ABSTRACT
Bilingual education programs should be designed to preserve and enhance the knowledge of the native language and culture while teaching the second language and transmitting the values of the host culture. The implementation of bilingual education for Puerto Rican children on the mainland is difficult in light of recent federal mandates to integrate school systems. Equal educational opportunity does not necessarily mean the same educational experience; it means a diversity of educational experience to respond to the diversity of needs in a heterogeneous society. The recruiting and training of instructional personnel for bilingual programs has been one of the biggest obstacles to developing successful programs. In order to successfully evaluate the effectiveness of bilingual education for Puerto Ricans, it must be determined whether Puerto Rican students master both the English and the Spanish language in bilingual programs.
