The Foreign Service Journal, December 2015

EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT 90 DECEMBER 2015 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL FLO: Is immersion education an appropriate choice for all Foreign Service children? CB: We know that adolescent students may have greater anxiety about being placed in full or partial immersion classes than younger learners. Some schools have perfected collaborative ways to tackle higher-level immersion classes. In these schools, there are two teach- ers in each classroom, and information is provided in English if a student does not understand. Other schools hire bilin- gual staff who toggle between languages when students do not understand. Parents of older students need to make sure the program they are considering is well-researched and well-developed. FLO: How can I support my child’s learning at home when I do not speak the immersion language? CB: First, take heart that you have done the right thing by being in the Foreign Service and giving your children the chance to live in another country and experience another language (or two, or three). In fact, Foreign Service parents have a unique opportunity to encourage bilingualism in their children. Certainly you can convey the impor- tance of the language learning process to your child by studying another language yourself. As I visit posts, students tell me how excited their parents are for them to learn languages—an opportunity many of them never had. As a parent, you should not only encourage your children to make friends with native speakers at school, but should also seek to actively engage with these friends and their parents in a way that shows respect for the local lan- guages and cultures. Valuing language learning at the same level as other school content will send a message to children and to the school that you know how challeng- ing yet important it is for your child to build their language proficiency. You can reinforce this message by arranging family outings focused on local cultural and language events and helping your children acquire interesting books, magazines and technological support for learning and improving their language skills. Continued from page 86