Guiding Biliteracy Development: Appropriating Cross-Linguistic and Conceptual Knowledge to Sustain Second-Language Reading Comprehension

Abstract

To examine the second-language reading development of 45 fourth-grade Latino bilinguals, a sequential mixed methods study was conducted in two phases (Creswell, 2009). The quantitative data collected in the first phase generated an index of the group's reading performance based on two grade-level assessments, a state-mandated standardized reading assessment and an informal reading inventory (IRI) of a grade-level passage written in English. The qualitative data collected in the second phase informed in depth about each bilingual's reading process and use of comprehension strategies. The findings indicated that while both reading performance scores paralleled the varying school-designated English-proficiency classification represented among the participants, the bilingual readers also shared similar reading strategies without distinction when they read difficult text. Guided reading that integrated explicit cross-linguistic and cross-cultural knowledge was found to mediate comprehension of the grade-level passage for all the participants regardless of their reading performance scores and designated English-proficiency classification. Implications for providing responsive literacy instruction for bilingual readers are outlined.