The Mysteries of Bilingualism II on Psychology Today — Prof. François Grosjean delves into aspects of bilingualism that remain an enigma. In this case, he writes about language choice, code-switching and language interferences — topics that have been researched at the linguistic level, but not at the cognitive and neurolinguistic ones.

¡Aprender español está de moda! on El Sentinel — A look at how more and more people are realizing the importance of learning Spanish as a second language.

New Fort Worth program will graduate bilingual students on the Star-Telegram — Parents in Fort Worth whose children are attending dual language immersion elementary schools won’t have to worry about what’ll happen to their kids once they move on to middle and high school thanks to a new school, World Languages Institute, that will be open next fall.

Constant need for bilingual volunteers, more so during holidays on Journal and Courier — Interesting read about the need for bilingual volunteers to serve as translators in charitable organizations like the Salvation Army.

You are probably wondering what happens inside a dual-language classroom and how similar or different it is from an all-English classroom.

In every school that I have had the pleasure of working at, the first few days go in a predictable manner: excited and nervous students walking through the doors of new classrooms, parents worried about what the new school year may bring, and teachers wondering what his/her new class will be like. Teachers prepare for weeks by brainstorming ways to present new material and writing lesson plans. As a matter of fact, I spent countless hours trying to cover all areas before diving into my dual-language adventure. I survived my first week and I am both happy and excited for the days to come.

While many of my posts have been geared towards what parents can do at home to support their children in their bilingual and bicultural adventure, I thought it would be interesting to share something that happened in my classroom this week. I call it confirmation of an “a-ha moment.”

Coming back from lunch on Wednesday last week, my class was getting ready to work on science. Since I am a fourth grade teacher, I teach 60% of the day in Spanish and the remaining 40% in English. I have divided my schedule so that English instruction takes place after lunch.

After all my students settled in, I told them in English what our next hour would look like. All of a sudden, one of my students raised her hand and shared how relieved she felt about switching to English. While I did not ask my student to elaborate, her comment was definitely something that stuck in my head. Once school was over, and my students were getting ready to go home, I chatted with my student and asked what she meant by being relieved of receiving instruction in English. She did not hesitate for a second and replied, “Well, when we are learning in Spanish I just feel that my brain needs to work twice as hard… it is hard to explain, but I just feel like I am working really, really hard.” I asked a few more questions and our conversation ended.

However, I could not stop thinking about the way she felt and how she described her ‘brain’ being in overdrive. Honestly — I loved it. If learning in two languages means her brain is working harder than it would just learning in one, then I have confirmed once again that dual-language is the way to go. Which takes me to my next couple of questions:

Have you thought for a moment what it is like to learn in a two-way immersion program?

Has your child shared with you how she/he feels about learning in this type of environment?

I would love to hear from parents/guardians/other family members about this. I am really curious about your experiences and conversations with your child.

Much love,

Kelly

{Photo by departmentofed}

The verdict is in! Our daughter was accepted into the private dual language school I wrote about last month. The question now remains whether or not she will attend.

We decided to start the lengthy application process because we wanted to have options. In fact, she remains on several rotating waiting lists at several daycare centers around town because one never knows. Before making our decision, there is a still a reflective process my husband and I need to go through. First and foremost, I am going to observe the potential classrooms our daughter could be placed in next year. Secondly, and this is the most difficult, we have to consider the long-term benefits and disadvantages of committing to, not just a definite high quality education, but to the hefty price tag it comes with.

I sincerely doubt that most of the SpanglishBaby readers need a list of the advantages of a dual language education, therefore I will expand in greater detail the reasons we are contemplating sending our daughter to a prestigious dual language school.

If we enroll our daughter, we are essentially committing to an education that will span 15 years! To avoid getting into financial details, I’ll just explain that over the course of those years (and we have another baby on the way) we could invest that same amount of money into something else, like a house.

We have been contemplating the ways we could supplement our children’s education if we decide to find alternative dual language programs in our community. For instance, we could take family trips abroad during the summer or winter breaks, and enroll our children in Spanish and French language programs. In other words, there is more than one route to become multilingual.

That being said, there is still the simple fact that research is pointing towards the ways varying levels of proficiency in multiple languages can also mean varying levels of cognitive benefits. Doesn’t every parent want to achieve the most optimal level of multilingualism for their children, which translates to the most optimal level of cognitive benefits? I think so!

So here we are at a crossroads. I keep reminding myself that I am not the average parent in pursuit of a multilingual life for my daughter. I am, after all, pursuing a doctorate in bilingual education, and surely I can find the multiple routes to make sure my daughter reaches an optimal level of multilingualism. I also recognize how the stats for second and third generation heritage speakers of minorities are grim, if not linguistically fatal. So where do we go from here?

This is a question I pose to SpanglishBaby readers. I sincerely want my daughter to speak, read and write in two or more languages at nearly the same proficiency. What would you do?

{Photo by Ivy Dawned}

It’s time for our fourth SpanglishBaby LIVE Google+ Hangout and we’d love for you to join us tomorrow. This time around we’re discussing bilingualism and children with special needs. For those of you who’ve never joined a Google+ Hangout, you should know that it’s just like hanging out with a bunch of friends, except that you’re not all in the same room.

WHAT: In our fourth Hangout we’ll be discussing the basics of bilingual education and dual language immersion programs as part of Google’s #SpringIntoEducation movement.

WHEN: Thursday, March. 28 at 1 p.m. EST.

WHO: Joining Ana and I will be Liza Sánchez, a bilingual education specialist and founder and board chair of Escuela Bilingüe Internacional (EBI) in Oakland, California. EBI is the first independent school in California to offer a Spanish-English dual language program, extending from pre-K through 8th grade.

Melanie McGrath the coordinator of dual immersion and transitional bilingual education programs in Southern California. She provides professional development training and assistance to parents, bilingual teachers and administrators in the areas of biliteracy development, bilingual program design and English language development. She can also be found blogging on Multilingual Mania.

There are many ways for you to be part of this Google Hangout online.

1. First of all, RSVP on the event page.

2. Add the SpanglishBaby Google+ Page to your Circles.

3. On Tuesday, March 12, starting at 1 p.m. EST, the SpanglishBaby Live Hangout will go on air and you’ll be able to watch it on the event page and on our YouTube channel.

4. The hashtag for all our SpanglishBaby Live Hangouts is #BilingualKids and you can use it on Google+, Twitter or Instagram and we’ll find you!

5. Once the Hangout is over, a recording of it will be made available for all to view, share and/or embed on the SpanglishBaby YouTube channel.

If you’d like to have your question related to raising bilingual and/or bicultural kids answered by ourselves or one of our experts, please fill out this form. If you’re interested in participating in one of our SpanglishBaby Live Google+ Hangouts, you’ll be able to let us know in the form too.

If you want to learn more about Google+ Hangouts On Air, check out this page. Feel free to leave us any questions or suggestions in the comments area below, on the event page or our Google+ page and Community!

Recently my husband and I decided to go through the process of trying to get our daughter enrolled in a prestigious and private dual language school in our city. I honestly did not imagine having to go through what seems like a rigorous process this early on in her academic trajectory. She is almost three, which means she qualifies for the primary school grade classrooms. We learned that there were a limited of spots (~30) with over 125 applicants! We also learned that there are very few, if any, high quality three-year-old academic programs in town, making those ~30 spots highly competitive.

We jumped through all the hoops: filled out the extensive application, had my daughters current teacher fill out an evaluation form about her strengths and challenges, attended an information session, allowed for our daughter to be observed by teachers at the school, and lastly went through an hour long interview with the director of the school. By the time we were scheduled for the final step of the process, the parent interview, we started to question if we were making the right decision (not just financially) and were forced to reflect on whether or not we would fit in well with the current school community.

As I mentioned earlier, I began to wonder if this community was the right fit for us, but really I was more concerned with whether or not it was a right fit for me. When we attended the information session, I realized that it was the first time in my life that I had ever stepped foot in such a prestigious school. The second-generation immigrant of working class parents part of me felt completely out of place. My husband, having grown up abroad for most of his schooling years, attended private schools very similar to the one we were trying to get our daughter into. Not only did I attend public school for the majority of my schooling years, which was all taught in English; I also grew up in a community where Spanish and English flowed back and forth seamlessly. Interestingly, during the interview we were asked the following question:

Interviewer: Which language, Spanish or English, would you prefer to speak in?

Me: (hesitating a little): We prefer to speak in both languages.

Interviewer: Okay. Yes, that actually works well for me because there are parts of the interview where Spanish is more appropriate than English.

When asked to choose a language to speak in I simply could not. Both Spanish and English are part of my linguistic repertoire and they do not reside in separate spaces.  Being concerned about whether or not I would fit in with the school community I decided that I would be my self as much as anyone can in formal interview settings. Hesitantly, I responded that we preferred to use both languages. The interviewers response was a breathe of fresh air. I was starting to wonder if we were trying to enroll our daughter in a school where code switching may not be seen as a valuable linguistic tool, but if the director was willing to do it, then I can only assume that it will be welcomed.

In an earlier scenario, when we dropped off our daughter for her observation I noticed that we were the only parents speaking in Spanish to each other and to our daughter. I also noticed that we were the only Latinos (or in my case, the only Chicana). On top of the class diversity the school needs, a part of me hoped that we could contribute to the linguistic and ethnic diversity that seems to be missing.

A week later we found out we were wait-listed. The news wasn’t too surprising considering the number of applicants and the number of spots available, but at the same time one cannot help but wonder if that was the only reason. We are still hopeful. In a month we find out if there is a spot for the incoming school year.  Ay, veremos…

As a researcher of dual language programs, I have to say that there is definitely a trend occurring. The general public is starting to notice the importance and value in a multilingual education. Not only are public, charter, and private dual language schools emerging nation wide, the spots to get into them are extremely competitive. Parents are entering raffles, others are willing to pay the hefty price tag for the opportunity to learn in two languages. For my family, paying the price means compromising other aspects of our life for an investment in an education that is multilingual, global, inquiry-based, and student centered which should be the standard at every school.

Have you tried enrolling your son/daughter in a prestigious and private foreign language school? If so, what was the experience like?

{Photo by barnabywasson}