Children of Immigrants in Qubec - Theoretical Framework Research Paper

Children of Immigrants in Qubec - Theoretical Framework - Research Paper Example The case study followed three post-secondary students whose first language was French and studied the degree and application of academic biliteracy that each student demonstrated in his or her academic writing assignments. The case study took place in Ottawa, Canada, which as the capital of Canada is a fully bilingual environment, both French and English. The author chose this article because the theoretical framework applied in this particular study has similar resonance and application to the author’s topic of "Children of Immigrants in Quebec". The goal of this paper is to discuss the key aspects of theoretical frameworks and demonstrate why researchers develop and apply theoretical frameworks to their academic study topics in the field of education. The theoretical framework used by Guillaume Gentil relates in several cases to the key themes that the author is currently pursuing in the "Children of Immigrants in Quebec" study, most notably the ideas of individual voices an d construction of identity as it pertains to first language. Guillaume Gentil built theoretical framework using elements from the continua model of biliteracy developed by Hornberger; the critical social theory work created by Bourdieu and also applied philosophical hermeneutics to the framework (Bourdieu, 1998; Hornberger, 1989). Guillaume Gentil applied this framework to test his hypothesis that â€Å"individual biliterate development [is] a subjective and intersubjective evaluative response to social contexts of possibilities for biliteracy† (Gentil, 2005, p. 421). Upon the completion of the two and a half year case study, the research that Guillaume Gentil amassed, including examination of each case study member’s compromises and sometimes circuitous routes followed in order to fully commit to and uphold a bilingual academic writing environment in an landscape dominated by English demonstrated â€Å"the challenges and resources of bilingual writers to uphold their commitment to academic biliteracy within English-dominant institutional and disciplinary contexts† (Gentil, 2005, p. 421). Similarly, within the topic of "Children of Immigrants in Quebec", multiple challenges arise for first generation children of immigrant parents in Quebec to commit to and adhere to an often multilingual environment, including the language or languages spoken at home, the cultural link to the languages spoken in the home country and the bilingual environment of the province of Quebec. The overall goal therefore is to demonstrate the author’s comprehension of the concept of theoretical frameworks, using Gentil's theoretical framework to relate to the topic of "Children of Immigrants in Quebec". The paper will begin with a discussion of the theories Guillaume Gentil applied to build the theoretical framework of Commitments to Academic Biliteracy: Case Studies of Francophone University Writers and analyze their importance to the study. The paper will a lso analyze the theoretical framework of this study and draw parallels between it and the "Children of Immigrants in Quebec" study. Theoretical Frameworks: Overview The main purpose and value of a theoretical framework is to prove the specific hypothesis that the researcher develops (Anfara & Mertz, 2006; Cline, n.d.). A theoretical frame