Which program uses the native tongue during a transitional period until students are competent to move into mainstream education?

Which program uses the native tongue during a transitional period until students are competent to move into mainstream education?

• A. Transitional Bilingual Education
• B. Early Exit Bilingual Education
• C. Late Exit Bilingual Education
• D. Mainstream Education (with Foreign Language Teaching)

Answer: (A)

Using the native language as a bridge to help students understand content while they build English proficiency is the defining feature here. Transitional bilingual education deliberately starts instruction in the students’ first language and gradually shifts emphasis to English until they can participate fully in mainstream classrooms. This approach aims to prevent gaps in learning and ensure both language and content mastery during the transition. Other options describe different timelines or structures: some programs exit bilingual instruction quickly and move to English, others extend bilingual support for longer before transitioning, and mainstream education with foreign language teaching isn’t organized around a structured bilingual transition.

Using the native language as a bridge to help students understand content while they build English proficiency is the defining feature here. Transitional bilingual education deliberately starts instruction in the students’ first language and gradually shifts emphasis to English until they can participate fully in mainstream classrooms. This approach aims to prevent gaps in learning and ensure both language and content mastery during the transition.

Other options describe different timelines or structures: some programs exit bilingual instruction quickly and move to English, others extend bilingual support for longer before transitioning, and mainstream education with foreign language teaching isn’t organized around a structured bilingual transition.