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Voters in California approved a ballot measure granting the state’s public schools more power to develop their own bilingual and multilingual education programs.

Proposition 58, which was approved by 73 percent of voters, overhauls key parts of a 1998 law requiring that classes be taught only in English, unless parents sign a waiver requesting otherwise. But it preserves a mandate that all students become proficient in English, no matter what program they choose.

The measure was opposed most notably by Silicon Valley multimillionaire Ron Unz, who wrote the original English-only Proposition 227 in 1998.

“Prop. 58 is long overdue,” Eric Heins, the president of the California Teachers Association, said before the election. “We are really a diverse state now, and we are participating in a worldwide economy. For our students to only know one language puts them at a disadvantage, and the research bears that out.”

Less than 5 percent of California public schools offer multilingual programs, though the state has 1.4 million English language learners — about 80 percent of whom are Spanish speakers.

Los Angeles Times, Oct. 12 and Nov. 8