Ouverture a la rentree 2007 d'une classe bilingue francais-anglais de moyenne section de maternelle.
Ce projet est porte par l’Ecole Europeenne de Taipei (TES), l’Institut Francais a Taipei (IFT) et l’Agence Francaise pour l’Enseignement a l’Etranger (AEFE), qui developpe une politique systematique d’ouverture de classes bilingues dans les ecoles francaises d’Asie (Hongkong en 1999-2000, Pekin, Singapour, Bangkok et Tokyo en 2006-2007) et possede une experience reconnue dans ce domaine.
Pour les enfants, la scolarisation en classe bilingue presente de nombreux avantages :
- Apprentissage precoce d’une seconde langue vivante, ce qui renforce a terme les competences linguistiques de l’enfant dans sa langue maternelle et facilite l’apprentissage ulterieur de nouvelles langues
- Ouverture culturelle renforcee
- Possibilite de suivre des etudes superieures dans un environnement soit francophone, soit anglophone, ce qui pourrait signifier par exemple a terme de les scolariser dans la High School de la TES sans difficulte d’adaptation
Cette classe bilingue sera proposee aux enfants scolarisables en Moyenne Section de maternelle (enfants nes en 2003). A terme, l'objectif etant de permettre a toutes les familles qui le souhaitent de faire suivre a leurs enfants une scolarite entierement bilingue, une classe bilingue de Grande Section sera ouverte en 2008, une classe bilingue de Cours Preparatoire en 2009, etc.
La classe bilingue suit les programmes et les methodes pedagogiques du ministere francais de l'Education nationale, mais les enseignements sont dispenses pour moitie en francais et pour moitie en anglais. L'enseignement en francais est assure par un enseignant titulaire du ministere francais de l'Education nationale. L'enseignement en anglais par un enseignant qualifie de langue maternelle anglaise, specialement forme aux methodes et programmes francais.
Il est enfin important de savoir que :
- En moyenne section, afin de faciliter l'integration des enfants, une souplesse est autorisee dans la repartition des volumes horaires entre l’enseignement en francais et en anglais
- Il est vivement conseille d’inscrire les enfants non francophones dans la section francaise des la petite section de maternelle pour qu’ils beneficient d’une annee complete de scolarisation en francais et s’integrent ensuite en classe bilingue avec succes
- La mise en place de classes bilingues a l’EFT ne remet pas en cause l’enseignement en langue chinoise actuellement propose
- L’inscription en classe bilingue demande aux parents une attention renforcee dans le suivi de la scolarite de leurs enfants.
L’ouverture d’une nouvelle class bi-langue pour enfants de la Maternelle – Aout 2007
The French Section of the TES will open a bilingual French – English class for “Moyenne Section” in August 2007.
This project is very much part of the philosophy of the TES, along with the French Institute in Taipei (IFT) and the French Government body that oversees French education abroad (AEFE).
One of the reasons for this development is that the AEFE is putting into place a systematic policy of opening bilingual classes in French Schools throughout Asia (Hong Kong’s was in 1999-2000, Beijing, Singapore, Bangkok and Tokyo came on stream in 2006-2007) and one of the advantages to expatriate families is the fact that they may be sure of the same level of services and consistency in teaching programmes around the region as they relocate to follow their career paths.
For children, a bilingual education provides numerous advantages:
- The early exposure to a second modern language obviously helps over the longer term the linguistic capacities of the child ; this exposure also reinforces the foundations of their mother tongue and at the same time research demonstrates that a second language can facilitate the further learning of other languages ;
- It helps to reinforce cultural openings - again this is something that TES strongly supports and is reflected in our ? Vision Statement ? ;
- There is always the possibility of following higher studies in either a French or English language environment which would, for example, serve the longer term interests of being educated in the High School of TES without too much difficulty in adapting.
Applications to this bilingual class are of course welcomed from all families for their children to be educated in ? Moyenne Section? (children who were born in 2003). In the longer term, for those families who would like it, the objective would be to allow their children to follow a fully bilingual programme, given that a bilingual class would be opened in GS in 2008, a bilingual class for CP in 2009 etc. The School Registrar is very happy to provide more information to you should you need it.
The bilingual class would follow the pedagogy and programmes of the French ministry of Education, but the teachers would be allocated for half of the time in French and half of the time in English. The French teaching would be led by a qualified teacher as recognised by the French Ministry of Education and the English teaching would be led by a qualified English mother tongue teacher, who would also receive some specific training to be able to deal with aspects of French teaching methods and “programmes francais”.
Finally, it is important to know that:
- So as to integrate the children in MS, some flexibility is allowed in the frequency and volume of hours taught between French & English;
- It is strongly advised to enrol non-French speaking children in the PS class of the French class (children born in 2004) so that they would benefit from a full year of immersion in a French speaking environment and then to integrate them successfully into the next year’s bilingual class;
- Setting up a bilingual class in the French section does not in any way affect the Chinese language classes currently proposed and currently running in the curriculum;
- Enrolment in a bilingual class would mean even more attention in the follow up of the children’s education!
