Genesee: Handbook of Bilingualism 1 WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT BILINGUAL EDUCTION FOR MAJORITY LANGUAGE STUDENTS? 1

In many communities around the world, competence in two, or more, languages is an issue of considerable personal, socio-cultural, economic, and political significance. For some, the issues surrounding bilingualism are viewed as “problems ” to be overcome; for others, they are viewed as “challenges ” that, once mastered, benefit the individual, the community, and even the nation in which they live. The need to know two or more languages is not new. Historical documents indicate that individuals and whole communities around the world have been compelled to learn other languages for centuries and they have done so for a variety of reasons--language contact, colonization, trade, education through a colonial language (e.g., Latin, Greek), and intermarriage (Lewis, 1977). Notwithstanding historical patterns, changes in the modern world are presenting new incentives for learning additional languages. • There is growing globalization of business and commerce. During the last 10-15 years we have witnessed unprecedented internationalization of industry and white collar businesses--for example, in the automotive industry, head offices are located in one country (e.g., Japan), manufacture of automobiles takes place in another country (e.g., Brazil), and clients are in a third country (e.g., Canada). Even in North America, a relatively homogeneous linguisti