Immersion Teacher Education

Diane Tedick PhD, Associate Professor of Second Languages and Cultures Education Associate at the University of Minnesota, gave a very comprehensive and stimulating lecture on ‘Immersion Teacher Education: The State of the States’ recently in DCU.  The lecture was organised by Pádraig Ó Duibhir Education Department, St Patrick’s College and was attended by representatives of a wide range of groups working in the area of language education and Irish immersion education in particular.  The lecture was given in the video-conferencing suite in DCU to facilitate a broadcast of the lecture to Coláiste Feirste, Belfast where personnel working in the Irish-medium education sector in Northern Ireland attended.  Dr Tedick drew on a wide body of research in the US to highlight the needs of immersion teachers in relation to preservice and inservice education.  A central theme of her talk was the need for all teachers engaged in this type of language programme to identify themselves as both content and language teachers.  Many of the challenges faced by indigenous immersion programmes in the US resonated with the members of the audience both North and South.  Dr Tedick provided many issues for her colleagues in Ireland to reflect on and the video link provided opportunities for participants in both Dublin and Belfast to interact and ask questions.

 

 

 

Last Updated: Tuesday May 11 2010