Academic Programs
Dual Language Program
At George I. Sánchez Collaborative Community School, we have a 50/50 or 'two-way' program: 50% of the day is spent studying in Spanish and 50% in English. The language learning goes two ways: Spanish speakers are learning English and their subject areas, and English speakers are learning Spanish and their subject areas.
Dual language education is the best educational model to produce graduates, who cannot only speak in two languages, but read and write at grade level or above in both of their languages. Here are some features:
- Families must choose to be in the program. Students need the full support of their families to succeed in such a challenging program. Their family does not have to be bilingual in order for the student to succeed and become fully bilingual.
- Languages are not taught like a traditional Spanish or French class. Instead, students are immersed in each language for half of the day as they study the same subjects as all students at the school.
- The teacher does not translate for the students. Children have a natural language learning capacity. Using a second language to learn interesting things at school is a natural way to pick up that language. When a teacher translates for students, they often 'tune out' the second language, waiting for the easier translation, and never learn the second language well.
Check out our brochure for more information on our Dual Language program.
AVID
AVID stands for Advancement via Individual Determination. It is a college readiness program that targets least served students in the academic middle who have the capacity to succeed.
AVID's mission is to close the achievement gap by preparing all students for college readiness and success in a global society.
Why AVID works:
- Places AVID students in rigorous curriculum and gives them the support to achieve.
- Provides the explicit “hidden curriculum” of schools.
- Provides a team of students for positive peer identification.
- Redefines teacher’s role as that of student advocate.
For more information on AVID please see our powerpoint presentation.
STEM
- Science
- Technology
- Engineering
- Math