In this article, I--a White, French-immersion teacher-researcher--engage in a reflective examination of my research and teaching practices involving African American students. My critical reflection of my research examines the instruments used in my comparative study of African American students' experiences in the French-immersion context and the…

Sheltered English is a method of instruction for limited-English-proficient (LEP) students based on the Canadian model of immersion education in which content is taught in English and made comprehensible to the students by special instructional techniques. The goal of the program is to enable the LEP students to acquire high levels of oral English…

A study was conducted to assess social and political factors affecting the implementation of French immersion in northern Ontario, Canada. Using a sample of eight boards in Northeastern Ontario communities, data were obtained by interviewing 17 French immersion principals and 52 immersion teachers. Data were also obtained by surveying all…

An experimental program in California may offer a potential answer to the nation's acute need for bilingual teachers. In the 1960s and 1970s the number of limited- and non-English-speaking students expanded rapidly, especially among the Hispanic and Asian-Filipino populations. Students with such English-language problems are more likely to drop…

Details the results of four tests comparing the French and English achievement of francophone, anglophone, and mixed subpopulations of fifth-grade students in Edmonton Catholic School System French immersion programs. Discusses the behavioral, cognitive, and academic correlates of language competence of the three subgroups. (SB)

Motivated by attrition in French immersion programs in Canada, a study was undertaken of the perceptions of French coordinators, helping teachers, school principals, and French immersion teachers in British Columbia (Canada) school districts regarding the attrition rate and students' reasons for leaving immersion. The research differed from…

In 1998, California passed Proposition 227, which severely restricted the use of primary language for instructing English learners, calling for a 1-year transitional program of structured English immersion. Researchers examined the effects of Proposition 227 in districts and schools statewide during the first year of implementation. Data from…

A descriptive case study provides a comprehensive profile of 13 learning disabled students' experience after one full year in a French immersion learning difficulties program in Canada. (Author/VWL)

In November 2000, Arizona voters passed Proposition 203, a law that replaced bilingual education with a 1-year program known as Structured English Immersion (SEI). Although SEI has little support in the educational or applied linguistics research literature, all English-language learners (ELLs) in Arizona are automatically placed in SEI…

The Sabal Palm Elementary School in Miami, Florida, cooperated with Florida International University to develop three innovative language programs: (1) Spanish, employing a modified immersion technique for kindergarten and first and second grades; (2) Latin, emphasizing the Latin origin of English for grades five and six; and (3) Shakespeare's…

A case study examined interactions between elementary school staff and 18 Mexican American parents during the school's conversion to a dual language program. Although parents were included in program planning, parental satisfaction and involvement declined with time. Analysis suggests that parents were alienated as educators' ideals were…

Describes dual language instruction models, and presents a paradigm for examining congruence among theoretical models, teacher beliefs, and actual classroom practices to determine program effectiveness. Examples illustrate implementation pitfalls. Analysis of Proposition 227 finds it to be a decontextualized procedural model; it has an incoherent…

Examined how teachers were impacted by California's Proposition 227, highlighting changes in teaching styles and beliefs about the proposition and its effectiveness. Teachers had to change their teaching strategies to accommodate the new curriculum. They were not sufficiently trained for immediate implementation of English-only education. Teaching…

Describes the development and implementation of a whole language program in Quebec (Canada), a unilingual French province. Focuses on the meaning of educational change at various levels of Quebec's educational system. Presents perspectives and competing ideologies on whole language. (Author/BB)

Classroom actions of early French immersion teachers were identified and the teachers' perceptions of their effectiveness were determined. The majority of actions referred to vocabulary instruction management. The need for a distinct teacher preparation program for teaching in a second-language context was found. (Contains 43 references.)…