Kenji Hakuta’s formal statement on the implications of the National Research Council report, Improving Schooling for Language-Minority Children: A Research Agenda (1997), for the bilingual education – English language immersion debate.

 "After an extensive review of the literature on program evaluation of various approaches to teaching language minority students, the National Research Council concluded that excessive attention has been paid to the question of the language of instruction, and, furthermore, that this process has become politicized, weakening the research base. Nevertheless, the report concluded from the existing evidence that the use of native language does have a clear and measurable effect in bolstering language minority students’ academic success. However, the panel also noted that many of the positive effects of bilingual education programs can be found in other program types such as those labelled "immersion" and that there is an enormous diversity in the student body populations, resources, and local needs across districts. Therefore, the panel recommended that educators and evaluators not focus on finding one instructional program to suit all local needs, but rather that they focus on identifying how effective components of various programs can be tailored to suit the needs of local settings."

 (as quoted in: California Senate Office of Research, Analysis of State Propositions on the June 1998 Ballot, p. 46).