Alicia R. Chacón International School (Spanish: Escuela Internacional Alicia R. Chacón) is a K–8 school in El Paso, Texas. It is operated by the Ysleta Independent School District.
| Alicia R. Chacón International School Escuela Internacional Alicia R. Chacón | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
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221 Prado Road , 79907 | |
| Coordinates | 31°42′18″N 106°20′55″W / 31.705087°N 106.348571°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Public school |
| Principal | Ruben Cadena |
| Faculty | 48 |
| Grades | K–8 |
| Enrollment | 792 (2014–2015) |
| Website | www |
Chacón has a two-way bilingual education program that is intended to teach Spanish-speaking students English and English-speaking students Spanish.[1] Students may also take a third language; available third languages are Chinese, German, Japanese,[2] French,[3] and Russian.[2] The bilingual education program was developed to encourage speakers of one language to retain their language and to also learn a second language at the same time. This differs from other bilingual programs in Texas, where non-English speaking students are expected to learn solely in English once they achieve a certain competency in English. As of 2009 Chacón has long waiting lists of students. Nate Blakeslee of Texas Monthly argued that other Texas school districts should use Chacón's bilingual program.[4]
History
editThe school, which opened in 1995, was named after Mexican American politician and judge Alicia R. Chacón.[5] Its two-way bilingual program for kindergarten through grade 3 opened that year as part of the U.S. Department of Education-funded Project Mariposa ("Mariposa" means butterfly), an effort between different school districts. Each following year an additional grade level with bilingual education was established; in 2000 the school's first eighth-grade class graduated.[6]
In 1995 the school had 352 available spaces for students. By June 25, 1995, 234 places were taken.[7]
Curriculum
editStudents are expected to gain a high level of literacy in Spanish. As of 2009[update] early grades course content is primarily taught in Spanish, but in later grades English becomes the predominant language of instruction.[4]
Mandarin Chinese, German, Japanese, French and Russian were to be offered in the coursework from the school's beginning.[7]
Student body
editAs of 2001[update] 95% of the students are Hispanic and Latino, and the remainder belong to other ethnicities.[6]
References
edit- ^ Howard, Elizabeth. "The Alicia Chacón International School." Center for Applied Linguistics, DC. Retrieved on January 11, 2010.
- ^ a b Espino Calderón, Margarita and Minaya-Rowe, Liliana. Chapter 4: "Case Study: The Alicia R. Chacón International School." Designing and Implementing Two-Way Bilingual Programs. Corwin Press, January 22, 2003. ISBN 1483351858, 9781483351858. Start: 53. CITED: Start: 53. This confirms the presence of Chinese, German, Japanese, and Russian.
- ^ "District Staff Directory". Ysleta Independent School District. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
Teacher Foreign Lang French
– This source confirms the presence of French instruction. - ^ a b Blakeslee, Nate. "Dream of a Common Language. Sueño de un Idioma Común." Texas Monthly. September 2009. Retrieved on January 11, 2010.
- ^ "School Named After Chacon". El Paso Times. 15 June 1995. Retrieved 9 April 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Espino Calderón, Margarita and Minaya-Rowe, Liliana. Chapter 4: "Case Study: The Alicia R. Chacón International School." Designing and Implementing Two-Way Bilingual Programs. Corwin Press, January 22, 2003. ISBN 1483351858, 9781483351858. Start: 53. CITED: Start: 55.
- ^ a b Renteria, Ramon (1995-06-25). "Get in character". El Paso Times. pp. 1F–2F. – Clipping of first page (1F) and clipping of second page (2F) from newspapers.com
External links
edit- Official website
- Alicia R. Chacon Elementary School at the Wayback Machine (archive index)