Can Bilingual Education Generate Meaningful School Integration? A Case Study of Los Angeles
CRIS & LIEPP Seminar with Lucrecia Santibañez (UCLA), November 14th, 2025
Overview
Seventy years after
Brown v. Board of Education, urban schools in the United States remain increasingly segregated by race, income, and language, with low-income students clustered in under-resourced schools. The growth of vouchers, charter schools, and homeschooling poses challenges to integration efforts made over decades.
Dual-Language Immersion Programs
Bilingual Education, or “Dual-language immersion (DLI) programs” as they are known in the United States, offer instruction in both English and a target language, while fostering academic rigor, bilingualism, biculturalism, and cross-cultural competence. DLI programs are the fastest-growing educational option in many U.S. states.
Because language, race, and economic status are closely linked, DLI schools attract families with diverse home languages, thus bringing together students from very different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds.
Research Focus
This lecture will present findings from a recent research program analyzing DLI in Los Angeles, the nation's second-largest public school district. Discussions will cover where and how DLI programs develop, their effects on segregation, learning outcomes, linguistic benefits, and strategies for recruiting diverse families.
Event Details
- Date: November 14, 2025
- Time: 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM
- Organized jointly with LIEPP - Educational Policies Research Group
Summary: Bilingual education through dual-language immersion in Los Angeles offers promising pathways toward reducing segregation by integrating students from varied linguistic and socio-economic backgrounds while supporting academic and cultural development.