Inclusion in the French Immersion Classroom
Many parents and educators wrestle with the question of whether French Immersion programs can be suitable for all learners. All over the internet you can find examples of families who have had excellent experiences in the program alongside those who have had terrible experiences in French Immersion programs. Parents bring their own experiences of learning French or an additional language, whether positive or negative, into the equation we contemplating enrolling their child in an Immersion school. They may also feel social pressure, family pressure or economic pressure when making a decision about Immersion education. Presented below are just some of the issues, considerations and research surrounding inclusion in the French Immersion classroom.
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Five year old Ana comes from Peru and has just moved to a Canadian city where English is the dominant language and culture. Her parents decide to place her in a French Immersion program at a nearby elementary school because her cousin attends that school; they do not speak or understand French and their English language skills are also limited. Ana has non-verbal autism and is unable to communicate with her teacher or educational assistant. She has extreme outbursts that scare the students in her classroom. The French Immersion school she attends prides itself on its inclusive policies but they have never had a students with such a challenging profile before. It takes several weeks for Ana to be assigned a regular educational assistant as the school is unable to find a bilingual (French/English) let alone a multilingual (French/English/Spanish) assistant with the skills required. There is an English stream school just a few kilometers away that can better meet Ana's special learning needs. This school has more experienced staff, better access to specialized equipment and therapies, and even a therapeutic pool onsite. The English stream school is the school district's hub for all students with severe special needs or who are medically fragile. Transportation from her home to the English school will be provided at no cost to her parents. Is French Immersion still the right program for Ana?
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Physical DisabilitiesStudents with physical disabilities generally come to the school with a medical diagnosis and a plan from their physician or occupational therapist about how to best to meet their physical and educational needs. In the classroom this can mean keeping learning spaces clutter-free to provide safe access for students with leg braces or wheelchairs; providing alternate seating such as a standing desk, tables or exercise balls; or providing students with access to a laptop or tablet to facilitate written tasks. In the music classroom students with physical disabilities can be accommodated by making changes to the physical space and materials, such as using specialised instruments, creating stands to support instruments, and shifting seating arrangements to accommodate wheelchairs or mobility issues. Students rarely have a choice of how much or how little support they received, that decision is usually left up to teachers and their teaching assistants. Egilson and Traustadottir (2009) point out the obvious, but often forgotten, point that students also should have a voice in how, when and who provides their educational support. They also note that parents, teachers and students prefer ‘invisible’ assistance, rather than having at assistant be constantly at the student’s side helping more than needed. For this reason it is vital that teachers communicate with the family and the student to ascertain what the student can do independently, and then relay those expectations to the teaching assistant.
Cognitive DelaysIn French Immersion programs specifically there is very limited research available that supports or refutes inclusion for students with cognitive delays and learning disabilities. Some recent research has begun to look at bilingualism in students with Down Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), as many children with Down Syndrome and ASD are born into bilingual families, but they do not touch on bilingual education. A 2005 study showed no evidence of bilingualism having a negative impact on the language abilities of children with Down Syndrome (Bird, Cleave, Trudeau, Thordardottir, Sutton & Thorpe, 2005). Likewise, a 2011 study examining the language skills of 14 English-Chinese bilingual and 14 English monolingual preschool-age children with ASD could find no ill effects of a bilingual upbringing on their language providing further evidence that children with ASD can function as bilinguals given appropriate support (Petersen, Marinova-Todd & Mirenda, 2011).
What could inclusion look like in a French Immersion classroom for students with cognitive delays, such as Down Syndrome or ASD? As in the English-stream classroom, posting visual schedules, using a Time Timer or other visual aid for time management, and providing noise cancelling headphones or mini-offices to thwart distractions, are some of the UDL strategies that may help all students, including those with Down Syndrome, ASD and other cognitive delays, to be successful in both the general classroom and the music classroom. Teachers should develop and explicitly teach routines for beginning or ending classes, or transitioning between activities; they should choose material with repetition; incorporate movement activities; and, break larger tasks down in to smaller steps. The University of Texas Center for Music Learning also suggests that music teachers be as concrete as possible and demonstrate what they want to see rather than giving only verbal instructions. |
ESL & Multi-lingual StudentsEnglish as a second language (ESL), English language learner (ELL), English as a second dialect (ESD), English as an additional language (EAL) are all terms we use to indicate that a students is not a native speaker of English. Whether they are new immigrants to Canada or come from a home where English is not spoken, being placed in an Immersion school in an additional new language can cause stress for some students. However, the research shows that, given appropriate support, ESL students can perform as well or better than their Anglophone counterparts in French Immersion programs.
Learning Disabilities |
Communication Disorders
The four main categories of communication disorders are speech disorders, language disorders, hearing disorders and central auditory processing disorders.
Speech Disorders |
Language Disorders |
Speech disorders can affect a person's ability to speak fluidly (stuttering, stammering), their articulation of sounds (lisp, particular sounds like /r/ or /th/) and the quality of their voice (pitch, duration, resonance). In some school districts students with speech disorders are treated onsite by a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) and in other districts parents must seek outside help. The challenge in French Immersion programs, where content is delivered exclusively in French, is whether or not children should be provided with SLP treatment for the articulation of sounds that are not part of the French language, for example the sound /th/ (/θ/) as in teeth or /th/ (/ð/) as in these. Francophone programs do not provide SLP therapy for English sounds, nor do Anglophone programs provide SLP therapy for non-English sounds. Should the SLP work with the French Immersion student in English or in French?
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Hearing Disorders |
Central Auditory Processing Disorders |
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Internet Links & Associations |
Internet Resources |
Bibliography & Suggested Reading
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