Resumen de The effects of English bilingual education in the Netherlands
Marjolijn Verspoor, Kees de Bot, Xiaoyan Xu
This paper reports on the effectiveness of bilingual education in the Netherlands. After a brief history of the rise of bilingual education in the Netherlands, the study traces the development of English proficiency of two cohorts at Dutch high schools during one year: a group of Year 1 students (average age 12) and a group of Year 3 students (average age 14) were tested three times during one academic year. The results suggest a dynamic interplay as proficiency increases between condition and other factors such as initial proficiency, scholastic aptitude, out of school contact, and motivation/attitude factors. In Year 1, scholastic aptitude and initial proficiency were strong predictors for all students. In Year 3, scholastic aptitude no longer played a role, but initial proficiency and motivation/attitude did. The students who received bilingual education outperformed the students from the other two groups (regulars and controls).
