World language acquisition in early childhood urban immersion programs

Guisse, Mamadou As a superpower, the United States is a leading nation in many domains, such as militarily and economically. However, there is one area where the country is lagging: early childhood world language acquisition In the 21st century, most countries around the world teach children a foreign language at an early age, whereas in the United States, it is English only.” Since most countries teach English as a Foreign Language as part of the core subjects, Americans don’t deem it necessary to learn world languages. If we are to raise globally competent citizens, this trend must be reversed by promoting immersion programs and giving American children the opportunity to learn world languages. For the sake of this study, a qualitative method was used to collect data by conducting interviews in early childhood urban immersion programs in a Midwest school district. I chose qualitative research because of the flexibility and subjectivity of this methodological approach. I visited four schools: Urban French Language School, Urban German Language School, Urban Italian School, and Urban Spanish School. I then interviewed teachers and administrators, either face-to-face or via Zoom. I analyzed the data collected by reading the interview questionnaires several times, and I also listened to the Zoom meeting recordings multiple times. The goal was to note any similarities or differences in the responses given by the participants, four school administrators and nine teachers. I selected these participants as a sample by obtaining district approval with a letter of approval from the superintendent. All the face-to-face interviews took place either in the administrator’s office or in a classroom in the absence of students. I used structured interviews for my data collection. When asked about the impact of world language on young children, all the participants responded with some variation of: “There are many benefits in giving them the opportunity to learn foreign languages at an early age.” As to the question “What are the two most important advantages of world language acquisition?” answers given by the participants included “cultural awareness and job opportunity” and “open-minded and competent global citizens.” As for the ideal age to start learning foreign languages, some of the participants suggested K-3, others K-4; in other words, the younger they begin instruction, the better. The teacher participants were all certified by the school district with many years of teaching experience, and the administrators are former teachers who were promoted to principalship. Based on the participants’ responses, it is fair to argue that there are undeniably remarkable benefits associated with world language acquisition at a young age. Studies analyzing foreign language and brain development show that bilingual children outperform monolinguals in areas such as math, social studies, and English or Language Arts. Whether instruction occurs in rural or in suburban areas, these are avenues for further studies or analyses.

Grantor dc:publisher

Alverno College

Year dc:date

2022

Author dc:creator

• Guisse, Mamadou

• Early childhood education
• Second language acquisition
• Concentrated study

Statement dc:rights

• These materials may be used by individuals and libraries for personal use, research, teaching (including distribution to classes), or for any fair use as defined by U.S. Copyright Law.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

https://alverno.omeka.net/items/show/826

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:alverno.omeka.net:826