A Review of the Contemporary Challenges Faced by Chinese Immersion Education and Its Related Teacher Preparations in the United States

Abstract

This study reviews the emerging studies on the topic of Chinese immersion programs in the U.S. The effectiveness of Chinese immersion programs has been proved to have positive impacts on students’ language proficiency, academic performance, and cognitive development. However, challenges in curriculum and instructions, behavior management, and cross-cultural communication have been limiting the performance of Chinese language immersion programs. To address these challenges, Chinese immersion teachers should be provided with preparations and training on the knowledge of designing multi-subject curriculum in the Chinese language, utilizing instructional strategies in immersion settings, and developing cross-cultural competency.