Attrition in late French immersion: Discussions with six students

This qualitative, exploratory research examined the experiences of 6 intermediate level students from one school who began Late French Immersion (LFI) in Grade 7 but who transferred out of the program into the regular English program. The researcher examined the reasons that led the students to make the switch into the regular English program. The study also aimed to determine how the students were performing once the transfer had been made. Two semi-structured, open-ended interviews, each lasting approximately 30–45 minutes, were conducted with each of the participants. Data analysis was conducted by means of thematic content analysis and the themes and patterns that emerged were categorized into 3 macro-categories, each containing 3–4 micro-categories. The data suggested that the three primary reasons for transferring out of LFI were (1) the perception that the participants were academically inferior to many of their classmates; (2) the belief that they would be more academically successful in the regular English program; and (3) the desire to be with their friends in the regular English program. Other factors such as teacher-student relationships and shared responsibility were also discussed. In general, the participants reported being happier once the transfer had been made into the English program and were performing better academically than they had in LFI.