CPF
CPF is Canadian Parents for French educational opportunities, a non-profit, volunteer based organization. For more information about CPF see our web sites:
CPF National at http://www.cpf.ca
CPF BC at http://www.cpf.bc.ca
The above web sites have links to the following web sites:
CPF
Vancouver at http://www.geocities.com/cpfvancouver
CPF
National French
Internet Address and Popular Software Lists
at http://members.shaw.ca/cpf99
CPF
National French
Education Resources Quick Links
at http://members.shaw.ca/cpf99/CPF-Tables-of-Links.html
Handout notice about CPF French web resources
The following
notes are used
to answer questions about early French immersion (includes some mention
of late
French immersion, also intensive and core French).
The
information covers
both early and late French immersion as it is helpful to understand how
both
work.
Background
information on the purpose of these notes.
A
study (reported in March 2004) by Statistics Canada reports that French
Immersion students
across
in
reading
performance.” In the
immersion
and
non-immersion students were the same. These results were
part of
a larger
study of reading performance of French and English
language
students
across the country. Here is a link to the study:
http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/040322/d040322a.htm
Scroll
down to
'French immersion: Higher socio-economic background alone
does
not account
for higher reading performance'.
Article of interest:
The
The article by Chad Skelton, included the following:
"French immersion students do the best of all, beating the average performance in all grade and subject areas. This could be because French immersion is generally seen as a more challenging area of study that is more appealing to parents who are already inclined to encourage their children to succeed."
For those parents new to French immersion, here are some other factors mentioned in the past when these kind of statistics are reviewed. These observations are mine, not necessarily CPF's.
Please note that these observations are simplifications of complex issues.
- there
may
be fewer students with learning disabilities in the French immersion
stream
than in the English stream. In the past students with learning
disabilities
tended to be moved to the English stream. In recent years the advice
has tended
to be, a student with a learning disability will have that disability
in the
French immersion stream or the English stream, so keep the student in
the
French immersion stream and provide learning assistance in French. An
example*
of an exception to this rule of thumb is: if a student has a
severe
learning disability that is auditory in nature, as the method of French
language acquisition in French immersion is through listening, that
student
would best be moved to the English stream. Note that if a learning
disabled
student in early French immersion where there is 100% French through
grade
three, moves to the English stream in grade two, that student must deal
with
the learning disability and catching up on i.e. English spelling. For
this
reason, much effort is made to catch learning disabilities as early as
possible
in early French immersion. To this end, the Vancouver School Board has
developed 'Intervention Levels for Students with Learning Problems in
French
Immersion' 1995 ISBN 1-55031-451-3
available
from:
Vancouver School Board
Curriculum Resources Processing Centre
*regards this example, note that parental response can vary depending on the place the family lives. If French is the working language of the place, the parents may lobby for support for their child to stay in immersion, based on the thought that if the child learned the mother tongue despite the learning disability, the child can learn the second language despite the learning disability - whereas - If French is not the working language of the place, the parent may prefer to move their child to the English stream and learn the second language at a later time, in another way.
There is more information about immersion students and learning disabilities, low intelligence and behavioral problems in the section 'But my child is...!' in 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta.
There is information about French immersion and learning disabilities from the Government of Alberta, Education at :There is more information in
section 5 'Should a child ever be
transferred out of French
immersion?' in the CPF
Pamphlet 'French Immersion Q & A: answers commonly asked
questions
about the French Immersion program.' by Dr. André Obadia,
a professor at
There is more information about immersion students and learning disabilities in the CPF Book 'So You Want Your Child to Learn French! (second edition)'.
There is more information
about
immersion students and learning disabilities on the CPF Vancouver 'Miscellaneous'
web page
- scroll down to:
- there is some thinking that French immersion students have, in acquiring a second language, developed an appreciation for the structure of language, and that this skill helps them do better when they begin to study English.
The
following is from
the article 'The Academic, Intellectual, and Linguistic Benefits of
Bilingualism' by Jim Cummins, Professor at the Ontario Institute for
Studies in
Education (OISE), published in CPF's 'So
You Want
Your Child to Learn French!' Second Revised
Edition 1990.
"Most of the recent studies have investigated
aspects
of children's 'metalinguistic development', that is their explicit knowledge about the
structure
and functions of language itself. In other words, the research suggests
that
bilingualism enhances children's understanding of how language itself
works and
their ability to manipulate language in the service of thinking and
problem
solving.
In general, it is not surprising that bilingual
children
should be more adept at certain aspects of linguistic processing. In
gaining
control over two language systems, the bilingual child has had to
decipher much
more language input than the unilingual child who has been exposed to
only one
language system. Thus, the bilingual child has had considerably more
practice
in analyzing semantics (meanings) and syntactic (grammatical)
structures."
Another
source of
information about immersion students and studying English is Dr. Genesee, a
world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
- the French and English languages are related and share the same alphabet. The phonetic aspect of learning to read seems to be part of why many early French immersion students who learn to read in French first, transfer that ability and are able to read in English soon after.
From 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'But what about their English?',
'Researchers Sharon Lapkin and Merrill Swain of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education explain, "It seems clear that once literacy skills are well established in one language, they transfer readily and rapidly to the other language".'
Another
source of
information about immersion students and transferring reading ability
to
English is Dr.
Genesee, a world-renowned scholar of bilingualism, language development
and
language immersion programs, a Professor of Psychology at
- Vancouver, BC early French
immersion
is 100% French K through grade 3 so, the grade 4 French immersion
students
writing the provincial exams in English reading and writing have only
had
English language arts instruction from September of grade 4. Also,
the
Note: the BC Ministry of
Education,
'FOUNDATION SKILLS ASSESSMENT RESULTS RELEASED (IB 001-00)
October 26, 2000' are at:
http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/assessment/fsa/results/
Click on 'Public Schools FSA Results Reports'
Then in the 'Provincial Results' box, for 'Choose School Year', select
'1999/2000'
It is assumed these are the results the Vancouver Sun interpreted.
Two new reports on FSA 2002
results have
been posted to the above Student Assessment website. One is an
Overview
of
Student Performance on FSA 2002 and the other is Strengths and Areas
Requiring
Improvement: FSA 2002.
Note: related information from 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'But what about their English?',
'
Other observations on French immersion. Again, please note that these observations are simplifications of complex issues.
- There is not an entrance
qualification exam for French immersion K (100% French). Early
French
immersion (100% French K through grade 3) generally works for the
average
child.
Bilingual programs that begin in grade 1 with 50% English,
50%
French are generally considered more challenging as the students must
i.e.
learn spellings in two languages at the same time, so generally above
average
students from English K are selected for entrance to bilingual grade 1.
York
House private school in
From 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'Why total immersion?',
'Over the past three decades, early French immersion has evolved from what was often a "bilingual" program (partial immersion), in which half of the time was spent in English, half in French, to "total immersion". This occurred because research done throughout the country was consistent in showing that no matter when English language arts was introduced in the early years, the immersion students were on a par with their English-program peers in all skill areas within a couple of years. However, teachers and parents were not satisfied with the students' levels of achievement in French. It was gradually realized that to develop a very high level of competence in French required more classroom time than was initially assumed.
...
Remember, although it seems like children are in school for a long time, the average academic year is about 950-1,000 hours long-that's only 20% of a grade 1 child's waking hours during the year. The other 80% of the time is spent exposed to English!'
Another source of information
about
early French immersion generally works for the average child is Dr. Genesee, a
world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
- While early French immersion generally works for the average child, late French immersion is often thought of as more challenging for students than continuing in the English program, and works well for students who are themselves motivated to be in the program.
From section 7 'Should I
register my
child in Early immersion or Late immersion?' in the CPF Pamphlet
'French
Immersion Q & A: answers commonly asked questions about the French
Immersion program.' by Dr. André Obadia,
a professor
at
'It is estimated that about 80% of all French immersion students are enrolled in early immersion programs. The popularity of this program can be explained by many factors. 1. Studies have shown that it is easier and more "natural" for a child to learn another language at a very early age. ... While it is "natural" for children to learn French in very early immersion programs (kindergarten), it requires motivation to work much harder when immersion starts in later grades (grade 6 or 7). Students in these grades will want their opinion to count in the decision to enter the French immersion program and the decision will be dependent on their attitude to, ability in and perception of French. Results of Late immersion programs (with some differences in favour of Early immersion) have been positive.'
- Regarding early versus late immersion, from 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'Will my child be completely bilingual?',
'Studies and program objectives now closely link expected levels of competence in French for second-language learners with the intensity and frequency of time spent learning and using that language.'
From the section titled 'How good is their French?',
'Studies of the various French second language programs clearly show that the more exposure students have to French and the more they use it, the better their communication skills and the greater their confidence in their ability to use the language. In fact, rarely if ever are immersion and core French programs compared anymore, as the results are so dramatically different.'
From the section titled 'Who is immersion for?',
'With rare exceptions, there are no selection criteria ... for registration in early immersion ... On the other hand, it's not unusual for students interested in late immersion to be required to meet specified academic standards or obtain a teacher's recommendation.'
Another source of information
about
immersion students and amount of time spent speaking French is Dr. Genesee, a
world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
A very rough
rule of thumb
(era 2006) is at graduation early French immersion students are
stronger in
verbal French skills and late French immersion students are stronger in
written
French skills.
- There is information
about
Intensive Core French (Intensive Core French is not intended to replace
early
or late French immersion), implemented
about
2002-3, at: http://members.shaw.ca/cpf99/CPF-FIAL-0025-Core-French-Related-General.htm
- In French immersion as the method of acquiring French is by listening and speaking, the style of teaching is to involve the students so they participate in a lesson by speaking. This active participation generally appeals to all learners, but may have special appeal for some above average learners.
This thought is from a talk given at a CPF Vancouver meeting in June 1997 by Sylvie Lanmark-Kay, a graduate student at SFU, on her Master's thesis.
- The
Vancouver School
Board is planning to offer an extra program (Programme
de douance en Immersion) for gifted
students (étudiants ayant été
identifiés comme
doués) from early French
Immersion grades 3 and 4 starting September 2008.
- There is an excellent article 'The Young Child's View of Starting
French
Immersion' by Sandra Weber, Associate Professor at Concordia
University and
Claudette Tardif, Associate Professor at Faculté
Saint-Jean of the University of Alberta, published in CPF's
'So You Want Your Child to Learn French!' Second
Revised
Edition 1990. The authors observed four French immersion
kindergartens
and two English Kindergartens. Some of the French immersion
kindergarten
students were observed the following year in a grade 1 class.
Interesting
comments from the article are:
"During the first days of school, we carefully observed both the regular and immersion students with some of the parents' most often voiced concerns in mind. However, contrary to our expectations, the second-language element did not really seem to be a major source of frustration or difficulty for the children."
"The fact that not
understanding
the teacher's language seemed to be only a minor nuisance to the
children could
indicate that children are more tolerant of ambiguity than are adults.
Even in
their first language, young children are accustomed to not
understanding
everything adults say. In addition, they do not feel as socially
awkward about
not understanding as adults might in a similar situation, nor are they
as
reluctant to ask for help. Not knowing everything, relying on adults,
and
asking lots of questions are part of the socially accepted role of
being a
child. Research (for example
"In other words, the children did not need to understand every word spoken by the teacher. They could rely for help on the 'scaffolding of meaning' (Bruner 1975) provided by Teacher's paralanguage (gestures, body movement, intonation, and expression) and by concrete materials, pictures, symbols, and rituals. The way the teachers spoke and organized the situation was just as important as what they said in getting the message across. For example, a low table set with four place mats, cutlery, glasses, food, and drink extends an invitation to four children to sit down and eat even if they do not understand the accompanying French input."
For both English and French immersion kindergartens, one of the first issues for the children is to learn the new routine i.e. when is reading circle time, snack time and recess.
From 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'Social and psychological effects',
'Studies have found no
evidence of
emotional or social difficulties linked to a child's immersion
experience. The
gentle approach to French in the early years of an immersion program
helps to
build students' confidence and ability to understand what is going on.
Stresses experienced by the children are often found to be related to
factors
other than immersion. In their study of kindergarten students, Weber
and Tardiff reported, "We were very
surprised at just how
easily children adapted to the situation, ... If anything, it
was the
school-specific rather than the language-specific aspects of the
classroom
experience that seemed to pose a challenge to some of the children:
separating
from parents, getting used to the concept of recess (not going home),
learning
the classroom rules about how to behave, adjusting to the demands of an
unfamiliar schedule and way of doing things-these seemed to be the real
challenges in both the regular and immersion classrooms".'
(This article
is also online on CPF Vancouver North's web site)
- a common practice in French immersion kindergarten classrooms when English is needed (ie. when safety is concerned, like fire drill procedures), is rather than have the teacher speak English, the teacher has a puppet that 'speaks' English. As the year progresses, the puppet is needed less and less often. The teacher makes an effort not to give the impression that French is not used for important things. A common practice in French immersion grade one classrooms is if a teacher feels a student needs an explanation in English, the teacher tries to find a student who understands the issue in French and asks that student who understands in French to explain in English to the student not understanding the issue in French.
- Early
French
immersion is a good way for students to learn tolerance for different
languages
and cultures, which is important in multi-cultural
- Learning a second language is an asset in the global economy.
Another
source of
information about second language as an asset globally is Dr. Genesee, a
world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
.- Graduating from the FI program and being able to put 'fluent in French' on your resume is a big plus in this growing global economy. With so much competition for jobs (and ie. places in university co-op programs), the French skill distinguishes your application and may give you a better chance of getting an interview.
- Having had a positive experience learning a second language, many French immersion students are open to learning more languages and may have developed an appreciation for language structure that helps them in studying more languages.
The following is from the article 'The Academic, Intellectual, and Linguistic Benefits of Bilingualism' by Jim Cummins, Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), published in CPF's 'So You Want Your Child to Learn French!' Second Revised Edition 1990.
"A third implication of the metalinguistic benefits that bilingualism COULD
promote is
that students in immersion programs should be actively encouraged to
expand
their linguistic repertoires to INCLUDE ADDITIONAL LANGUAGES at the
secondary
level, or earlier if the opportunity presents itself. Swain, Lapkin, Rowan and Hart (1988) have shown that
immersion
students who have already developed literacy in a heritage language
perform
significantly better in French than students who come from English-only
backgrounds. This finding clearly suggests the educational value of
promoting
heritage languages, but it also points to the advantage that immersion
students
are likely to have in learning additional languages."
(I assume it would be late immersion students who might have achieved
literacy
in a heritage language).
- French immersion may help students become better listeners. In the article 'Three Basic Questions about French Immersion: Research Findings' by Merrill Swain, Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), published in CPF's 'So You Want Your Child to Learn French!' Second Revised Edition 1990, the following relates:
"...the study conducted
by
- The following is from the article 'The Academic, Intellectual, and Linguistic Benefits of Bilingualism' by Jim Cummins, Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), published in CPF's 'So You Want Your Child to Learn French!' Second Revised Edition 1990.
" The development of additive bilingualism and biliteracy skills entails no negative consequences for children's academic, linguistic, or intellectual development. On the contrary, although not conclusive, the evidence points in the direction of subtle metalinguistic, academic, and intellectual benefits for bilingual children."
Another
source of
information about immersion students and academic, linguistic and
intellectual
development is Dr.
Genesee, a world-renowned scholar of bilingualism, language development
and
language immersion programs, a Professor of Psychology at
- see BENEFITS OF STARTING LANGUAGE LEARNING EARLY from Nanduti (Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory At Brown University and Center for Applied Linguistics)
In particular, at this site, see Research Notes: Language Learning and the Developing Brain
- see BENEFITS OF BEING BILINGUAL from Nanduti (Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory At Brown University and Center for Applied Linguistics)
- Generally, early French immersion students converse in French by Jan. 1 of grade 1.
There is some related information in the section 'Further development of the language' in 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta.
- Early French immersion in
- Generally early French immersion students 'catch up' on their English skills by grade 6. When the students learn to read, many of them transfer the ability to read to English. In K through grade 3 they are working on French spelling. When English language arts instruction begins in grade 4, the students start catching up on spelling in English - as there are words they have been reading in English, yet they haven't worked on remembering their spellings.
Related information from 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'But what about their English?',
'The results of 30 years of studies undertaken from St. John's to Victoria are clear and consistent: early total immersion students tend to lag behind English-program students in the more technical aspects of the language (e.g., capitalization and spelling) until they have had a year or two of English language arts. However, by grade 5 or 6 (even if this subject has not been introduced until grade 3 or 4), they perform as well as their English-program peers.
...
Further, many studies have found that from late elementary on, early total immersion students often outperform their English-program counterparts in some English skill areas. It's speculated that enhanced abilities in a student's first language may be the result of a greater awareness of language in general and the ability to compare and contrast the two language systems. Also, immersion students receive a "double dose" of language arts as compared to English-program students.'
Another
source of
information about immersion students and English language performance
is Dr.
Genesee, a world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
- French immersion is designed for students who do not have French at home. Teachers assigning homework know that the students do not have French at home. Also, your child can tell you, in English, about their homework and you can have a discussion, in English, about the subject they are studying.
- a helpful article for
parents of
French immersion students is 'The Parents'
Role'
by Deborah Whale in So You Want Your Child to Learn French. Second
revised edition, 1990. Canadian Parents for
French,
- re reading to your French immersion student at home in English, see 'Share The Joys of Reading'
- re learning to read French, see about the French computer software ‘Voyage Interactif au Pays de la Lecture’ (5-7 ans) (in the CPF List of Popular Software ) which includes stories read in French to student and option for student to record and listen to his/herself reading the stories
- also re learning to read
French,
the CPF
Internet List Index Section 0037-4 Literature has a
contact
link for a helpful booklet 'Fostering Family Literacy in the Primary
Grades,
A Parent-Child Interactive Approach to Reading in French at Home'
produced by Lord Tennyson Early French Immersion School Staff and
Parents.
From this Tennyson project, the CPF Sponsored Peer Tutoring Literacy
Program
has been developed, see:
http://www.cpf.ca/english/Resources/Peer%20Tutoring.htm
and
From "The State of French-Second-Language Education
in
Canada 2004", chapter 8
http://www.cpf.ca/english/Resources/FSL2004/Chapter%208%20Report.pdf
- further about general and learning to read help for your French immersion student, see 'Help Me Help My Child'
- providing French experiences outside of the classroom is beneficial. Parents can help at home by noting:
- the
importance of expanding student's French vocabulary through ie.
reading, radio, TV, videos,
music, software and Internet. The
Vancouver
Public Library has children's' French collections
at the Kitsilano and downtown Central
branches.
They have French books, videos and software
for loan.
The CPF
Internet List Index has sources for all of these.
- the
importance of French cultural experiences outside the classroom. This
shows
students that
French 'lives' outside the classroom and
gives
them an opportunity to use their French outside the
classroom. The CPF Vancouver supported
annual
French film festival that students attend through
their schools is one way students
experience
French outside the classroom. Some
elementary schools do a field trip to
the annual
Festival du bois, in
(this happens less often now the
festival is
only on weekend days).
Ways to help with this are, for example:
- go
to a
local French restaurant and have the student order the family's meals
in
French.
-
find a
French hairdresser.
- maybe attend the annual Vancouver French summer
festival held in June.
-
maybe try
French after school and summer activities at either The French cultural
centre
on 7th Avenue near Granville Street or Alliance française
on Cambie Street near 45th Avenue.
The CPF Vancouver web
site
has sections for Local French Resources and Direct Links
that are helpful sources of information
-
maybe take
a family vacation to ie. BC Family
French Summer
or
The CPF
Internet List Index has sources for French summer camp, travel and
individual
(and school) exchanges.
Re French
experiences outside of the classroom,
From "The State of
French-Second-Language Education in Canada 2004", chapter 7,
page 52 (in regards to core French,
but also of interest
for French immersion)
"Other areas that that have been found to contribute to improved
language proficiency are a positive parental attitude toward the
learning of
French (Stern et al., 1976), and exposure to French outside the
classroom (Adiv and Doré,
1982). Students
tend to have a more positive view of learning French when these
conditions are
present. One way of increasing students’ exposure to French outside the
classroom is by visiting francophone students in
- re French resources like encyclopedias, note that a French immersion student using an English encyclopedia tends to use his/her existing French vocabulary to translate information. Using a French encyclopedia tends to expand the student's French vocabulary. See about computer software encyclopedias and online encyclopedias.
- CPF Vancouver hold an annual French dictionary sale (includes other resources like computer encyclopedias) for French immersion students, to help ensure students have adequate resources at home.
- CPF Vancouver sponsored, for
the
fourth year, a seminar titled 'Yes,
you can
help! Inspiration and assistance for
French Immersion parents' or 'How to help your child when you don't
know
French' Wednesday, 2002 October 9 6:30pm — 8:30pm, held at
- recommend the book 'French Immersion, Yes You Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta
- recommend 'A handbook For Parents, French Immersion Kindergarten' 2008-9 from CPF Alberta
- recommend the CPF
Books 'So You Want Your Child to Learn French! (second
edition)' and
'More French, s'il vous
plaît!'
- recommend the CPF
Special Report 'French Immersion Q & A: answers commonly asked
questions about the French Immersion program.' by Dr. André Obadia,
a professor at
The Introduction follows here:
'
This report provides answers to some of the questions most frequently asked by parents of French immersion students (actual and prospective). This report, we hope, will also give parents a quick overview of a Canadian success story. The answers are based on the results of three decades of research about one of the most thoroughly studied educational programs in Canada.
It is rewarding to see that
our
education system has succeeded, for the first time in the history of
second-language teaching in
This high level of French proficiency is developed at no cost to students' English proficiency or to achievement in other academic subjects such as science or mathematics.'
- recommend the booklet 'Helping Your Child Become Bilingual: A Toolkit For CPF Members' (has information about core French and French immersion), see CPF's Join Us web page for information about becoming a member.
From the section titled 'It all began in the early 1960s...',
'Dr. Stephen Krashen,
a well-known linguistics professor at the
- From 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'How well does early immersion work?',
'According to the Canadian
Education
Association, "No educational program has been so intensively
researched and evaluated in
- An important point from 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'But my child is...!',
'Researchers and educators also recognize parental support and commitment to the program as important factors in the success of any immersion student. A parent who is very nervous about the program, is negative about French, or has unrealistic expectations can undermine a child's motivation to learn. On the other hand parents who are confident and well informed are also likely to be able to work with educators to solve any problems their children may encounter.'
Please see
the following
section, previously presented in full above (in italics to facilitate
finding),
as it also applies to parental support and commitment:
Re French experiences outside of the classroom,
From "The State of French-Second-Language
Education in Canada 2004", chapter 7, page 52 (in regards
to
core French, but also of interest for French immersion)
Another source of information about immersion students and parental
support is Dr. Genesee, a
world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
- The CPF National web site Member's Corner has an extensive collection of research articles on French Second Language acquisition, including a searchable data base.
- The CPF National web site
has a link
to an article 'French Immersion: The Success Story Told by
Research' by Dr.
Nancy Halsall at the 'French Immersion in
- Usually early French
immersion students
in grade 6 or 7 go on a one week educational
trip to
Some schools do exchange
trips where students are billeted with families, but Quilchena students
have
traveled as a group and met students in
In late French immersion and
French
immersion secondary schools there are several options for students to
travel to
French speaking places, see:
CPF
Vancouver
Quebec and France trip resources
Travel Links
Please see
the following
section, previously presented in full above (in italics to facilitate
finding),
as it also applies to educational trips to Quebec or other
francophone
environments:
Re French experiences outside of the classroom,
From "The State of French-Second-Language
Education in Canada 2004", chapter 7, page 52 (in regards
to
core French, but also of interest for French immersion)
- in
dual track
schools (French immersion stream and English stream) students learn
firsthand
about tolerance for different ways to be schooled, and they learn
firsthand
about diplomacy between the two programs.
- in single track schools (only
French immersion
stream) students benefit from school announcements and signs being
mainly in
French only.
- From 'French Immersion, Yes you Can Help!' national edition from CPF Alberta:
From the section titled 'Who is immersion for?',
'While most French immersion students are from English-speaking homes, a small but growing number come from homes where neither English nor French is the primary language. These students are learning English and French as their second and third, or even fourth and fifth languages.'
From the CPF Pamphlet 'French
Immersion
Q & A: answers commonly asked questions about the French Immersion
program.' by Dr. André Obadia, a
professor at
'It is rewarding to see that our education system has succeeded, for the first time in the history of second-language teaching in Canada, in giving English-speaking and other students for whom French is a third or fourth language the ability to communicate naturally in French using a wide range of vocabulary.'
From the article 'The Academic, Intellectual, and Linguistic Benefits of Bilingualism' by Jim Cummins, Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), published in CPF's 'So You Want Your Child to Learn French!' Second Revised Edition 1990.
"A third implication of the metalinguistic benefits that bilingualism COULD
promote is
that students in immersion programs should be actively encouraged to
expand
their linguistic repertoires to include additional languages at the
secondary
level, or earlier if the opportunity presents itself. Swain, Lapkin, Rowan and Hart (1988) have shown that
immersion
students who have already developed literacy in a heritage language
perform
significantly better in French than students who come from English-only
backgrounds. This finding clearly suggests the educational value of
promoting
heritage languages, but it also points to the advantage that immersion
students
are likely to have in learning additional languages."
(I assume it would be late immersion students who might have achieved
literacy
in a heritage language).
The CPF National web site Member's
Corner
has an article 'Effects of Two-Way Immersion on the Ethnic
Identification of
Third Language Students: An Exploratory Study'. Bilingual
Research Journal, 21(1). 1997.
There is a
related
article, Accessing Imagined Communities Through Multilingualism and
Immersion
Education, written by SFU faculty member, Dr. Diane Dagenais
( http://www3.educ.sfu.ca/faculty_member.php?contactid=44
) that deals -at least partially, with the reasons why parents may
select
French Immersion. You will note from the article that she has
been
engaged in a long term study of immigrant families in
CPF National has an article
"Early French Immersion and the non-anglophone
child" by Paula Kristmanson, Research
Officer, PhD
student, SLEC, which includes the following:
"Although this last article does point to some of the potential
challenges
faced by non-anglophones in an immersion
setting, the
two case studies do show that non-anglophone
students
can experience success in the program. The decision to chose
early French
immersion comes from the parents desire to choose an education that
reflects
their beliefs and values. Immigrant parents may hold the belief
that
learning both official languages is an important element to becoming
Canadian. As some studies point out, success can be achieved
by non-anglophone students of varying first
language backgrounds
and it therefore becomes a parental decision not a definitive research
conclusion to chose or not to chose early
French
immersion." CPF
National
has a doctoral thesis which compares a larger group of ESL students
with
Canadian-born students.
Another source of information
about non-anglophone immersion students is Dr. Genesee, a
world-renowned
scholar of bilingualism, language development and language immersion
programs,
a Professor of Psychology at
For non -anglophone
families considering Early French immersion, CPF National has a number
of
related research articles that may be of interest, some of which CPF
Vancouver
has on file: contact the CPF Vancouver Chair via your CPF Vancouver
School
Representative.
- for those families with one
francophone
parent and one anglophone parent who are
choosing
between the francophone and the French immersion schooling options,
there is an
interesting article 'The Point of View of a Francophone outside Quebec'
by
Jacqueline Neatby, a bilingual
Franco-Ontarian, a
member of the executive of the Ottawa-Carleton District Health Council
and of
the Ontario Historical Studies Board, published in CPF's
'So You Want Your Child to Learn French!' Second
Revised
Edition 1990. This article explains how a Francophone elementary
school
(in a majority anglophone community) is
like a
francophone community centre, for example, a December seasonal music
evening by
students for parents will have both the songs and announcements in
French. At
an early French immersion school a December seasonal music evening by
students
for parents will have the songs in French and the announcements in
English for
the parents (noting that in the higher grades songs might be in French
or
English).
At the December 2001 CPF Vancouver meeting, retired early French immersion teacher Mme Maguay Duchesne spoke about French immersion. Maguay suggested parents could help their students' French language arts by encouraging from grade 4 through at least grade 7 that the students read a French book at home 5 days a week, for 30 minutes each day. The 30 minutes could be 10 minutes out loud and 20 minutes silent. Maguay suggested exposure to a second language and culture helps students' critical thinking.
See CPF Vancouver F.I. Secondary Schools Related Information
Of particular note:
- some
French immersion students seem to benefit from the perspective their
teachers
from a different
cultural background (ie.
French rather than English) bring them, and see their teachers like
adult
mentors.
- at
Kitsilano
Secondary in 2001-2 the French immersion program is about one quarter
of the
school's population and about
three quarters of the school's honour roll.
- at Kitsilano in
2005-6 the
French immersion program is about one quarter of the school's
population and
the Grade 12 English AP (Advanced Placement at University) and
Grade 12 English Literature classes are about
three
quarters French immersion students.
For pamphlets about French
immersion,
see
http://www.cpf.ca/English/resources/Publications/index.htm#pamphlets
For videos about French
immersion, see
http://www.cpf.ca/English/resources/Publications/index.htm#Video
http://www.wtc.ab.ca/cpf/
"Releasing Butterflies: A Celebration of French Immersion", CPF Wetaskiwin's video promoting French Immersion
The Vancouver School Board has a video about early French immersion, for information contact the Modern Languages Consultant.
For CPF's
online discussion forums, see
http://www.cpf.ca/english/forums/forums.htm
Also of interest
: From CANADIAN PARENTS FOR FRENCH (CPF) BC &
7:30 pm Vancouver Public Library Central Branch
CPF recently
commissioned Dr.
Fred Genesee to conduct a review of the research on the suitability of
French
immersion for "at risk" students that was published in “The
Canadian Modern Language Review” last fall.
The title
of this
free public lecture is “Early Childhood Bilingualism: Perils and
Possibilities”. We believe this presentation will appeal to anyone
interested in issues pertaining to bilingualism in education, second
language
learners, immersion, and the challenges associated with accommodating
the
varied needs of learners from varied cultural and linguistic
backgrounds. Dr.
Genesee is a world-renowned scholar of bilingualism, language
development and
language immersion programs, a Professor of Psychology at
For additional information on Dr. Genesee’s talks or the Minerva
Lecture
Series in general, please visit the Minerva Lecture Series page on the
Canadian
Council on Learning’s website at http://www.ccl-cca.ca/minervaseries "
A podcast will be availbale at:
http://www.ccl-cca.ca/CCL/Events/Minerva/PastLectures/?Language=EN
or
Article of interest: Linguistic, Academic, and Cognitive Benefits of
French
Immersion, by Wally Lazaruk
2007 The Canadian Modern Language Review/La Revue canadienne
des langues vivantes,
63, 5
(August/aouˆ t), 605–628
In
Heritage
language immersion programs are growing in number. Many heritage
language
immersion programs begin with 100% English in kindergarten through
grade three
and then introduce the heritage language in grade four. This can be
thought of
as working differently than French middle immersion, as in French
middle immersion
the French language is new to the student, whereas in heritage language
immersion, the heritage language is usually not new to the student, the
student
has often had some exposure to the heritage language at home.
Last revised September 19, 2008
This information has been gathered by Lesley W., Kitsilano (and past
Quilchena)
Volunteer CPF Vancouver Representative and CPF National Volunteer
Internet
Resource Reviewer