Are French Immersion Programs Suitable for Working-Class Children? A Follow-up Investigation

This article extends the research of Jerry Rawicki and Carolyn Ellis who have collaborated for more than eight years on memories and consequences of the Holocaust. Focusing on Jerry’s memories of his experience during the Holocaust, they present dialogues that took place during five recorded interviews and follow-up conversations that reflect on the similarity of Hitler’s seizing of power in the 1930s to the meteoric rise of Donald Trump. Noting how issues of class and race were taking an increasingly prominent role in their conversations and collaborative writing, they also begin to examine discontent in the rural, White working class and Carolyn’s socialization within that community. These dialogues and reflections seek to shed light on the current political climate in America as Carolyn and Jerry struggle to cope with their fears and envision a hopeful path forward for their country.

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The development of orthographic processing skills in children in early French immersion programs

Written Language & Literacy ◽

10.1075/wll.17.1.02com ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 16-39 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Eva Commissaire ◽

Adrian Pasquarella ◽

Becky Xi Chen ◽

S. Hélène Deacon

Keyword(s):

Language Learners ◽

Second Language Learners ◽

Factor Model ◽

Orthographic Processing ◽

French Immersion ◽

Learning To Read ◽

Underlying Factor ◽

Correct Spelling ◽

Immersion Programs ◽

Language Variables

Children learning to read in two languages are faced with orthographic features from both languages, either unique to a language or similar across languages. In the present study, we examined how children develop orthographic processing skills over time (from grade 1 to grade 2) with a sample of Canadian children attending a French immersion program and we investigated the underlying factor structure of orthographic skills across English and French. Two orthographic processing tasks were administered in both languages: lexical orthographic processing (e.g. choose the correct spelling from people–peeple) and sub-lexical orthographic processing (e.g. which is the more word-like vaid–vayd?), which included both language-specific and language-shared orthographic regularities. Children’s performances in sub-lexical tasks increased with grade but were comparable across languages. Further, evidence for a one factor model including all measures suggested that there is a common underlying orthographic processing skill that cuts across measurement and language variables. Keywords: orthographic processing; reading; French immersion; bilinguals; second language learners

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Gifted and Nongifted Students’ Reasons for Leaving French-Immersion Programs

Gifted and Talented International ◽

10.1080/15332276.1996.11672838 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 31-34 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Susan R. Karovitch ◽

Bruce M. Shore ◽

Marcia A. B. Delcourt

Keyword(s):

French Immersion ◽

Immersion Programs

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Instructional Strategies and SLA in Early French Immersion

Studies in Second Language Acquisition ◽

10.1017/s0272263100011980 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 245-259 ◽

Cited By ~ 67

Author(s):

Birgit Harley

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Second Language Acquisition ◽

Language Acquisition ◽

Instructional Strategies ◽

Experimental Research ◽

French Immersion ◽

School Based ◽

Immersion Programs ◽

Clear Conception

Examining the role of instruction in second language acquisition (SLA) entails not only a specification of what aspects of SLA stand to be affected but also a clear conception of what is meant by instruction. In this paper the potential of various instructional strategies for promoting SLA among child second language (L2) learners is considered in relation to empirical findings in early French immersion programs. Several principles are proposed concerning the what, when, and how of code-focused L2 instruction in a communicatively oriented school-based acquisition context. These proposals need to be put to the test in further experimental research.

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Optimal Entry Point for French Immersion

Revue de l’Université de Moncton ◽

10.7202/017704ar ◽

2008 ◽

pp. 27-35 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Joan Netten

Keyword(s):

Bilingual Education ◽

Entry Point ◽

French Immersion ◽

Advantages And Disadvantages ◽

Immersion Education ◽

Immersion Programs

Abstract This discussion will be divided into three sections. In the first, I wish to present for your consideration certain general principles of bilingual education which need to be taken into account in making decisions about entry into immersion programs. Secondly, we will examine the three major forms of immersion education, early, middle and late, to determine the advantages and disadvantages of each, and lastly, I will share with you my perceptions as to which point might be considered an optimal one for entry into French immersion.

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