When parents paint a picture of the out-of-school language support for elementary students in a bilingual program

Session Submission Type: Paper

Summary

This study examines the level of exposure to French outside of the school context for early elementary students enrolled in a French-English two-way immersion program. Analyses focus on whether significant differences arise between students from households with at least one parent proficient in French and others.

Abstract

Bialystok (2016) explains that, eventually, for children enrolled in a bilingual program, “the majority language of the community (is) mastered whether or not it (is) the primary language of instruction, but the minority language require(s) environmental support to reach high proficiency levels” (pp. 4-5). This raises the question: what levels of linguistic support in the minority language do US children in bilingual education receive outside of the school context?
In this study, 44 parents of early elementary students enrolled in a French-English two-way immersion program were surveyed on their children’s exposure to French outside of the school context.
The study found that, on average, students rarely hear, speak, or read in French outside of the school context. Students from households with at least one parent proficient in French (i.e., parent-proficient households or PPHs) practice more French than their counterparts, but only to a limited extent. In addition, students from non-PPHs spend significantly more time watching television, playing electronic games, and reading in English than in French. No such differences were found for students in PPHs, which suggests that students in PPHs do not receive more print or media exposure in French than in English. Results also show no significant differences in terms of French input versus output for either group. Qualitative data suggest that, regardless of the household language background, parents report challenges posed to the development of French outside of the school context.
These findings point to the paucity of French exposure outside of school for students in a French-English bilingual program, even when parents are proficient in French.

(1)Includes respondents who indicated that they themselves or the other parent had a level of proficiency in French of 3 or beyond on a scale ranging from 0 - “No practical proficiency” to 5 - “Native or bilingual proficiency”.

Strand

• Educational Linguistics (EDU)

Presenter

• Ève Ryan