Challenges Encountered in a Chinese Immersion Program in the United States

Chen, Yaling; Yang, Ting-An; Chen, Hsiuling Lydia

doi:10.1007/s40299-017-0337-2

“…Educational leaders in FLIPs reported that fulfilling academic achievement goals, as measured by standardized tests in English, was one of their main concerns (Kristmanson & Dicks, 2014). School administrators and teachers have stated that curriculum planning is complicated and challenging as the district's standards must be met while enhancing students’ bilingual competence (Chen et al, 2017).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…First, the curriculum in FLIPs provides the full educational experience for the students, complying with Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that mandates access to the same grade‐level academic content to all students as other educational programs (U.S. Department of Education & OELA, 2015). At a local level, some school administrators may face curriculum obstacles such as a lack of aligned curriculum materials adapted to nonnative speakers of the LOTE (Chen et al, 2017) and the hiring of language immersion teachers who can teach state content standards in the LOTE with curriculum alignment (Lachance, 2017).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

School administrators’ perspectives of French immersion programs

Grivet

¹

,

Haj-Broussard

²

,

Broome

³

2021

Foreign Language Annals

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This study explored how school administrators understand and plan for French immersion program components in K‐12 schools in Louisiana. The theory of effective bilingual schooling and the Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education served as the framework of the study. The research questions that guided the study asked how school principals and assistant principals understand and plan for French immersion program components in K‐12 schools. Purposive sampling was used to select five school administrators. Data were gathered through semi‐structured, one‐on‐one interviews. The analysis of data used inductive thematic analysis. Five themes emerged: multilingualism and multiculturalism, academic achievement, leadership, teachers’ support, and program networking. Findings from this study were that school administrators developed a high degree of advocacy, teachers’ support, shared leadership, and strengthened communication and relationships with local, national, and international partners to deepen stakeholders’ involvement.

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“…Although there have been a number of research focusing on evaluation and enhancing the effectiveness of language immersion education in general (Fortune, 2012), those targeting Chinese emersion education have been limited. Previous research related to Chinese immersion education has studied the academic and language achievements of Chinese immersion students (Lindholm-Leary, 2011;Padilla et al, 2013;Seitz, 2019;Watzinger-Tharp et al, 2018;Xu et al, 2015) and curriculum design and development for Chinese immersion programs (Chen et al, 2017;Lin, 2012;Met & Livaccari, 2012;Ni & Na, 2016;Zhou & Li, 2015b). Staffing and teacher development, being equally if not more critical in Chinese immersion education is calling for more practical and scholarly attention.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Existing studies show that recruiting qualified teacher candidates has been a significant challenge for Chinese immersion programs, mainly because there are limited teacher preparation programs for immersion teachers (Chen, 2019;Chen et al, 2017). As most of the Chinese immersion teachers are not trained by immersion teacher preparation programs, they face various challenges for Chinese immersion teachers in areas such as curriculum planning and content teaching, classroom management, and cross-cultural communication (Bissell & Chang, 2012;Chen, 2019;Chen et al, 2017;Liao et al, 2017;Ren, 2017;Romig, 2009;Zhou & Li, 2015b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chinese Immersion Teachers in the U.S: Perceptions and Needs on Their Teacher Preparation Programs

Chen¹,

Li²,

Gorke³

2022

Preprint

0

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Language immersion has been an emerging educational method for K-12 students to acquire foreign languages. Despite its effectiveness, there are a limited amount of teacher education programs designed specifically for language immersion educators. Thus, many language immersion teachers have been applying knowledge learned from general teacher educational programs, which are not designed for language immersion settings, into their daily teaching. Simultaneously, the language immersion programs, especially Chinese immersion programs, have identified multiple educational challenges related to curriculum design and content teaching, classroom management, and cross-cultural communications. This study aims to address these challenges from the perceptions of selected Chinese immersion teachers towards their teacher preparation programs via qualitative in-depth case studies. Results show that the educational philosophy and psychology theories and practices, curriculum and instruction, cross-cultural competence, and practicum in existing preparation programs contribute positively towards immersion teaching in the U.S. However, Chinese immersion teachers demand more social-emotional learning and diversity, equity, and inclusion preparation. Potential solutions to these challenges require synergistic efforts from the current teacher preparation programs, Chinese immersion programs, and policymakers.

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“…Although there have been a number of research focusing on evaluation and enhancing the effectiveness of language immersion education in general (Fortune, 2012), those targeting Chinese emersion education have been limited. Previous research related to Chinese immersion education has studied the academic and language achievements of Chinese immersion students (Lindholm-Leary, 2011;Padilla, Fan, Xu, & Silva, 2013;Seitz, 2019;Watzinger-Tharp, Rubio, & Tharp, 2018;Xu, Padilla, & Silva, 2015) and curriculum design and development for Chinese immersion programs (Chen, Yang, & Chen, 2017;Lin, 2012;Met & Livaccari, 2012;Ni & Na, 2016;Zhou & Li, 2015b). Staffing and teacher development, being equally if not more critical in Chinese immersion education is calling for more practical and scholarly attention.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chinese Immersion Teachers in the U.S: Perceptions and Needs on Their Teacher Preparation Programs

Chen¹,

Li²,

Gorke³

2022

Preprint

0

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Language immersion has been an emerging educational method for K-12 students to acquire foreign languages. Despite its effectiveness, there are a limited amount of teacher education programs designed specifically for language immersion educators. Thus, many language immersion teachers have been applying knowledge learned from general teacher educational programs, which are not designed for language immersion settings, into their daily teaching. Simultaneously, the language immersion programs, especially Chinese immersion programs, have identified multiple educational challenges related to curriculum design and content teaching, classroom management, and cross-cultural communications. This study aims to address these challenges from the perceptions of selected Chinese immersion teachers towards their teacher preparation programs via qualitative in-depth case studies. Results show that the educational philosophy and psychology theories and practices, curriculum and instruction, cross-cultural competence, and practicum in existing preparation programs contribute positively towards immersion teaching in the U.S. However, Chinese immersion teachers demand more social-emotional learning and diversity, equity, and inclusion preparation. Potential solutions to these challenges require synergistic efforts from the current teacher preparation programs, Chinese immersion programs, and policymakers.

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Challenges Encountered in a Chinese Immersion Program in the United States

Cited by 21 publications

References 15 publications

School administrators’ perspectives of French immersion programs

School administrators’ perspectives of French immersion programs

Chinese Immersion Teachers in the U.S: Perceptions and Needs on Their Teacher Preparation Programs

Chinese Immersion Teachers in the U.S: Perceptions and Needs on Their Teacher Preparation Programs

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