Introduction
French Immersion in Canada has long been considered as one of the most efficient programs to promote “real” bilingualism. A lot of research has been carried out in that field and mainly stated positive results for this special way of learning a second language. But if one goes deeper into the literature concerned with that subject, one encounters more and more critical voices doubting the proverbial effectiveness of these programs. This paper shall
provide a critical evaluation of the findings, research provided in respect to the effectiveness of immersion programs in Canada. Furthermore, proposals for new teaching techniques, which shall make the immersion classroom more efficient, will be described and evaluated. At the beginning of this paper, a short introduction to immersion education is given, including a definition of the
term “immersion” and a presentation of the key features of Canadian
Immersion Education, followed by an abstract of the history of immersion education in chapter 2. The following section describes the conception of different types of immersion programs, along with findings concerning their effectiveness. This shall help the reader to gain a complete picture of the pros and cons of a specific type of program. The main part of this paper (chapter 4)
starts with a critical evaluation of the results presented in previous chapters and tries to assess whether these programs are a suitable tool for the acquisition of native-like performance in a second language. Chapter 5 offers a selection of four different teaching methods which can make – if they are applied correctly – the immersion classroom more efficient. The paper concludes with a summary of the most important results, trying to provide a
critical evaluation of immersion as such.
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Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- 1. What is Immersion?
- Definition and key features of French Immersion
- 2. Historical development of French immersion
- 3. Different types of immersion programs – Benefits and problems
- 3.1) Early Total Immersion
- 3.2) Early Partial Immersion
- 3.3) Late Immersion Bilingual Education
- 3.4) Summary of results and critical evaluation:
- 4. The effectiveness of immersion programs: Are they a suitable tool for the acquisition of native-like performance in a second language?
- 5. Ways and methods to make the immersion classroom more efficient
- 5.1) Demand for a new national curriculum.
- 5.2) Error correction in French immersion: An attempt to prevent the early fossilization of an interlanguage......
- 5.3) Process writing as a learning tool in the Foreign Language Class
- 5.4) Explicit vocabulary instruction in French Immersion.............
- 6. Conclusion:
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This paper critically evaluates the effectiveness of French immersion programs in Canada, drawing on existing research and proposing new teaching techniques to enhance classroom efficiency. The paper examines the history and various types of immersion programs, analyzes their effectiveness in achieving native-like proficiency, and suggests methods to improve language acquisition.
- Definition and key features of French immersion in Canada
- Historical development of immersion education
- Effectiveness of different immersion program types
- Critical evaluation of immersion programs' ability to achieve native-like proficiency
- Proposed teaching methods to improve immersion classroom efficiency
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The introduction provides a brief overview of the topic, highlighting the long-held belief in the efficiency of French immersion programs and the growing critical voices questioning their effectiveness. The paper aims to critically evaluate existing research and explore potential improvements to immersion education.
Chapter 1 defines "immersion" and outlines the key features of French immersion programs in Canada. It emphasizes the use of the second language for instruction, the separation of learners from native speakers, the promotion of additive bilingualism, and the unique sequence and intensity of first and second language instruction.
Chapter 2 traces the historical development of French immersion in Canada.
Chapter 3 delves into different types of immersion programs, including Early Total Immersion, Early Partial Immersion, and Late Immersion Bilingual Education. This chapter explores the benefits and challenges associated with each program type and examines existing research on their effectiveness.
Chapter 4 critically evaluates the findings presented in previous chapters, focusing on whether immersion programs effectively facilitate the acquisition of native-like proficiency in a second language.
Chapter 5 proposes four specific teaching methods that can enhance the efficiency of the immersion classroom. These methods include a new national curriculum, error correction techniques to prevent fossilization, process writing as a learning tool, and explicit vocabulary instruction.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
French immersion, bilingualism, second language acquisition, native-like proficiency, teaching methods, immersion programs, additive bilingualism, error correction, process writing, vocabulary instruction, critical evaluation.
- Quote paper
- Eric Mühle (Author), 2000, French Immersion in Canada: A critical evaluation of current findings and proposals for an improvement of teaching methods, leading to greater effectiveness in L2 teaching, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/414
