I participated to the Rhode Island Foreign Language Association Fall Conference 2016, “E = L3, Engagement = Lifelong Language Learning,” on Saturday, October 1st. I had the opportunity, as one of the Opening Session Plenary Panelists, to advance the cause of dual language education in Rhode Island. Continue reading “The Bilingual Revolution in Rhode Island”
Middle School 256 in Manhattan (154 West 93rd Street, New York, NY) was awarded the Label FrancEducation by the French Government for its successful French dual language program.
The ceremony took place at M.S. 256 on September 22, 2016 in the presence of Brigitte Ayrault, wife of Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, Bénédicte de Montlaur, Cultural Counselor of the French Embassy in the United States, and Kareen Rispal, Director of the Americas at French Ministry of Foreign Affairs who gave the award to Brian Zager, principal of the school.
Continue reading “French Government Awards M.S. 256 in New York with Label “FrancEducation””Today I met wih Irene Leon and Maria Jaya who co-run Cypress Hills Community School in Brooklyn.
Created 20 years ago through a strong parent-led community effort the pioneer school is entirely dual language in Spanish and English from preK to 8th. Continue reading “Cypress Hills Community School: Pioneers on dual language education in New York City”
Today I visited the High School for Dual Language and Asian Studies located in downtown Manhattan in New York, and met with principal Li Yan. The school offers a dual language program in Chinese and English, and is ranked among the best high schools in the United States. Continue reading “High School for Dual Language and Asian Studies in New York”
I was interviewed by Steve Norman for a Burlington cable TV channel. The City Council of Burlington, VT is promoting French friendliness towards its visitors, and a French dual language program is being considered for one of the local elementary schools. I spoke about my background in bilingual education, presented a few examples of dual language programs in Utah, Massachusetts, and New York, and talked about the Bilingual Revolution -both the movement and the book that I am currently writing. I also discussed various options to consider when implementing a French dual language program. Continue reading “Burlington, VT: A City’s Strategy to Develop Economically through Language Education”
Fabrice Jaumont has written a book that needed to be written decades ago. Unequal Partners: American Foundations and Higher Education Development in Africa tells the complicated story of how philanthropy has shaped higher education, in both positive and negative ways. Although the “great” philanthropists have been lauded in many books for decades, recent scholarship has challenged their benevolence and that of their foundations. Jaumont provides a fair portrayal of major foundation players in African higher education—those with a long track record and those that have just started to play a role. Rather than present these foundations as saviors that uplift higher education on the continent, Jaumont presents a nuanced view, detailing the profound impact as well as the “unequal” relationships that result when one of the partners has more resources and the other is in need of resources. Of note, the discussions and themes featured in the book are useful to those studying and working with foundations in the USA as well as in Africa. Interestingly, many of the interventions in Africa are similar to those in urban and minority communities in the USA. Overall, Unequal Partners is beautifully written, succinctly and effectively argued, and timely.
I was recently interviewed by Rhonda Broussard as part of her series of interviews with international educators, policy makers, and leaders titled “One Good Question.”
Continue reading “One Good Question: How parent organizing leads to revolution”I contributed an article with Jack Klempay in Reconsidering Development, an international, open access, and peer reviewed e-journal that aims to create an equitable space for dialogue and discussion concerning the theory and practice of international development (published by the University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing). Continue reading ““Measuring the Influence of Language on Grant- Making by U.S. Foundations in Africa” – An Article for Reconsidering Development”
Continue reading “[PL] Pierwszy polski dwujęzyczny program językowy w P.S. 34 w Brooklyn”
Issues around the impact of donor funding on education reform have resurfaced both in the local and global arenas. A recent editorial in the Los Angeles Times [1] questioned the role of foundations and philanthropists in U.S. public education, highlighting the Gates Foundation’s debatable “failures” to accomplish concrete results. On her well-followed blog, Diane Ravitch even called the funding choices of Bill Gates, Eli Broad or the Walton Family “unwise” and “undemocratic” [2]. This debate is hardly new as major newspapers [3] have regularly underscored the negative impact of major private donors’ gifts on the United States’ secondary school system, particularly during the dire economic climate which left schools facing abysmal budget cuts. Continue reading “Private Foundations and the Perils of Education Development”
FABRICE JAUMONT 