Evaluation study of a summer immersion programme for secondary Students

Abstract

A summer immersion programme for high school students wishing to study French as a second language was sponsored by the Federal Government of Canada in two different settings — a French‐speaking setting in Quebec and an English‐speaking setting in British Columbia. The programme accommodated 80 students each summer (40 per setting) and participants were randomly assigned to either the French or English setting. This study was designed to investigate the effects of the programme on students and to determine the relative effectiveness of the programme in the two settings. Students’ comprehension of French and their knowledge of French‐Canadian culture increased significantly in the two settings both years, and with the exception of the English setting programme one summer, their attitudes toward French‐speaking Canadians became more positive. These positive effects were maintained eight months after the completion of the programme (follow‐up study). The results of the direct comparison between the two programme settings indicate no clear‐cut differences in favour of either setting. However, responses to a questionnaire revealed that students in the French setting were far more satisfied with their immersion experience than those in the English setting.

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