We STRATEGIZE

Once the school board and administrative team fully understand immersion education and how it would impact the school, we move into the “Education Phase.”  The board decides to explore staff responses and interest in the community.  The education phase does not commit a school to implementing an immersion program, but rather allows the decision makers to explore the ramifications of doing so and how the community would respond.

 

Working Board/Administrator Meetings

add.a.lingua requires a working board and/or administrative meeting in which we evaluate a “plan of action.”  We look at projected growth models, talk about building space, work through registration considerations, hiring issues, and discuss cost versus benefit to the school as a whole.  add.a.lingua wants to ensure you will be successful before we agree to work with you.  We have found from past experience that only schools with strong leadership and a comprehensive understanding of the add.a.lingua immersion philosophy and process are able to implement and maintain a successful immersion program. 

 

Marketing and community event planning

Before setting a date to hold the staff and community meetings with add.a.lingua, we provide the administrative team with marketing suggestions and materials designed to promote language immersion awareness.  We give you sample press releases, Frequently Asked Questions, and research articles/links to use on school websites, within social media, or for direct mailings.

You set the date and promote the event using our materials and we’ll show up to present, answer questions, and lend credibility to your school’s vision for the future!

 

Staff Meetings

Collaboration and engagement with traditional staff is key to the success of an immersion program.  add.a.lingua knows that new programs need the support of the trusted educators already in your school.  We have designed our staff presentation to specifically address the concerns traditional teachers have regarding literacy, job safety, and working as a team with those teaching in another language. We leave time for questions, answering those involving past experiences and immersion issues while directing building policy and future planning concerns to a school representative (board member or administrator).

 

Community Meetings

After you’ve created the buzz and your school is energized, it’s time to educate the community.   The school gymnasium, media center, or local supportive college auditorium works well.  add.a.lingua explains immersion, how it works, and the cognitive, academic and social benefits to students.  We show a video of actual add.a.lingua classrooms and highlight student interaction in the target language.  It all takes about a half hour UNTIL the question and answer time.  Parents have questions and add.a.lingua has answers.  We commit to stay as long as required to address all concerns.  If the question is specific to your school, we defer to the school representative (board member or administrator). 

 

Community Survey

Before dismissing the community meeting, we ask all attendees to fill out a survey in order to gage interest in an immersion program at your school.  We also encourage participants to share information from the meeting with friends, family members, or neighbors and explain that the survey is also available on the school website.