Indiana Emergent Bilingual Student Time to Reclassification

Abstract

In this study, we employed a discrete-time survival analysis model to examine Indiana emergent bilingual time to reclassification as fluent English proficient. The data consisted of five years of statewide English language proficiency scores. Indiana has a large and rapidly growing Spanish-speaking emergent bilingual population, and these students are prevalent in the low socioeconomic status group. Our findings suggest that Spanish home language status, low socioeconomic status, and special education status are negatively associated with the odds to reclassification. Based on our findings, we recommend a careful investigation to inform best practices that will meet the needs of Spanish-speaking emergent bilinguals and reduce inequities in education.