50\% of instruction was delivered in English and 50\% in Chinese or Spanish. Results indicated important differences and similarities for (i) teachers' language use in the different classrooms and (ii) teachers' instructional practices in the different languages. Teachers' instructional practices, the availability and type of instructional input, and their impact on opportunities for learning are discussed as ways to inform decisions about subject content teaching and language development in DLI classrooms.