ALL-IRELAND RESEARCH CONFERENCE ON IMMERSION EDUCATION
May 2, 2018
IMMERSION EDUCATION: OPPORTUNITIES AND BEST PRACTICES
Mary Immaculate College, Limerick
May 18-19 2018
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN AT www.tumoideachas.ie
Following the success of the inaugural conference, which took place in 2015, this May will see the Second All-Ireland Research Conference on Immersion Education, taking place again at Mary Immaculate College (MIC) on Fri 18 & Saturday 19 May.
The two-day event will provide opportunities for linguists, researchers and Irish-medium immersion and immersion educators internationally, to critically reflect on and share research in the context of immersion education, providing the space to exchange and discuss new directions in the ever-evolving field of immersion education.
During the two day event, 3 keynote addresses, 4 symposia, 25 posters and 60 research papers will be presented on relevant topics such as Linking Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Immersion; School Self-Evaluation, Leadership and Educator Development and Navigating Policy and Innovation in Multi/Bilingual Communities.
Key note speakers include Professor Laurent Cammarata, Associate Professor in Education, University of Alberta, Canada. Formerly a language teacher, Dr Cammarata has been a teacher educator for more than fifteen years. He currently works in the preparation and ongoing professional development of K-12 teachers in French immersion and francophone minority settings in Canada. His research focuses on teachers’ experience of implementing content-based instruction (CBI) in varied educational contexts and on implications for teacher education and professional development. Professor Cammarata’s keynote address ‘The missing link in immersion education research: What is it and why should we care?’, will pay particular attention to this topic.
Also speaking will be Dr Karen Ní Chlochasaigh, post-doctoral researcher at DCU Institute of Education and The Educational Research Centre. In her keynote, Dr Ní Chlochasaigh will share findings from a post-doctoral study which investigates the effect of immersive education on achievement, progress and attitudes in all-Irish schools in disadvantaged areas in the Republic of Ireland (DEIS schools). Major questions relating to the achievements of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds in Irish-medium schools, the biggest problems they face, and the supports which they urgently require will be considered.
Professor David Lasagabaster, University of the Basque Country, will also be presenting. Prof. Lasagabaster is Professor of Applied Linguistics and has been involved in teacher education in Spain for several years where he has published on second/third language acquisition, CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning), attitudes and motivation, and multilingualism. His keynote address ‘Immersion programmes as a springboard to multilingualism: The Basque experience’ will focus on the transition from a monolingual curriculum (Spanish) to a multilingual one (Basque, Spanish and English) and the challenges entailed in such a process.
All-Ireland Research Conference on Immersion Education – Opportunities and Best Practices takes place on Friday 18 and Saturday 19 May at MIC. The international conference brings together various organisations and institutions as conference partners, including: Mary Immaculate College, Limerick; An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta; Institute of Technology Tralee; Gaeloideachas; Foras na Gaeilge and Comhairle na Gaelscolaíochta.
Registration now open www.tumoideachas.ie
