Replication data for: Is Spanish-only schooling responsible for the Puerto Rican language gap?

Between 1898 and 1948, English was the language of instruction for most post-primary grades in Puerto Rican public schools. Since 1949, the language of instruction in all grades has been Spanish. We use these shifts in language of instruction policy to estimate the effect of English-intensive instruction on the English language skills of Puerto Ricans. Although naïve estimates suggest that English instruction increased English-speaking ability among Puerto Rican natives, estimates that allow for education-specific cohort trends show no effect. This result is surprising in light of the strong presumption by American policymakers at the time that instruction in English is the best way to raise English proficiency. This has implications for school language policies in former colonies as well as for U.S. education policy toward immigrant children.

1898年至1948年间，波多黎各公立学校的多数中等及以上年级以英语作为授课语言。自1949年起，该校所有年级的授课语言均改为西班牙语。本研究依托这一授课语言政策变迁，估算高强度英语授课对波多黎各民众英语语言能力的影响。尽管朴素估计结果显示，英语授课可提升波多黎各本土居民的英语口语能力，但纳入教育群体专属队列趋势控制的估计结果则未发现此类效应。鉴于当时美国政策制定者普遍预设英语授课是提升英语熟练度的最优路径，该研究结果颇具反常识性。本研究结论对前殖民地国家的学校语言政策，以及美国针对移民儿童的教育政策均具有重要参考价值。