Call for Proposals for the Fourth International Immersion Conference

Immersion 2012:

Bridging Contexts for a Multilingual World

Call for Papers--Extended to March 26!

Featured Plenary Speakers

Donna Christian, Senior Fellow, Center for Applied Linguistics, USA

Ester de Jong, Associate Professor, University of Florida, USA

Tīmoti Kāretu, Executive Director, Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, New Zealand

Roy Lyster, Professor, McGill University, Canada

Merrill Swain, Professor Emerita, University of Toronto, Canada

Conference Description

Language immersion education continues to evolve as a highly effective program model for launching students on the road to bi- and multilingualism and intercultural competence. School-based immersion programs commit to a minimum of 50% subject-matter schooling through a second, world, heritage, or indigenous language at the preschool and elementary levels with varying amounts of subject-based language learning support throughout secondary and post-secondary education. Program models include one-way world language immersion, two-way bilingual immersion, and indigenous/heritage immersion for language and culture revitalization. While each model targets distinct sociocultural contexts and educational needs, all embrace language, literacy and culture development through subject matter learning.

Under the leadership of the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota (CARLA), the fourth international conference on immersion education brings these models together to engage in research-informed dialogue and professional exchange across languages, levels, learner audiences, and sociopolitical contexts.

CARLA is currently seeking proposals for papers, discussion sessions, and symposia on aspects of language immersion education related to four conference themes:

Theme 1:  Immersion Pedagogy and Assessment
Theme 2:  Culture, Identity, and Community
Theme 3:  Program Design, Leadership, and Evaluation
Theme 4:  Policy, Advocacy, and Communications

In addition to basic, applied, and evaluation research, conference organizers welcome a range of practitioner perspectives including immersion teachers, administrators, curriculum coordinators, parents, and specialists who work in immersion programs. Papers, presentations, discussion sessions, and symposia may report on data-based research, theoretical and conceptual analyses, or best practices in language immersion classrooms.