A record number of graduating high schoolers achieved an academic standard known as “biliteracy,” jumping from 19,000 students last year to more than 24,000 in 2014, according to the California Department of Education.
Being biliterate is more than being bilingual.
“Biliteracy means that a child or an adult would have the ability to speak, read, write and communicate in at least two languages or more,” said Jan Correa, Executive Director of the California Association of Bilingual Education. “It’s not just the oral communication. It’s having the academic ability to succeed in at least two languages.”