Binigualism for all: Two-way immersion education in the United States

[...]strong oral and literacy skills developed in the first language by language minority students provide a solid basis for the acquisition of literacy and other academic language skills in English (Edelsky, 1982; Eisterhold-Carson, Carrell, Silberstein, Kroll, & Kuehn, 1990; Lanauze & Snow...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Theory into practice 2000-10, Vol.39 (4), p.258
Main Authors: Christian, Donna, Howard, Elizabeth R, Loeb, Michael I
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic achievement
Academic language
Akan language
Children
Elementary schools
French as a second language learning
Immersion programs
Language acquisition
Language Minorities
Language proficiency
Language Skills
Linguistics
Literacy
Medium of instruction
Minority students
Native language
Native language acquisition
Second language learning
Spanish as a second language learning
Students
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Summary:[...]strong oral and literacy skills developed in the first language by language minority students provide a solid basis for the acquisition of literacy and other academic language skills in English (Edelsky, 1982; Eisterhold-Carson, Carrell, Silberstein, Kroll, & Kuehn, 1990; Lanauze & Snow, 1989). [...]immersion programs for language majority children have been shown to enable these students to develop advanced levels of second language proficiency (in French, Spanish, and other languages) without compromising their academic achievement or first language development (Genesee, 1987; Swain & Lapkin, 1982). The integration of native English speakers and language minority students facilitates second language acquisition because it promotes authentic, meaningful interactions among speakers of the two languages. Because students in TWI programs are fluent speakers of one of the two languages of instruction, proficient language models are available in the classroom for both groups of second language learners. The assistance of peers who are native speakers of the language of instruction can also be key to understanding content in a second language. [...]extensive peer interaction in both languages gives all students a chance to be "experts," a confidence-building experience that is too often missing for language minority students in traditional classrooms.
ISSN:0040-5841
1543-0421