Literacy benefits of dual language programs did not extend to the English learner subsample in the strongest study¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r1 · q3
Currency · newest study 2023 · checked against its sources 2026-10-16 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

Reading the evidence codes

q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.

This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.

q3 i? Steele et al. (2017) found positive literacy effects for the full sample but insignificant findings on literacy, science, and mathematics achievement for English learners. → el-1

Evidence¶

el-1¶

What Works Clearinghouse, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. (2023, December). Dual language programs. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/726

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r1

The WWC's review of supplemental findings reports that the strongest study's positive full-sample literacy effect did not hold for the English learner subsample, and similar insignificant findings appeared for English learners on science and mathematics. These supplemental findings do not factor into the effectiveness rating.

"While Steele et al., (2017) found positive effects of dual language programs on literacy achievement for the full student sample, the study found insignificant findings on literacy achievement for English learners."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

Reading and Language — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it
English-Learner Status — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it

Teaching students in a language they understand benefits both language learning and broader learning — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
Dual language programs improved English literacy achievement, with a potentially positive effects rating based on one study — related
Dual language programs showed uncertain effects on science achievement — related
Dual language programs showed uncertain effects on mathematics achievement across two studies — related
The Pathway to Academic Success Project has potentially positive effects on literacy achievement for English learners in grades 6-12 — related

Page metadata

Field	Value
`type`	`claim`
`id`	`dual-language-literacy-null-for-english-learners`
`title`	`Literacy benefits of dual language programs did not extend to the English learner subsample in the strongest study`
`description`	`Literacy benefits of dual language programs did not extend to the English learner subsample in the strongest study`
`status`	`review`
`evidence_strength`	`mixed`
`newest_evidence`	`2023`
`source_checked`	`2026-10-16`
`generated`	by `process:wiki-ingest` on `2026-10-07`
`trust`	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
`sources`	1 — `el-1`

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