An Evening Discussion about Bilingual Education

RENOWNED MCGILL PROFESSOR TO SPEAK ON BILINGUAL EARLY EDUCATION

“Bilingualism used to be about equalization in the U.S.; now it is about globalization.”

Professor Emeritus Fred Genesee of McGill University believes that bilingualism used to be a necessity primarily for immigrants coming to the U.S. in order for them to integrate in an English-speaking society.  More recently, he believes, more individuals and families are focused on becoming bilingual because of the explosion of globalization in business, travel, and media.

“Parents want their children to be part of a global village.”

Professor Genesee specializes in research on brain function in early bilingual language learners because he believes that language is central to a child’s learning abilities.  He has honed this belief during his 35-year career and explains his research in numerous books and publications, the most well-known being Dual Language Development and Disorders, 2nd edition.

“When I started doing research on this, the issue was very marginal in the U.S. and Canada.  Now it is a hot topic.”

This event is free and open to the public.