Journal of Immersion and Content-Based Language Education - Volume 2, Issue 2, 2014

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

Biliteracy is a greater and more complex form of literacy than monoliteracy. This paper provides a brief review of the research in the area of biliteracy in immersion contexts, and culminates by setting a research agenda for the coming decade. Three critical areas for research are identified: (1) creating a comprehensive theoretical framework for biliteracy development, (2) identifying and clarifying trajectories to biliteracy, and (3) developing better pedagogical practices to accelerate biliterate competencies and improve qualities of instruction.

This article reviews research that has examined the linguistic and academic outcomes of at-risk learners in bilingual/immersion programs. Specifically, we review research on at-risk students with: disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds, low levels of academic or general intellectual ability, poor first language ability, special education needs (including students at risk for or with language and/or reading impairment), and students who speak non-standard varieties of their first language and/or come from ethnically diverse backgrounds, including minority ethnic groups. We conclude by identifying topics and issues that warrant future research.

This article presents an overview of immersion pedagogy and how it has developed over the years in conjunction with classroom research and evolving classroom practices. We first consider initial conceptualization of immersion pedagogy as being primarily content-based and input-driven with only an incidental focus on the immersion language. We consider the strengths and weaknesses of this approach as a means to explain subsequent recommendations for a more systematic focus on language in immersion pedagogy. We then review classroom research investigating various pedagogical means of enhancing immersion students’ metalinguistic awareness through form-focused instruction, corrective feedback, and cross-lingual pedagogy. We conclude with questions and issues for future research and development in the realm of immersion pedagogy.

How much and what kinds of classroom interaction best promote language and content learning in different immersion contexts? We review trends and major concerns for classroom interaction research in three language immersion contexts: two-way immersion, one-way immersion, and indigenous language immersion. Much of the research in two-way immersion contexts has focused on issues of equity in interaction. Research in one-way immersion contexts has primarily attempted to understand what kinds of interaction are most effective for L2 development, and how to teach students to interact in these ways. Driven by the urgency that accompanies efforts at language and culture revitalization, indigenous immersion research centers on the role of culture and community norms in classroom interaction. Despite the fact that research in these three contexts has focused on rather different issues, we draw cross-context conclusions, arguing that findings from these settings can and should inform each other.

Two-way immersion (TWI) programs have provided an effective bilingual alternative to monolingual approaches to educating language minority students. This article reviews the research related to two program design questions: are TWI programs effective for different groups of students within the program and what role does school context play in the program’s effectiveness?

In two-way immersion (TWI) programs in the United States, the development of student cross-cultural competence is one of three primary goals, along with academic achievement and bilingualism and biliteracy. However, as “the third goal,” cross-cultural outcomes have received less scholarly attention. In this article, we briefly review the literature on cross-cultural outcomes for students in TWI programs, and highlight a consistent focus on the self in these studies, particularly as it relates to student identity. As cross-cultural competence begins with awareness of the self within the socially and culturally diverse classrooms that TWI provides, we assert that scholarly attention should be paid to the ways that TWI programs support identity development as an aspect of achieving the third goal of cross-cultural competence. We offer brief descriptions of three theoretical frameworks that hold promise for scholars considering student identity development within TWI, and close with suggestions for further research.

Since its inception in the late 1960s in St. Lambert, Quebec, Canada, one-way immersion has become a globalized phenomenon taking many forms and focusing on many target languages. In this paper, we will take a brief historical look at one-way immersion with regard to its program design and variants. We will then describe how immersion has evolved by focusing on five particular one-way immersion contexts: French immersion in Canada, French immersion in Louisiana, French immersion in Australia, English immersion in Hong Kong, and Chinese immersion in the U.S. We explore each of these programs by examining demographic issues as these relate to design and intercultural elements. Through these explorations, we will describe the changing face of immersion programs and the changing faces of teachers and learners. We will conclude with a discussion of what can be learned from the various models and suggest directions for future one-way immersion research.

One-way immersion programs were originally designed to provide monolingual majority language speakers a good mastery of a second, foreign, heritage, or indigenous language. This article provides a brief overview of the design of one-way-immersion programs as part of bilingual education in Europe by presenting some of the immersion programs from the following contexts: Basque country, Catalonia, Finland, Ireland and Wales. The implementation of these programs in different European contexts is analysed by looking at different functions of the programs and demographic characteristics in their student populations. The article concludes with a discussion on perspectives about and challenges for one-way immersion programs in the future.

This article provides a context for understanding indigenous immersion education and the issues surrounding the model as a critical strategy for revitalization of indigenous languages. Through articulating narratives and drawing on literatures internationally, an image of indigenous language education models emerges. Inspired by strong heritage language learner identities, program models are shaped around building family and community relationships, revitalizing cultural traditions and practices, and re-establishing indigenous language identity in its homeland. Indigenous language immersion models vary as they are developed in vastly different contexts. Three distinct contexts — Ojibwe, Māori, and Hawaiian — are described to illustrate the diversity and range of models. The article closes with some reflections from practice that will provide a context for building a research agenda to advance the revitalization of indigenous languages through immersion.