FAQ

Will two languages confuse my child or slow down their academic progress?

No. Research has consistently demonstrated that learning in two languages enhances academic growth and develops the cognitive abilities of students. Immersion students not only become bilingual but also master the subject content of the regular school curriculum that is taught through the second language. In addition, they develop functional proficiency in the immersion language which surpasses that of students in all other forms of foreign language instruction.

What about the first days in an immersion programme? Is it frustrating for a child to begin school where no one is speaking their language for half the day?

The children are made to feel safe and secure through expert nurturing instruction. After a few days, they do not focus on the fact that the teacher is speaking in another language. The immersion process emphasises a visual, concrete and hands-on approach. As receptive skills increase, students gradually substitute the second language into their normal speech.

How can I support my children at home if I am not a strong speaker of the immersion language?

The single most important activities families of immersion students can do to aid in their children’s education is to read aloud to their children in their native language at home. It is important to read stories to your child in your native language because those stories may not be heard at school. Stories will help to build up the child’s concepts that will then apply to any language the child is using. In addition to reading to children, it is also important to expose them to the native language in a variety of social and public settings.

Parents can support students at home by making sure that they have the right environment and tools to do their homework. They can al¬so ask questions about their homework in the language spoken at home, thus giving the students opportunities to explain the assignment in their first language.

How can I help important family members such as grandparents, older siblings, extended family or close friends understand our decision to choose the bilingual immersion programme for our child or children?

It is important for them to understand that immersion is a more effective way to learn additional languages and that it does not under-value the importance of being educated in the native language. Inform them about extensive immersion research that points out the many benefits of such types of bilingual education. As your children progress in the programme, you can occasionally ask them to read to concerned grandparents or other adults in both languages to stop them from worrying.

In which language should I teach reading at home?

Your child will transfer reading skills from one language to another. Parents should not attempt to formally teach their children to read the other language. If a child is ready to read in the other language on their own, encourage this at home and deal with it in a relaxed and enjoyable manner.

Will my child be able to read in two languages?

Reading skills such as learning to scan sentences from left to right, looking for phonemic or semantic clues, finding parts within words or figuring out meaning from context are all ‘transferable’ between many languages. If students learn a skill in one language, they can transfer it to another language and, in the end, are able to attain grade- level reading competency in two languages rather than just one.

Parents can rest assured that immersion programmes are the fastest growing and most effective type of foreign language programme available in schools today. Immersion students can be expected to reach higher levels of second language proficiency than students in other school-based language programmes.

From the standpoint of academic achievement, over five decades of studies consistently show that immersion students achieve as well as or better than non-immersion peers on standardised measurers of verbal and mathematics skills administered in the native language. Becoming bilingual opens the door to communication with more people in more places, increasing economic opportunities.

Phorms immersion programmes give students powerful cognitive, social and economic benefits since they provide children with skills to become global citizens and to interact competently in an increasingly interdependent world community.