CRESPAR Report #63: Trends in Two-Way Immersion Education: A Review of the Research

Abstract

Two-way immersion (TWI) is an instructional approach that integrates native English speakers and native speakers of another language (usually Spanish) and provides instruction to both groups of students in both languages. While the model has been in existence in the United States for almost 40 years, the most dramatic growth has been seen over the past 15 years. Not surprisingly, the recent growth of two-way immersion education has prompted increasing interest in various aspects of such programs, such as design and implementation, student outcomes, instructional strategies, cross-cultural issues, and the attitudes and experiences of students, parents, and teachers involved. Along with the increase in number of TWI programs, the research base on this educational approach is growing steadily. The purpose of this report is to summarize the research that has been conducted to date, synthesize the key findings across studies, and point to areas of need for future research.