French Without Borders: Community, Policy, and Pedagogy in Francophone North America
Edited by Natalie Keefer and Jerry L. Parker
Coming Fall 2025
*Note: Pre-orders will be charged at time of purchase, not when the book ships. Please contact us if you have questions about your order.
About the Book
In French Without Borders, contributing authors tackle numerous compelling and imperative aspects of the practical/quotidienne nature of French in North American contexts, including French language education and pedagogy; law, public policy, and leadership; and immigration, tourism, and economics.
As the product of an interdisciplinary and transnational colloquium of scholars and researchers and their mutually supportive conversations, this book represents the interdependent nature of francophone studies and education. The social, economic, and cultural implications of this work are far reaching, in that they address broad consequences for public policy as well as highlight case studies of interest within specific regions of francophone North America, including the Caribbean. Furthermore, the specific francophone contexts in French Without Borders offer a degree of transferability due to the shared struggle for preserving, promoting, and sustaining French as a minority language.
This edited volume presents a distinct approach to la francophonie in North America, showcasing the voices of numerous stakeholders and their unique perspectives, insights, and knowledge within overlapping and adjacent fields.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION: Natalie Keefer and Jerry L. Parker, University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Southeastern Louisiana University
SECTION I: Education and Pedagogies in Francophone Contexts
CHAPTER ONE: Enseigner les perspectives francophones en histoire et études sociales dans le contexte de la Louisiane, Stéphane Lévesque, University of Ottawa
CHAPTER TWO: What Does It Mean to Be Francophone? Conceptions of Global Citizenship Education in the Francophone Americas, Natalie Keefer, Caroline Monternier, and Michelle Haj-Broussard, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
CHAPTER THREE: Enjeux du bilinguisme et de la diversité en éducation au Canada : perceptions d’enseignants sur la place des apprenants, Judith Patouma, Université Sainte-Anne
CHAPTER FOUR: Escadrille Louisiane: Moving Toward Immersion-Specific Teacher Education, Natalie Keefer and Michelle Haj-Broussard, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
CHAPTER FIVE: Visible and Invisible Barriers to Bilingualism in Heritage Language Preservation: Immersion as Medicine, Tia LeBrun, United Houma Nation
CHAPTER SIX: Toward a Space of Curricular Belonging: An Investigation of Caribbean and Louisiana Content in Novice and Intermediate French Textbooks, Jerry L. Parker, Southeastern Louisiana University
CHAPTER SEVEN: Les Effets Secondaires—When Classroom Discussions Get Published Online: From Google Jamboards and Google Doc to Book Creator, Alexandra Reuber, Tulane University
SECTION II: Public Policy, Identity, and Economics
CHAPTER EIGHT: An Asset-Based Analysis of Efforts to Promote and Preserve la Francophonie in Louisiana, Natalie Keefer and Nathan Rabalais, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
CHAPTER NINE: Francophone Canada and Louisiana: A Comparison to Optimize Decolonization, Amal Madibbo, University of Toronto
CHAPTER TEN: Branding Heritage Through Language: Tourism and Language Revalorization in Louisiana and Guadeloupe in a Comparative Perspective, Kathe Managan, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
CHAPTER ELEVEN: Ayoù ce qu’on était? Ayoù ce qu’on va? Comment aller là-bas? État des lieux, lacunes et feuille de route pour une politique conséquente en Louisiane francophone, Joseph Dunn, Laura Creole Heritage Site and David Cheramie, Independent Scholar
About the Editors
Natalie Keefer is associate professor of social studies education and co-director of the Louisiana Center for Research and Education on Languages and Literacies (LA CREoLL) at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Dr. Keefer’s research and scholarly interests include educational anthropology, discourse analysis, social studies pedagogy in French immersion and multilingual contexts, global citizenship education, and human rights education.
Jerry L. Parker is an instructor of French, Spanish, and world language education at Southeastern Louisiana University. He also serves as the undergraduate program coordinator and director of the Foreign Language Resource Center. Dr. Parker’s research interests include curriculum leadership, instructional leadership, world language education, multicultural education, Caribbean studies, Louisiana studies, higher education policy, and state and local government.
Praise for French Without Borders
“Timely and essential, this edited volume offers fresh perspectives on the intersections of language, education, and cultural revitalization across Francophone North America's diverse communities. Each chapter explores probing questions and raises compelling solutions through the contributors’ deeply grounded expertise. Vive le français sans frontières !”—Dr. Clint Bruce, Université Sainte-Anne
“French Without Borders reveals how language policy and education shape the future of Francophone belonging in an increasingly transnational educational field. This timely collection demonstrates how education, policy, and community engagement must intersect to sustain a living francophonie in the twenty-first century. Against the backdrop of globalization, migration, and economic precarity, this collection offers an urgent call to action: to reimagine French not as a relic of colonial heritage, but as a driver of transnational exchange and sustainable development.”—Rachel L. Doherty, PhD, Center for Louisiana Studies.
“The editors of this volume are to be commended for bringing together an impressive selection of new research on French and Creole in North America. With essays that cover a geographical space encompassing francophone Canada, Louisiana, and the Caribbean and topics as diverse as education, public policy, and economics, this collection will serve as an invaluable resource for anyone wishing to learn more about the current state of North American francophonie.”—Thomas Klingler, associate professor of French, Tulane University
© 2025 University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press
Paperback | 978-1-959569-31-2 | 6" x 9" | 290 pages | 2025