French immersion

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French immersion is a form of bilingual education in which a child who does not speak French as his or her first language receives instruction in school in French.

1 Jurisdictions offering French immersion
2 External links

[edit] Jurisdictions offering French immersion

[edit] Canada

Most early French immersion students, starting in kindergarten or Grade 1, do all their work in French, except English language arts, which usually starts in Grade 4. Late immersion generally begins in junior high or in 6th grade. Extended French programs provide a variation on late immersion, where students take some courses in English and others in French. French immersion is also done in some private schools and preschools. Several Canadian universities offer opportunities for students to continue to study subjects in either French or English, such as the Faculté Saint-Jean at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, the Université Sainte-Anne in Nova Scotia, Collège Universitaire Saint-Boniface at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, University of Ottawa, Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario and York University's Glendon College in Toronto.

Although the program earns support from most Canadians, largely because it promotes bilingualism, critics state that the program is elitist or too costly. Others are concerned that anglophone students in immersion programs will not learn to read and write well in English. However, statistics suggest that students in French immersion tend to outperform non-immersion students in reading [1]. The program is available in all ten provinces, but its popularity differs by province and/or region. Currently, enrollment in French immersion is highest in the Maritimes and parts of Quebec and Ontario.

[edit] Scotland

Walker Road Primary School, Aberdeen, Scotland started an early partial immersion programme in 2000.^[1]

[edit] Australia

French immersion is also run in Australian schools such as Mansfield State High School; teaching mathematics, SOSE, science and French, entirely in French.

[edit] Louisiana, USA

French immersion has been used since the 1980s in Louisiana, a U.S. state with a strong French heritage extending back to colonial times. During the mid- to late twentieth century, however, the number of native French speakers in Louisiana plunged as the region became increasingly enveloped in mainstream American culture. As a result, French Immersion was viewed by parents and educators as a way to save the French language in Louisiana. In 2006 the state boasted over twenty public schools with French Immersion programs. As in Canada (which inspired Louisiana's program), students generally begin immersion in kindergarten or first grade. They receive instruction in French for sixty percent of the school day regarding a number of subjects, including math, science, and social studies.

[edit] Leicester, UK

Judgemeadow Community College, Evington, has been using a French Immersion course in one form group a year for the last four years. They answer the register in French, their French, IT and PHSE lessons are all in French.