A panel discussion of the effect of immersion programs on first and second language learning. Questions are raised regarding the effectiveness of the regular curriculum, results of immersion for majority language and minority or immigrant children, the meaning of linguistic competence and underlying cognitive and intellectual processes. (AMH)

Studies on reading comprehension for bilingual students are reviewed to examine the importance of first-language mastery prior to second-language acquisition. Immersion program factors analyzed include automaticity, plateau effects, need for a variety of sociolinguistic settings, oral facility versus cognitive academic linguistic abilities, and…

Presents the first report of a three-year evaluation of the impact of French schooling on English-speaking children in Quebec. Focuses on the English language development, French language proficiency, and mathematics achievement of children in the fourth grade. Systematic observations of teaching approaches in the French schools were also carried…

A survey of francophone parents in Monckton, New Brunswick enrolling their children in either English-language or French-language schools revealed the reasons for the enrollment choices, satisfaction with the choice, perceptions of their children's linguistic competence and ethnic identity, their own linguistic assimilation, home and second…

In Australian two-way immersion programs approximately 20-40% of instruction takes place in the target language. While much has been written about such programs targeting French and German, little has been written about Japanese immersion programs. The aim of this research is to provide a better understanding of children's second language…

This study examined the role of multilingualism in the Kyrgyz educational system, noting how language learning and language attitudes are related. It analyzed language biographies (semi-narrative interviews in which informants discussed their lives as speakers of two or more languages) and observed language classes. Participants were bilingual…

This paper addresses an important topic--the isolation and or lack of inclusion of immigrant children in U.S. schools. Immigrant children constantly pour into U.S. schools and, especially as newcomers, their opportunities for authentic interaction with mainstream peers are limited. How can schools provide authentic language opportunities for…

This annotated bibliography of children's literature presents 74 books and stories that can be used in the classroom to introduce literature in French to children in fourth through sixth grades. The selected texts (51 titles in fiction and 23 titles in non-fiction) were chosen for their age-appropriate language and themes, as well as their…

Cognitive, academic, first language, and second language abilities of language-impaired children attending French immersion programs were assessed in kindergarten and grade 1. After two years of instruction, second language skills were improving, but not comparably to nonlanguage-impaired students. Optimal language of instruction theories are…

Reports the results of a study examining the effect of one year's attendance in a French language immersion program on the intelligence and self-esteem of six year olds. (AM)

Analyzes the processes and strategies used by English-speaking children when they learn to read and write in their first language, English, while enrolled in total French Immersion (in which all their schooling is in the second language). (KEH)

An interview with Wilga Rivers focuses on advances in language teaching over the last 50 years, changing student needs and teaching methods, the differential success of teaching methods, program design, student immersion, teacher training, and technological advancement in relation to language teaching. (MSE)

Reports on the speech difficulties of four French immersion anglophone students participating in a three-month interlinguistic exchange. Each student was interviewed three times, and the transcripts were analyzed for linguistic, sociolinguistic, and sociocultural errors in oral French and for performance evaluation by the students. (51 references)…

A study investigated the processes underlying acquisition of French by students in two late immersion programs (grades 8-10) in Queensland (Australia). Focus is on three features: the cooperative learning situation that developed, idiosyncratic language that emerged, and students' patterns of socialization. (31 references) (Author/MSE)

Hawaii has a strong crusade to revive the Hawaiian language to preserve the Hawaiian culture. The article examines the events leading up to the implementation of Hawaiian language immersion programs through the State Department of Education and lists specific immersion school goals and strategies. (SM)