Seventh International Conference on Immersion and Dual Language Education

Strand III: Program Design, Development and Evaluation

not language specific

All

Dual language (DL) programs of all types share three core goals: academic achievement, bilingualism/biliteracy, and cross-cultural competency. This presentation proposes a fourth goal: ideological clarity. Although DL programs are designed to integrate students from diverse linguistic, cultural and racial/ethnic backgrounds, equity is still a challenge (Review of Research in Education, 2017). We argue that centering ideological clarity – or fostering among teachers, parents and children an awareness of structural oppression and a readiness to take action to correct it – can enhance educational opportunity and justice for all DL students. Using real examples from schools across the US, we illustrate four elements: interrogating power, critical listening, historicizing schools, and embracing discomfort. We describe how this new goal will impact and enhance the other three core goals, supporting the development of more successful, equitable, and socially just DL schools.