EL PASO — Jill McGee stands in front of her new second-grade class at Mesita Elementary School and begins a math lesson in Spanish. "Muy bien Seamus," she tells a student who answers a math question correctly in Spanish.

"They go from saying barely two sentences, and by the end of the year, we can't get them to be quiet," said McGee who teaches a talented and gifted dual-language class.

All of McGee's students speak English fluently, but half of the school day the class switches to Spanish as part of the El Paso Independent School District's pioneering dual-language program . The district is the first in the nation to offer dual-language classes to all public school students from kindergarten through second grade. The plan is to expand and eventually be in all grade levels through high school.

Dual-language programs are growing in both public and private schools across the country to meet the needs of a more diverse student body and demand by more parents who want to prepare their children for jobs that require bilingual skills. In Dallas-Fort Worth, Dallas ISD recently expanded its dual-language program.  Irving ISD recentlygraduated its first class of 10-year dual-language students. 

It comes as a growing body of research and El Paso's own results show students benefit from dual-language classes.

Mexico Border reporter  Angela Kocherga - akocherga@dallasnews.com

Published: 19 September 2016 10:30 AM

Updated: 19 September 2016 12:06 PM

Read more here The Dallas Morning News