Tarwater Elementary School Dual Language Immersion Program

https://www.cusd80.com/domain/5862
Serves over 250 students, Grades K–6

Program Description

Tarwater Elementary School, located in Chandler, Arizona, has the only Mandarin Dual Language Immersion (DLI) program in the Chandler Unified School District. The Chandler Unified School District currently serves more than 45,000 students, making it the 3rd largest school district in Arizona.

In the 21st century, our world has become more globalized than ever. To prepare students to become competitive global citizens, Tarwater Elementary School started the DLI program in 2014. The program serves more than 250 students in Grades K–6. At the start of the 2021–22 school year, two full-sized, Pre-K Mandarin classes will be added to the program. The Pre-K Mandarin Immersion Program is a tuition-based program, where the two classes of Pre-K students will share one certified Mandarin teacher, one certified English teacher, two Mandarin-speaking paraeducators, and two English-speaking paraeducators.

Program Articulation

Beginning with the end goal in mind, Chandler Unified School District devised the K–12 articulation map for the Tarwater Mandarin DLI Program when it first started in 2014. In 2021, the first group of DLI students graduated from Tarwater Elementary School. The group will continue in Bogle Junior High to learn Mandarin and Social Studies in Mandarin in Grades 7 and 8. Their feeder high school is Hamilton High, where DLI students will take the AP Chinese class and earn the Seal of Biliteracy on their diploma.

Program Features

The Tarwater Elementary DLI program uses a 50/50 model from K to Grade 6, in which students spend half of the school day in the Mandarin classroom and half of the day in English. The newly added Pre-K Mandarin Program will follow the same model.

The school uses the STAMP 4Se test to assess students from Grade 3 and above. Students’ Mandarin proficiency is expected to reach the Intermediate-Mid level on the ACTFL Proficiency Scale in Listening and Intermediate-Low in Reading, Writing, and Speaking when they exit Grade 6. In 2021, 85% of Grade 6 students who were in the first group of DLI graduates either met or exceeded the proficiency targets based on their STAMP 4Se composite scores. Students in the Tarwater DLI program are more likely to outperform their peers across all subjects in the district. (See the data from 2021.)

One of the program’s strengths is the horizontal and vertical collaboration that takes place among teachers. The English-Mandarin partner teachers meet on a weekly basis to plan for collaborative lessons. The vertical team meets every quarter to have PLC (professional learning community) meetings. At these meetings, teachers revisit program goals and check student progress based on data. Teachers also share best practices and discuss how to overcome challenges.

Supportive and involved parents help the school to have ongoing community-wide cultural events. Master-Art classes with Chinese cultural highlights are taught across both DLI and non-DLI classes through the year. Food trucks, games, and performances are open to the community at the Chinese New Year celebrations.

Partnerships play an important role in the success of the DLI program. Tarwater Elementary School works with Arizona State University for leadership and teacher training and collaborates with the local Chinese heritage language school, Contemporary Chinese School of Arizona (CCSA), to organize cultural events, write with pen pals, and conduct peer tutoring services.

Tarwater Elementary is highly proactive in advocating for the DLI program, through the DLI initiative team. The team consists of parent representatives from each grade, DLI teacher representatives, non-DLI teacher representatives, district representatives, and Tarwater’s principal. The school regularly asks this group for feedback on the program through open dialogue and collecting suggestions. When new projects are coming up, this group promotes them by spreading the word and disseminating information about them.

The Tarwater DLI program frequently seeks opportunities to tell its story to the public. In the Spring of 2021, the program’s Grade 6 students presented to the school board their progress within the program and thanked the district leaders, who decided to add the DLI program seven years ago, in 2014. Here is a video of that presentation.

2020–21 Program Highlights

The following activities took place during the 2020–21 school year:

• Amateur Radio International Space Station
  • Tarwater Elementary was selected as 1 of 10 schools in the world for having live radio contact with the International Space Station in 2021.
• Engineering in Elementary STEM Projects
  • The Tarwater Elementary DLI program received a STEM grant from the Salt River Project.
• Diversity Grant
  • Tarwater Elementary DLI Program received 2 consecutive years of the Diversity Grant from the City of Chandler for Chinese Culture Celebrations.
• CEF Grant
  • Tarwater Elementary DLI Program received a CEF grant from the Chandler Unified School District for Padcast Digital Assessment.
• Super Fun Mandarin Summer Camp
• DLI Summer Read
• Peer Tutoring Program

Program Contacts

Diane Hale
School Principal
[email protected]

Wenjing (Grace) Xie
DLI Program Coach
[email protected]