The Bilingual Revolution

Fabrice Jaumont

Description

Conceived as a practical, accessible "how to" guide, The Bilingual Revolution is the story of a movement to bring dual language education to public schools told through the eyes of founding parents and educators. These pioneering mothers, fathers, teachers, and principals share the belief that bilingual education can positively transform a child, a school, a community, and even a country.

Although the roots of bilingual education in the United States can be traced back to the 17th century, a new push to embrace heritage languages, produce bilingual global citizens, and create a cultural sense of community is taking the education sector by storm. New York City provides the backdrop for the book, where parents have fought for access to various bilingual public school programs from preschool to high school. Similar programs have developed in hundreds of cities in the United States and around the world.

The Bilingual Revolution tells the story of successes and setbacks of parents and educators through vignettes that yield practical advice. In their diversity, these portraits paint a picture of a viable 21st-century solution to preserve linguistic heritage and to raise a generation of young bilingual, biliterate, multicultural citizens of the world. The book will inspire and engage readers who want to create their own bilingual programs.

Being bilingual can become the new norm and it starts with our youth and our education systems. A bilingual revolution for the common good is already underway.

Preface

Acknowledgement

Foreword by Ofelia Garcia: Bilingual Education: Making a U-Turn with Parents and Communities    

Introduction: The Call to Action    

Chapter 1: The Willpower of Parents: Yes, You Can…    

Chapter 2: Changing the Landscape: Brooklyn’s First Japanese Program    

Chapter 3: Summoning the Community: Three Attempts for One Italian Program    

Chapter 4: Strategic Minds: The Story of the German Dual Language Initiative    

Chapter 5: A Tale of Two Boroughs: Russian in Harlem and Brooklyn    

Chapter 6: The Domino Effect: Multiplying French Programs

Chapter 7: Overcoming Prejudice: The City’s Arabic Dual Language Programs

Chapter 8: Celebrating Culture:The Polish Community’s Dual Language Program

Chapter 9: Paving the Way: The Pioneers of Spanish Dual Language Education

Chapter 10: High Achievers: High School for Dual Language & Asian Studies

Chapter 11: The Roadmap to Creating Your Own Dual Language Program

Chapter 12: Why Dual Language Education Is Good for Your Child

Chapter 13: Bilingual Education Today: Know Before You Go

Conclusion: The Future of Education is in Two Languages

The Roadmap (abridged)

Bibliography

Index

Sujets

• Histoire
• 21st Century
• United States
• History

Informations

• Publié par: CALEC
• Date de parution: 28 août 2017
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781947626089
• Langue: English

Extrait

THE BILINGUAL REVOLUTION
THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION IS IN TWO LANGUAGES
Fabrice Jaumont
Foreword by Ofelia Garcia
TBR Books
Brooklyn, New York
Copyright © 2017 by Fabrice Jaumont and TBR Books
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission.
TBR Books
146 Norman Avenue
Brooklyn, New York
www.tbr-books.com
For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact TBR Books at [e-mail]
The views expressed in this book are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the organizations with which the author may be affiliated.
Front Cover Illustration © Raymond Verdaguer
Back Cover Photo © Jonas Cuénin
Cover Design © Nathalie Charles
The Bilingual Revolution/ Fabrice Jaumont. -- 1st ed.
ISBN 978-1-9476260-0-3 (paperback)
ISBN 978-1-9476260-3-4 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-9476260-8-9 (eBook)
ISBN 978-1-947626-06-5 (audio book)
The Library of Congress has catalogued the TBR Books hardcover edition as follows
Jaumont, Fabrice
The Bilingual Revolution: The Future of Education is in Two Languages/Fabrice Jaumont
Includes bibliographical references and index
Library of Congress Control Number 2017949229
Praises
“Multilingualism is no longer a luxury afforded only to the affluent or lucky few who can attend dual-language schools; it is a critical 21st century skill that children will need to be successful in their future work and life. Jaumont's Bilingual Revolution in many ways levels the playing field by sharing various world language program models and best practices, while also demystifying language learning so that parents and educators have a feasible roadmap to begin a “revolution” of their own. The Bilingual Revolution is a must read for any parent who wants to ensure their child will be world and workforce ready.”
—Angela Jackson, Founder, Global Language Project
“Jaumont's book stands on the edge of the nascent bilingual revolution running through the United States' school system and asks how it might be improved and encouraged. Jaumont describes the country's growing enthusiasm for multilingual education—and provides a roadmap for communities who want to join the movement.”
—Conor Williams, PhD
Senior Researcher, New America's Education Policy Program
Founder, DLL National Work Group
“This engaging book tells the story of the history of bilingual education in the U.S.A. and the social forces that shaped that trajectory from a perspective that is both personal and scholarly. The center piece is a ‘how to’ manual for setting up your own bilingual school and in so doing creating your own revolution. Recommended for parents, teachers, and everyone who thinks that languages are important.”
—Ellen Bialystok, OC, PhD, FRSC,
Walter Gordon York Research Chair in Lifespan Cognitive Development,
York University
“Fabrice Jaumont weaves the personal, political, and community stories of the growing bilingual movement together in a compelling, vitally important book that interlinks personal stories with the practice and science of bilingual education. This masterpiece will be indispensable for parents and educational leaders in the United States and abroad.”
—William P. Rivers, Ph.D
Executive Director, Joint National Committee for Languages,
National Council for Language and International Studies
"In our ever more interconnected, miniaturized, and fragile era schools the world over are endeavoring to equip youth with the skills, competencies, and sensibilities to flourish as autonomous, engaged, and productive citizens. The teaching and learning of languages and the cultivation of the so-called bilingual advantage is resurfacing with great vigor in schools, large and small, all over the United States. It seems everywhere parents and teachers are searching to find the sweet spot of dual-language teaching and learning. Search no more: The Bilingual Revolution is your book. It is a rare achievement. It combines profound insight into learning and teaching but also identity and cosmopolitanism with practical applications and exemplary proof points. A must-read for every parent, every teacher, and every administrator interested in creating and supporting the best dual-language programs for the 21st Century.”
—Marcelo M. Suárez-Orozco
Wasserman Dean & Distinguished Professor of Education, UCLA
Author, Global Migration, Diversity, and Civic Education:
Improving Policy and Practice
“As chair of a global corporation, I know first-hand how crucial mastering languages is for communicating with and understanding managers, clients, and consumers from all over the world. This is only made possible by the knowledge of multiple languages. Fabrice Jaumont's powerful book, The Bilingual Revolution, shows how empowering multilingual education can be for our youth, showcasing a very promising trend in the United States. A must-read for anyone interested in the future of education.”
—Bruno Bich, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, BIC Group
Also by Fabrice Jaumont
Unequal Partners: American Foundations and Higher Education Development in Africa. New York, NY : Palgrave-MacMillan, 2016.
La Révolution bilingue: le futur de l’éducation s’écrit en deux langues . New York, NY : TBR Books, 2017
Partenaires inégaux. Les fondations américaines et leur influence sur le développement des universités en Afrique. Paris : Éditions de la Maison des sciences de l’homme, collection "Le (bien) commun", 2018.
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgements
Bilingual Education: Making a U-Turn with Parents and Communities
The Call to Action
The Willpower of Parents: Yes, You Can…
Changing the Landscape: Brooklyn’s First Japanese Program
Summoning the Community: Three Attempts for One Italian Program
Strategic Minds: The Story of the German Dual-Language Initiative
A Tale of Two Boroughs: Russian in Harlem and Brooklyn
The Domino Effect: Multiplying French Programs
Overcoming Prejudice: The City’s Arabic Dual-Language Programs
Celebrating Culture: The Polish Community’s Dual-Language Program
Paving the Way: The Pioneers of Spanish Dual-Language Education
High Achievers: The High School for Dual Language & Asian Studies
The Roadmap to Creating Your Own Dual-Language Program
Why Dual-Language Education Is Good for Your Child
Bilingual Education in the U.S.: Know Before You Go
The Future of Education is in Two Languages
The Roadmap (abridged)
Resources
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Preface
The idea for this book came about through my efforts to support the development of language education in American public schools since the late 1990s. I moved to the United States in 1997 to work as an education liaison for the French Consulate in Boston, during which time I had the opportunity to visit numerous schools across the country. My first encounter with immersion schools was in Massachusetts, in the towns of Milton and Holliston. As a native of France, these programs immediately caught my attention because they offered immersive curricula in French, from Kindergarten to high school, to children in the United States who did not necessarily have a particular connection to the French language or a French-speaking country. More importantly, these programs were in public schools, free of charge, and therefore accessible to every student and family. This made a strong impression on me as I witnessed children mastering my own native language, eventually becoming bilingual and biliterate themselves.
Over the years, the French immersion schools in Massachusetts I first visited have educated thousands upon thousands of children through immersion programs. These schools, along with the educators and the parents that stand behind them, continue to inspire me to this day and have had an enormous influence on my own life and career. Soon after visiting them, I became a director at a private international school in Boston where I managed a rigorous bilingual international program. The families that attended the school believed in its curriculum and language-oriented approach. They saw that the program had the potential to provide life-long skills to their children, and could open doors to a myriad of rewarding opportunities. Like myself, they were convinced of the incredible benefits of bilingualism and were determined to give their children the gift of language.
In 2001, I moved to New York City to become an Education Attaché for the Embassy of France, a position which I still hold today. My work includes collaboration with numerous school leaders, teachers, parent groups, and community organizations. Together, we developed an initiative that led to the creation of New York City’s first French-English dual-language programs in public schools. In addition to that, I was involved in similar initiatives that led to the creation of dual-language programs in Japanese, German, Italian, and Russian. In 2014, our story caught the attention of numerous media outlets including the New York Times, which published an article on the rise of dual-language programs in New York that highlighted their potential positive impact on public school communities. An interesting debate ensued regarding the relevance of teaching foreign languages today in the United States and the validity of early language acquisition. This debate, and the questions that it raised among parents within several linguistic communities, pushed me to write this book.
As the father of two bilingual and bicultural girls who attend a dual-language program in a public school in Brooklyn, I am also deeply attached to the concept of dual-language education as a way to both sustain a cultural heritage and acquire a second language. I wanted the book to be directed towards parents, with the goal of providing accessible knowledge, guidance, and encouragement as they consider implementing a dual-language