Cognitive advantage in children enrolled in a second-language immersion elementary school program for three years

2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 597-607 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANNE-CATHERINE NICOLAY ◽  
MARTINE PONCELET
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Language Immersion ◽  
Auditory Selective Attention ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Immersion Education ◽  
Executive Skills ◽  
French Speaking ◽  
Cognitive Benefits ◽  
Language Immersion Education

Early bilingualism acquired from home or community is generally considered to positively influence cognitive development. The purpose of the present study was to determine to what extent bilingualism acquired through a second-language immersion education has a similar effect. Participants included a total of 106 French-speaking eight-year-old children drawn from two language groups: 53 children enrolled in English immersion classes since the age of five years (the immersion group) and 53 children enrolled in monolingual French-speaking classes (the monolingual group). The two groups were matched for verbal and nonverbal intelligence and socioeconomic status (SES). They were administered a battery of tasks assessing attentional and executive skills. The immersion group's reaction times were significantly faster than those of the monolingual group on tasks assessing alerting, auditory selective attention, divided attention and mental flexibility, but not interference inhibition. These results show that, after only three years, a second-language immersion school experience also produces some of the cognitive benefits associated with early bilingualism.

scholarly journals Early bilingual immersion school program and cognitive development in French-speaking children: Effect of the second language learned (English vs. Dutch) and exposition duration (2 vs. 5 years)

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. e0258458
Author(s):  
Sophie Gillet ◽  
Cristina Barbu ◽  
Martine Poncelet
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Cognitive Flexibility ◽  
Fifth Grade ◽  
Second Grade ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Executive Skills ◽  
French Speaking ◽  
The Impact

The results of studies targeting cognitive and academic advantages in children frequenting early bilingual immersion school programs (CLIL) have been contradictory. While the impact of the amount of CLIL experience has already been studied, the role of the second language learned has been little studied to account for differences among study findings. The link between executive skills (EF) and scholar abilities (e.g., mathematics) in the CLIL context has also been little investigated. The purpose of the present study was to determine if the impact of CLIL on EF and academic performances varies depending on the immersion language and the duration of CLIL experience. The sample included a total of 230 French-speaking children attending second (141) and fifth (89) grade classes. Within each grade, there were three matched language groups composed of children respectively immersed in English, immersed in Dutch, and non-immersed controls. The children were administered tasks assessing executive functions [alerting, cognitive flexibility, and working memory], as well as arithmetic abilities. In second grade, we detected no difference in EF between the language groups. On the other hand, in fifth grade, the two immersed groups outperformed the non-immersed group on the cognitive flexibility task but did not differ between them. Moreover, only the Dutch immersed group outperformed the control group on the working memory task. Arithmetic performances also differed depending on the language learned; in second grade, Dutch learners performed better than the monolingual group. In fifth grade, Dutch learners outperformed the two other groups. These results suggest that the impact of CLIL on executive skills and arithmetic performances might be modulated by the amount of CLIL experience and the second language learned in immersion.

Student outcomes in one-way, two-way, and indigenous language immersion education

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn Lindholm-Leary ◽  
Fred Genesee
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Student Outcomes ◽  
Language Immersion ◽  
Indigenous Language ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Content Areas ◽  
Student Background ◽  
Immersion Education ◽  
Language Immersion Education ◽  
The Relationship

This article examines international research on student outcomes in one-way, two-way, and indigenous language immersion education. We review research on first and second language competence and academic achievement in content areas (e.g., math) among both majority and minority language students. We also discuss the relationship between bilingualism and student outcomes and whether more exposure to the first or second language is associated with better outcomes. In addition, we highlight student background, methodological, and assessment issues and concerns, and suggest additional avenues of research on student outcomes

scholarly journals Second Language Acquisition and Form-Focused Instruction in Immersion: Teaching for Learning

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 388
Author(s):  
PhD T. J. Ó Ceallaigh
Keyword(s):  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Language Immersion ◽  
Language And Literacy ◽  
Sustained Development ◽  
Immersion Education ◽  
Viable Solution ◽  
Language Immersion Education

While research on language immersion education has highlighted a multitude of benefits such as<br />cognitive skills, academic achievement and language and literacy development, some studies have also<br />identified challenges to its effective implementation, particularly as they relate to language acquisition.<br />It has been suggested that the less than optimal levels of students’ immersion language “persist in part<br />because immersion teachers lack systematic approaches for integrating language into their content<br />instruction” (Tedick, Christian, &amp; Fortune, 2011, p. 7). Students’ interlanguage has aspects that are<br />borrowed, transferred and generalised from the mother tongue and differs from both the immersion<br />language and the mother tongue. After a period of sustained development, interlanguage appears to<br />stabilise and certain non-target like features tend to fossilise. Research has long suggested that<br />effective immersion pedagogy needs to counterbalance both form-oriented and meaning-oriented<br />approaches. This paper reviews the literature in relation to the linguistic deficiencies in immersion<br />students’ L2 proficiency and form-focused instruction is examined as a viable solution to this<br />pedagogic puzzle. Key instructional elements of form-focused instruction are unpacked and some<br />pedagogical possibilities are considered in an attempt to identify and discuss strategies that will enable<br />immersion learners to refine their grammatical and lexical systems as they proceed.

The Latina/o Midwest Reader

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Language Immersion ◽  
Sports Teams ◽  
Dual Language Immersion ◽  
Art And Politics ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Immersion Education ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Type ◽  
Language Immersion Education

This anthology challenges the notion that Latinas/os are newcomers to the Midwest by emphasizing that Latinas/os have resided in the region for over a century, and have contributed to the social, cultural, and economic dimensions of rural and urban Midwestern communities. Its eighteen interdisciplinary chapters and introduction essays explore issues of history, education, literature, art, and politics defining today’s Latina/o Midwest. Some contributors delve into the Latina/o revitalization of rural areas, where communities have launched bold experiments in dual-language immersion education while seeing integrated neighborhoods, churches, and sports teams become the norm. Others reveal metro areas as laboratories for emerging Latino subjectivities, places where for some, the term Latina/o itself corresponds to a new type of lived identity as different Latina/o groups interact in shared neighborhoods, schools, and workplace.

scholarly journals Principals’ attitudes towards the suitability of Irish language immersion education for children with dyslexia

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachael Patton ◽  
Elizabeth Mathews
Keyword(s):  
Language Immersion ◽  
Assessment System ◽  
Special Educational Needs ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Irish Language ◽  
Immersion Education ◽  
Primary School Principals ◽  
Language Immersion Education ◽  
And Training

This study explores principals’ attitudes towards the suitability of language immersion education (LIE) enrolment for children with dyslexia in Ireland. It also aims to examine the challenges faced by those in LIE settings working to include children with special educational needs (SEN), specifically dyslexia, in their schools. Participants include primary school principals working in Irish LIE settings across Ireland. The study follows a mixed methods approach including a focus group interview and a self-completion online questionnaire. Results indicate that principals believe that LIE enrolment is suitable for children with dyslexia and that these children can benefit from being placed in such a learning environment. However, the Irish immersion system faces considerable challenges in its aims to support children with dyslexia, namely the lack of an appropriate assessment system, the lack of sufficient research and training and negative attitudes held towards the Irish language.

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