Pathways to Bilingualism: Evolving Perspectives on Immersion Education

[Francis M Hult]

http://www.carla.umn.edu/conferences/immersion/



Pathways to Bilingualism:
Evolving Perspectives on Immersion Education
October 21-23, 2004
Radisson-Metrodome Hotel
Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

As one of many pathways to bilingualism, language immersion education
continues to proliferate in the U.S. and throughout the world. This
conference on immersion education aims to bring together immersion
educators in all languages, at all instructional and institutional
levels, and in all contexts.

Targeted contexts include: foreign language immersion in more and less
commonly taught languages, dual language immersion, and immersion for
linguistic and cultural revitalization involving heritage and indigenous
populations.

Each of these school-based programs embraces the concept of additive
bilingualism -- the acquisition of a second language while continuing to
develop the first. As the purposes and sociopolitical contexts for
immersion education multiply and change, there is a pressing need to
bring together researchers, teachers, and other professionals from these
many contexts to initiate and sustain meaningful dialogue and share new
knowledge across languages, levels, program models and sociopolitical
contexts. The conference will focus on the following four broad themes:
Program Design and Development, Assessment and Program Evaluation,
Language Development and Immersion Pedagogy, and Policy and Advocacy.