Multilingual Mania

When Dual Immersion Programs Become Exclusionary

August 2, 2011

I wish that I could give you all the dirt on what a drama-filled day that I had at work today, but I can’t. I pride myself on being a professional who tries to stay above all the drama and tries to remain professional even during times of great conflict. I’m really angry and perturbed [...]

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Job Prospects During Immigration?

July 29, 2011

Here’s a story where multilingualism evolved into polylingualism… American travelers are quite comfortable filling out immigration forms, standing in line, and smiling at the officers manning immigration windows. I don’t mind this process myself, though I’ve had interesting experiences where it seemed I was the randomly elected tourist in the crowd to extend assistance in [...]

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The Power of Being Bilingual

July 19, 2011

For me it’s an honor to be bilingual. Ever since I was young I loved the idea of being able to speak two languages and communicate with other people. Being bilingual has not only helped me in my family, but also in my community as I performed my community service hours for the Community Service [...]

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El Poder de Ser Bilingüe

July 19, 2011

Para mí es una gran dicha el poder ser bilingüe. Desde que era pequeña, me encantaba la idea de poder hablar dos idiomas y el poder comunicarme con las demás personas. Ser bilingüe no solo me ayudó en mi familia, pero también en mi comunidad mientras hacía mis horas de servicio comunitario para el programa [...]

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The Linguistic Worlds of Technology

July 6, 2011

The World Wide Web and modern communication technologies have been connecting people around the globe, and technology is further changing how we interact. Languages seemingly play ever less of a role as we all come together in one global techno-culture, and gain ever more technological crutches to aid in communication. Some of these developments are [...]

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English Language Development (ELD) in a First Grade Dual Immersion Classroom

June 24, 2011

We wanted to share some pictures from a classroom demonstration that we recently conducted in a first grade Dual Immersion classroom. Although the students receive 80% of their instruction in Spanish, we modeled a Project GLAD Science unit during their English language development time in order to demonstrate for teachers how easy it is to [...]

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Who Is Advocating for “Regular” Bilingual Programs?

June 23, 2011

Last night I laid in bed until 3:00 in the morning, feeling a little down. I couldn’t stop thinking about all of the myths, misconceptions, and comments that I hear people constantly making about bilingual education. What is most frustrating to me is that many times I hear these comments made by many of my [...]

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A Letter to Your School or Program Administrator/Director on Supporting Dual Language Learners in Preschool

June 22, 2011

We sometimes underestimate the power of advocacy. This letter from Karen Nemeth is an excellent tool to help you get started in advocating for language learners: Letter to Administrators about Dual Language Learners in Preschool (a template you can use – by Karen Nemeth) Dear [Administrator]: I appreciate the opportunity to work with you on [...]

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The Dream Act: Dream a Little DREAM With Me

June 19, 2011

I refuse to refer to any immigrant as “illegal” or “alien,” especially one who was brought to the United States as a young child, much like I was hauled from southern Illinois to Chicago at the tender age of two. Had southern Illinois been southern Mexico, for example, that’s what I would be—an “illegal alien”—at [...]

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Bilingual Classroom Pictures: First Grade Dual Immersion

May 25, 2011

This week we have been modeling strategies with Dual Immersion teachers and wanted to share a few photos with you. After working with a group of bilingual teachers, we also later visited their classrooms and took tons of pictures! Bilingual teachers don’t have many opportunities to visit other bilingual classrooms, so we decided to bring [...]