Conference Sessions

This paper discusses an action research project in a third grade immersion classroom which used audio/video recordings to improve reading skills. Results focus on the students' use of think-alouds, the extent to which the practice resulted in pushed outcomes, and how much languaging occurred during the process.

Writing in the early school years is a challenging task. Students are exposed to the target language for the first time at the same time they are just starting to write and read in their first language. Come and explore ways to teach and promote writing and reading in young students.

Irish immersion students develop the vocabulary and sentence structures needed to achieve high levels of functional proficiency, but target-like levels in some linguistic features of the immersion language do not emerge in student output. This presentation will consider form-focused instruction and the central role played by teachers in promoting form-focused teaching in experiential Irish immersion pedagogy.

This presentation targets primarily school, district, and state personnel who support the integration of international teachers across languages and contexts (one-way/two-way) in immersion programs. Participants will gain a repertoire of strategies and resources addressing issues related to logistics, curriculum, cultural acclimation, and pedagogy necessary to support international teachers.

How can we ensure that immersion students grow in proficiency each year? How can we ensure graduates develop advanced level proficiency to study in college or participate in the global workforce? This session will demonstrate how programs have tried to answer these questions, with examples from Chinese, French and Spanish.

This paper examines French immersion parents' needs related to homework, and teachers' views and practices regarding parental involvement in French immersion homework programming. Surveys and focus groups with parents (N=605) and teachers (N=158) showed a range of needs and resources that transcend the French immersion context.

Presentation Slides (PDF)

This presentation will discuss the main pedagogical strategies that have been used to train Spanish teachers to teach writing in the Spanish Dual Immersion Programs in Utah such as Bloom's Taxonomy, the writing process approach, the ACTFL standards, and the focus on the developments of linguistic skills.

In this discussion session, immersion educators from Louisiana and Minnesota will talk about teacher recruitment and licensure issues in their respective states. Participants will be invited to contribute their own experiences as we all attempt to develop pathways to immersion teaching that will attract and retain the most qualified candidates.

This presentation demonstrates how new technology allows for a nonlinear approach to planning and creating material for today's student learning-style. Presenters will manipulate an icon-based editing-tool and involve participants in dragging-and-dropping their way to creating classroom material (text, images, sounds, videos files, etc.) and applying transitions and interactivity. No programming needed!

Ten years ago our Texas district took the first tentative steps of a journey, starting as a struggling one-way Spanish immersion program to proudly becoming a quality school of choice. We will share our standards brochures that became the basis for a remarkable turnaround in our students' language proficiency.

For immersion students to practice their target language, En Francais A Lafayette, a teacher-initiated organization, is providing after-school activities targeting four- to eight-year old students. This presentation will offer information about the project through a detailed historical view and pictures. Participants will discuss its impact and share experiences.