"Verde - sometimes we call it green": Construal of Language Difference and Power in a Preschool Dual Immersion Program

This article presents findings from a preschool dual language (Spanish/English) immersion project, drawing primarily from data collected during its first two years. Through analysis of observational notes and videotapes of classroom interactions, as well as interviews with teachers and other classroom staff, we explore the extent to which the dual immersion model supports critical pedagogy in the classroom. The results highlight the counter-hegemonic aspects of the program in terms of teacher-child power relations and roles of language and language play in shifting power dynamics in the classroom. We find that especially in early childhood education programs, dual immersion allows children to develop alternative views of language use and enables them to form friendships and alliances across cultural and linguistic barriers. We also consider the difficulties in establishing a dual immersion program for young children and how dual immersion programs may succeed in ways that other language learning programs fail.

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