Immersion Education Down Under
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The ACIE Newsletter News from the American Council on Immersion Education May 2002 Vol. 5, No. 3 Immersion Education Down Under by Michele de Courcy, Senior Lecturer in Language Education, La Trobe University, Bendigo, Victoria ilingual schooling is not a new phenom- on Australia’s languages (1992) both give B enon in Australia. Clyne (1986, p. 11) recognition to the potential for children in notes that before 1916 one could find immersion programs to achieve high levels of WHAT’S INSIDE? sixty bilingual schools teaching in German, competence in LOTE, and in the early 1990s, Gaelic, French and other languages at both the interest in immersion programs exploded. Special Issue primary and secondary school level. The enthusiasm of those participating in Immersion Education Down Un- With the onset of the First World War, the the programs was communicated to the der 1 bilingual schools were closed. During the appropriate educational administrators who, 1970s, with the politics of multiculturalism, in turn, transferred this enthusiasm into Best Practices came a renewed interest in languages. The explicit government policy and funding to International Exchanges: distinction between “community languages” support immersion programs. However, The Glennie School: and “modern languages” was removed, and the this interest is concentrated primarily in A Case Study 4 term “LOTE” (Languages Other Than English) two states – Queensland and Victoria. (Note came to be used for all. In 1981, a German that, in Australia, school education is funded Research Reports bilingual program started at an elementary and administered at a state level, even Text Comprehension Strategies school in Melbourne followed, in 1984, by a though the federal government does make of Children in an Indonesian Bilin- French bilingual school located in the national pronouncements on education.) For example, gual Program 5 capital, Canberra. in Queensland, the Ingram and John report At the secondary school level, the first (1990, p. vi) gave explicit support for the School Profile immersion program started in 1985 in expansion of immersion programs throughout Queensland (Berthold, 1995). It is a French the state. The Victorian Government’s 1994 Camberwell Primary School 6 immersion program, and served MACLOTE Report also as a model for the other pro- recognized the importance The Bridge: From Research to grams which were later set of immersion programs Practice (see insert) up in Queensland. In as “the best models for Integrated Curriculum: 1990, a Hebrew achieving high levels Designing Curriculum in immersion of communicative the Immersion Classroom 8 program com- competence in menced at a LOTE.” In both Techno Tips private secondary states, funding, Immersion Teacher Education school in Mel- specifically through Audiographics 10 bourne. tagged for the establishment of immersion AN EXPLOSION programs, was OF INTERes T supplied to The National Policy on Languages (Lo government schools. Bianco, 1987) and the DEET White Paper Funds were available to Immersion Education Down Under, continued on page 2 1 FROM THE EDITOR T H E AC I E echnology has made the work of an editor modes of auditory learning in ways that we can NEWSLE tt ER T much more efficient and expedient and only begin to imagine. And, exposing students Volume 5, Number 3 this has been no more evident than in the to authentic language when they are so far from planning and implementation of this final is- the source requires innovative planning and sue for the 2001-2002 academic year. Over the financing, which is exactly what a girls’ school American Council on Immersion Education thousands of miles that separate North Ameri- in Queensland has decided to undertake. Center for Advanced Research on ca from Australia, my guest editor, Dr. Michèle Moreover, languages that would be deemed Language Acquisition (CARLA) de Courcy, and I have corresponded on nearly “less commonly taught” in North America take 619 Heller Hall a daily basis since November to bring you this on importance in the Australian context, hence, 271 19th Avenue S. special issue devoted entirely to the world of an Indonesian program is the focus of our re- Minneapolis, MN 55455 USA Phone: (612) 626-8600 immersion education in Australia. Without the search report. Fax: (612) 624-7514 emailing of articles and letters and photos, and I suggest that you begin with the introduc- http://carla.acad.umn.edu the occasional faxing of material that got lost tory article by Dr. de Courcy, which will set the EDITORIAL STAFF in digital translation, this collaboration would stage and introduce you to terminology specific have been a much more laborious process. It to the Australian educational context. In par- Kimerly Miller Editor, ACIE Newsletter helped, of course, to be working with a col- ticular, American readers will note with interest 695 Lincoln Avenue league who is punctual, passionate, and cogni- how the term “bilingual education” is used. St. Paul, MN 55105 zant of deadlines. In the United States, this phrase has become tel: (651) 290-0223 fax: (651) 227-6904 Australian educators have been long known politicized and endowed (and bogged down, [email protected] for their innovations in literacy education I might add) with meaning beyond the simple and this thread runs through several of the provision of instruction in two languages and Diane J. Tedick, Ph.D. articles we are publishing. On the other hand, has spawned years of controversy over the wis- Associate Professor Second Languages and Cultures the great distances that separate communities dom of learning in two languages. Australian Education from each other, from institutions of higher educators maintain its original definition, refer- University of Minnesota learning, and from much of the rest of the ring to their immersion programs simply as 150B Peik Hall world have created special problems for Aus- 159 Pillsbury Dr. S.E. bilingual programs. Minneapolis, MN 55455-0208 tralian teachers which have been tackled in To help our readers with a few of the more tel: (612) 625-1081 creative ways (anyone remember stories of common terms we have included a glossary on fax: (612) 624-8277 bush teachers using the airwaves to conduct page 6 to refer to as you are reading. We have [email protected] their classes?). Today’s technology, an example also maintained Australian spelling conventions of which appears here, expands on the earlier throughout. Photo and graphic credits: p. 4 cour- tesy of Michael Berthold; p. 7, 14 courtesy Helen Warnod; p. 12 courtesy Immersion Education Down Under, continued from page 1 of Tony Erben. Editorial assistance by Suzanne Hay. sion and early immersion schools (see table hire additional teachers, to allow time release Design by Woychick Design. page 3). for preparation of materials, and, in the case of Printed on recycled paper. The University of Minnesota is commit- Victoria, for internal and external evaluation. ted to the policy that all persons shall In Queensland, one mainly finds second- EARLY OR LATE IMMERSION have equal access to its programs, fa- cilities, and employment without regard ary school immersion programs (with one, in The immersion programs currently found in to race, color, creed, religion, national German, at the elementary level), whereas in origin, sex, age, marital status, dis- Australia are either designed for the mainte- ability, public Victoria, one finds mostly elementary school assistance status, veteran status, nance of a mother tongue other than English, or sexual orientation. immersion programs, with a few at the second- or have as their goal the acquisition of a sec- ary school level. In these two states, the pio- ond language by children who speak English. neer and lighthouse schools, to use Berthold’s Another distinction is that between the early (1995) terms were, respectively, late immer- immersion programs at primary school level Immersion Education Down Under, continued on next page 2 SPECIAL IssUE CONTACT INFORMATION: Summary of Immersion Programs in Australia NOTes ON TABLE Michele de Courcy 1 2 3 4 5 Language Victoria Queensland S.A. W.A. N.T. ACT NSW 1 South Australia Senior Lecturer in Language Educa- Level E S E S E E S E E E 2 Western Australia tion German 1 1 1 1 1 3 Northern Territory 4 French 1 2 4 1 1 1 Australian Capital Territory La Trobe University 5 New South Wales Indonesian 1 1 Bendigo 6 Hebrew 1 Australian Sign Language E = Elementary Victoria, Australia Arab L1 1 S = Secondary Chinese L1 2 [email protected] L1 = Heritage Language Chinese L2 1 1 Program Japanese L2 3 1 L2 = Immersion Program for Vietnamese L1 3 native English speakers 6 SPECIAL IssUE Auslan L1 & L2 2 Greek, Slavic & 1 BIBLIOGRAPHY Macedonian L1 Berthold, M. (1995). Rising to the Italian L2 1 2 1 bilingual challenge. Melbourne: Aboriginal n/a 4 21 NLLIA Languages Other 1 Clyne, M. (1986). An early start: Languages Second language at primary school. Melbourne: River Seine. (children aged 5-11) and late immersion pro- of the programs (see bibliography) have found de Courcy, M. C. (2002). Learners’ grams at secondary school level (children aged that parents always want to know: experiences of immersion educa- 12-18). There are also a small number of pro- • if the children’s English suffers in a language tion: Case studies of French and grams at the university level, in Japanese, Chi- immersion program; Chinese. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual nese and French. There are no total immersion • if their knowledge of the content will suf- Matters. programs such as those found in Canada, as the fer (especially if Math is one of the subjects de Courcy, M. C., & Burston, concept of a full immersion program has proved taught via the second language); M. (2000). Learning mathemat- ics through French in Australia.