Conference Strands and Descriptions

Submissions for this conference are now closed.

 

1. Research in Its Applications

Decisions in dual language/immersion are based on past and present research and need to be part of the discussion in future research. This strand seeks to provide a cutting edge snapshot of the state of the research in the field, with a particular focus on research that informs decisions about dual language/immersion education programs in all its forms.

This strand welcomes proposals that address the following critical questions:

1. What are effective methods to advocate for all stakeholders involved in immersion education (e.g., students, teachers, family and community members)?
2. How can we better understand the cultural and identity development of dual language students and teachers?
3. How can research help us better understand assessment (e.g., assessment of student learning, language proficiency, and characteristics of teachers, students, and schools)?
4. What constitute solid foundations for principled and effective immersion education policy?
5. How can research findings inform our understanding of what teachers, support staff, and administrators need to know and be able to do to be effective in dual language programs?
6. What can research tell us about the relationship between teaching and learning?

 

2. Target Language Assessment

What is the role of language and literacy assessment in the dual language/immersion classroom? This strand will examine the theoretical issues and practical implications of language assessment in ensuring high-level proficiency outcomes as students master curriculum-specific content and skills.

This strand welcomes proposals that address the following critical questions:

1. How do we establish a bilingual and bi-literate assessment and accountability system?
2. How do we effectively assess the immersion language for formative and summative purposes?
3. How do we set proficiency targets K-16 that are developmentally appropriate and in line with the ACTFL proficiency guidelines?
4. What is the purpose and importance of language assessment in the dual language/immersion classroom? Why should we assess? Who are the stakeholders?
5. How do high-stakes exams (e.g. AP) and performance-based assessment affect curricular and instructional decisions?
6. How do we embed language instruction and assessment in content oriented instruction and how do you link them to Common Core Standards?
7. How do we create appropriate performance-based scoring rubrics?

 

3. Preservice and Inservice Teacher Education

At the heart of successful dual language/immersion programs are their teachers. Immersion teaching requires a particular knowledge base and skill set, yet despite widespread agreement that immersion teaching is different, relatively few teachers around the world benefit from immersion -specific teacher preparation or inservice professional development (PD). Immersion teacher education is a unique and evolving area in the larger field of language teacher education. As dual language/immersion programs proliferate around the globe, teacher education considerations have come to the fore and now deserve the field’s utmost attention. This strand will provide a forum for teacher educators to share research, innovative practices, and assessment strategies for preparing immersion teachers and contributing to their ongoing PD.

This strand welcomes proposals that address the following critical questions:

1. What skills, dispositions, and knowledge need to be developed in immersion teacher preparation and inservice professional development programs?
2. What are effective design and implementation models for preservice immersion teacher preparation and inservice PD programs?
3. What are effective models for assessing immersion teacher efficacy?
4. What are teacher education practices that positively impact immersion teaching?
5. How do teacher education and PD experiences need to be modified to address the needs of immersion teachers across a range of levels (from pre-school to tertiary immersion)?
6. How are immersion teachers best prepared to address the needs of struggling learners as well as linguistically, culturally, and socioeconomically diverse learners?
7. How do language faculty and education faculty best collaborate to design and deliver effective immersion teacher preparation programs?
8. How can technology be utilized to enhance teacher preservice preparation and inservice PD?

 

4. Teaching and Learning

As we move well past the first decade of the 21^st Century, major educational initiatives are shaping curriculum, instruction, and assessment. These same forces shape teaching and learning in dual language/immersion programs, fostering exploration of many of the same questions as those in monolingual schooling. This strand will explore current trends in general education, providing insights into how dual language immersion programs are managing change through curricular and pedagogical innovations. It will provide opportunities for teachers and administrators to: share approaches to language, literacy, and academic growth aligned with high-leverage practices; to showcase innovations and successes; and to share resources, ideas, and views on dual language /immersion teaching and learning.

This strand welcomes proposals that address the following critical questions:

1. How are dual language/immersion programs guided by the Common Core State Standards?  How can we enhance instruction to support the interdependent relationships among language, literacy, and academics?
2. What student-focused approaches to instruction allow dual language/immersion programs to meet the needs of all students including heritage/English learners, special needs, late-entry, and struggling learners? How do programs meet the needs of heritage learners whose immersion language proficiencies may fall within a wide range of demonstrable skills?   
3. How can the technologies of the digital age expand access to language development within and beyond the school day?  Can these technologies offer a new pathway to students who might enter dual language/immersion programs beyond the customary entry points or provide pathways to continued immersion learning in secondary settings?    
4. How can all dual language/immersion teachers have access to continued professional growth, given the extensive demands on their time and energy, especially in light of the significant impact that the Common Core State Standards will have on expected classroom practices? How can we increase the likelihood that the new learning embedded in professional growth finds its way into classroom practice?  

 

5. Cross-Cultural Competence: Fostering Intercultural Identity and Community

This conference strand examines how to incorporate cross-cultural pedagogy and intercultural perspectives in ways that value the cultural/linguistic backgrounds and perspectives of both teachers and students in the dual language learning environments. It also explores cross-cultural competence at different ages, curriculum levels, and in the context of the dual language classrooms. Moreover, it investigates the role of dual language settings in embracing and encouraging cultural awareness within the larger school, families, and the community.

This strand welcomes proposals that address the following critical questions:

1. What is the impact of school and community cultures/identities on dual language/immersion programs?
2. How would dual language/immersion programs engage in promoting cultural competence among students, teachers and parents beyond the dual language classroom?
3. How are cross-cultural values, attitudes and behaviors incorporated into the curriculum? What are the frameworks guiding goal development for cross-cultural competence and pedagogy?
4. How do students in dual language/immersion programs perceive their own culture/identity and their relationship to students of other cultural backgrounds in the classroom and in their communities? How are these perceptions transformed through dual language/immersion education?
5. How does cultural pedagogy vary with different student populations, such as heritage learners, multilingual speakers, two-way and one-way dual language/immersion programs? How do they vary with different languages and cultural backgrounds?
6. How do we assess the effectiveness of cross-cultural competence in the dual language/immersion classroom?

 

6. Advocacy and Policy

Immersion educators are well aware of the impact that local, state and national policies and public opinion have on their ability to implement and sustain effective dual language/immersion programs. As a result, there is an ongoing need to identify and engage the stakeholders, monitor policy development, advocate for high-quality dual language/immersion education, and provide accessible information about the programs and their outcomes. This strand will address important questions regarding language education policy and planning; legislative mandates; state, national, and international initiatives; and strategies for building support for high-quality and sustainable dual language/immersion education.

This strand welcomes proposals that address the following critical questions:

1. What are the strategies that create and sustain spaces that are favorable for dual language/immersion?
2. How do current local, state, and federal standards and policies affect the design and implementation of dual language/immersion programs?
3. Who makes these policies and who can influence their development and implementation?
4. By working toward policies that support dual language/immersion programs, how can we improve the education of all children?