Supports for French Immersion Administrators

When we offer the gift of a second language to our students, we foster strong communication skills in two languages, we offer an edge in post-secondary education as well as in the global economy, we also develop respect and appreciation for cultural diversity. A gift indeed!

French Immersion is recognized as an essential and important program in our Alberta schools that enhances opportunities for our students.

Alberta’s 2017-18 Guide to Education states:

According to section 11 of the School Act, a board may authorize the use of French or any other language as a language of instruction. Since French is one of Canada’s two official languages, learning French is considered important to enhance opportunities for living and working throughout Canada and the world, as well as to foster a greater understanding between French-speaking and English-speaking Canadians. Alberta Education encourages opportunities for all Alberta students to learn French by making available alternative French language programs (including French immersion) and related services, under section 21 of the School Act.

Source: https://education.alberta.ca/media/3653320/guide-to-education-2017-2018.pdf - p. 59 - 60

A successful French immersion program requires school leaders who:

value French second language learning as an integral part of a world-class education;
believe in French immersion as an effective means of learning French as a second language;
acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to offer, support and maintain a high-quality program; and
advocate for the program, its accessibility and sustainability

Source : https://education.alberta.ca/media/3115178/frimmhandbook.pdf p. 23

Key Things to Know About French Immersion Programs

French Immersion is a well researched approach to teaching a second language, designed for children whose first language is not French. Students have the opportunity to learn the French Language, to learn about the culture of the language, as well as learn through the language.

A foundational resource for French Immersion Administrators is the Handbook for French Immersion Administrators developed by Alberta Education in 2014. It offers excellent background information as well as practical ideas and strategies to set up, sustain and maintain a strong French Immersion program.

Joseph Dicks, Director of the Second Language Research Institute of Canada, presented a slide show in 2015 discussing Myths about the French Immersion program and sharing findings of French Immersion Research. The slides are text based and very informative for anyone new to French Immersion or having to answer questions from parents or other stakeholders.

French Immersion Delivery Models:

Typically there are two types of settings for the French Immersion program: the single track immersion school (all students in the school are enrolled in French Immersion) or dual-track or multi-track schools (the school houses both a French immersion and English program and/or sometimes other programs and languages).

Within those settings, two types of delivery models are common in Alberta: Early Immersion and Late Immersion. Early Immersion is by far the most common program in Alberta as well as in Canada.

See chart for a comparison of these two options.

Source: https://education.alberta.ca/media/3115178/frimmhandbook.pdf p. 15-16

Fostering Culture

When entering the school, is it obvious that we are entering an immersion school? The French language ... can we hear it in the hallways, in the classrooms, in the office, during announcements on the intercom, or in the staffroom? The French language ... do you see it on posters or signs, in the classrooms, in subjects other than French?

The French language and culture should be well integrated into the daily life of students and school staff. It is important to create a school culture where French is the norm: the presence of French is natural and an integral part of the way of life for the entire school community. Take every opportunity to create a francophone atmosphere and environment in the school.

Development of English Skills in a French Immersion Program

When ELA is introduced

With the intent of offering intensive exposure to French from the start, English Language Arts is typically introduced in subsequent years. The majority of French Immersion programs across Alberta and Canada introduce English Language Arts in Grades 2 or 3.

Useful Predictors of Ability

Researchers have identified a number of language skills that have a strong correlation between English and French and can in fact be used to predict future reading ability in a student's first or second language (Source: Jared, D., Cormier, P,. Levy, B.A., & Wade-Woolley, L. (2010)):

Phonemic Awareness (blending phonemes and isolating sounds in a word)
Phonological Awareness (rhyme and syllable awareness)
Print knowledge (how text works, left to right...)
Decoding and Word Identification
Grammatical Ability

Transferable Skills Across Languages

In a French Immersion research study conducted by Renée Bourgoin (published in 2014), she discovered an interesting pattern. Students who had been learning English in Grade 1 and 2 began a French Immersion program in Grade 3. Within six weeks of initial language instruction in the second language, students who were strong in English were similarly strong in French. Students who had experienced difficulties in English, also struggled learning French. Source: https://www.utpjournals.press/doi/abs/10.3138/cmlr.2346

Students who learn one language, can easily transfer these skills to another language. The same cognitive processes and reading strategies are used in both instances. The primary focus when introducing ELA in Grades 1, 2 or 3 is to build up their bank of recognizable words and learn to master grammatical structures unique to English. Not all literacy concepts have to be retaught from scratch.

The Advantage of Learning to Think in Two Languages

In Alberta, we find that French Immersion students quickly catch up to their English peers typically within a year of beginning instruction in English and have been shown to surpass the abilities of their English peers by the end of Grade 6. Compare the results of Gr 6 ELA PATs in your school district between regular program students and French Immersion students and you will likely see evidence of bilingual advantages (including more cognitive flexibility) at work in your own context.

Parents have a role to play, too!

Parents are often concerned that their child will fall behind in English. A key message to parents is to encourage them to read to their children, identify words in their day to day interactions, play literacy games, etc. in English as much as possible because those language skills will transfer.

Research involving FI students with low levels of academic performance has suggested that these students experience the same academic struggles whether enrolled in FI or the English program. Below average FI students score as well as below average non-FI students enrolled in English programs. Furthermore, even those FI students with low levels of academic performance experience the benefit of increased proficiency in French, when compared to those in the English program.

Source: https://www.unb.ca/fredericton/second-language/_resources/pdf/lricnotes/fall2008.pdf

Inclusive Education

All Students Are Welcome in a French Immersion Program

A few key concepts about second language learning from Dual Language Development & Disorders: A Handbook on Bilingualism & Second Language Learning:

Code-mixing where children blend English and French is a normal part of learning a language. Either they lack linguistic proficiency and use English to fill lexical gaps or they use it for pragmatic effect to emphasize what they are saying or add colour to their everyday discourse. Children should not be reprimanded for code-mixing. In most cases, it should not be taken as evidence of language delay or impairment. (pp. 91-106)
It should not be assumed that the difficulties (language, literacy or academic), experienced by some majority language students in bilingual programs (e.g., English students in French Immersion programs) are due to language instruction. Learning through another language is not a linguistic, cognitive or social hardship for most majority students. (p. 193).
It is estimated that reading impairment affects between 5% and 20% of the school-age population [unrelated to the language of instruction] Shaywitz & Shaywitz, 2005 (p. 23)
Changing the language of instruction is not likely to substantially change a child's underlying phonological processing abilities. (p.238)

Experts such as Fred Genesee (Duval, 2008) believe there is no reason to exclude students who are struggling from French Immersion programs. For many students, the benefits outweigh the challenges; the immersion setting helps them build better language strategies in ways that might not be possible in an English only program. (Alberta Education, 2009)

See also an article first published in the fall 2009 edition of the Canadian Parents for French, Alberta Branch newsletter entitled Inclusive practice in French Immersion.

inclusion of students with diverse needs - FI admin.pdf

Student Retention in FI Programs

Canadian Parents for French - Alberta has collated an extensive list of ideas for retaining students in French Immersion programs including materials that can be shared with students and parents and an exploration of current thinking about diversity and why academically-challenged students may benefit from staying in French Immersion programs:

https://ab.cpf.ca/resources/for-educators/student-retention/

CAIT/ACPI Pre-Conference Presentation in 2016 from Retired Manitoba Principal, Gordon Campbell

PRECON_Corey_Haley_Immersion-for-all-supporting-struggling-studentsin-French-Immersion.pdf

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