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Bilingual education, or CLIL, at primary school varies greatly across European educational contexts. Teaching Young Learners in Bilingual Settings reports on a study that explored one such CLIL context in Dortmund, Germany. Through interviews and classroom observations, the researcher and author sought not only to document some of what takes place in CLIL classrooms but to describe and understand teachers' thoughts and beliefs about their CLIL teaching practices. This research contributes to a better understanding of primary school CLIL programs and teachers and is relevant for researchers working in the fields of foreign language education, bilingual education, and language teacher cognition research. Furthermore, the insights into CLIL teachers' thinking can support CLIL teachers, administrators, and policy makers as they seek to further develop CLIL pedagogy and programs.
List of contents
1Introduction1.1Background and rationale1.1.1Historical and theoretical foundations of CLIL1.1.2Research results on CLIL outcomes in Germany1.1.3The CLIL context of the present study: Dortmund International Primary Schools (DIPS)1.1.4Researching teachers' cognitions1.1.5Research results on CLIL teachers' cognitions1.2Purpose of the study1.3Eliciting teachers' cognitions related to CLIL practices1.4Outline of chapters2CLIL and its Foundations in Theories of Second Language Acquisition2.1CLIL and Immersion: Foundations and principles2.1.1Immersion2.1.2Content and Language Integrated Learning2.1.3CLIL goals2.2Theories of second language acquisition2.2.1Usage-based theories: Input, output, and interaction2.2.2Sociocultural theory: Mediation, zone of proximal development, and collaborative dialogue2.2.3Complex systems approach: Affordances, co-adaptation, and learner agency2.3Summary3Early Foreign Language Learning at Primary Level3.1Principles of foreign language instruction at primary school3.1.1Authenticity3.1.2English as the language of instruction3.1.3Multisensory Learning3.1.4Play-based Learning3.1.5Visualization3.1.6Prioritizing listening and speaking3.1.7Differentiation and individualization3.1.8Theme-oriented teaching3.2CLIL at primary school in Germany3.2.1Age and foreign language learning3.2.2Organization3.2.3Subjects3.2.4Curricula: English and Science3.2.5Teacher requirements and competences3.2.6Classroom interaction3.2.7L1 and L2 use3.2.8Motivation3.3Summary4Teacher Cognition4.1History of the study of teacher cognition4.2Goals of teacher cognition studies4.3Terminology and constructs of teacher cognition4.4CLIL teachers' cognitions4.4.1Teacher types4.4.2CLIL teachers' goals4.4.3Teachers' approaches4.5Summary5Methods and Research Design5.1Aims and research questions5.2Methods5.2.1Collecting and analyzing verbal data5.2.2Semi-structured interviews5.2.3Classroom observations5.2.4Qualitative content analysis5.3Research design5.3.1Research context: Dortmund International Primary Schools5.3.2Research participants5.3.3Data gathering procedures5.3.4Data analysis procedures5.4Research quality5.4.1Validity5.4.2Reliability5.5Summary6Results6.1Research question 1: What cognitions do teachers hold about teaching and learning in primary school CLIL?6.1.1Cognitions about the role of content, L1, and L26.1.2Cognitions about young learner SLA in CLIL6.1.3Cognitions about choosing CLIL topics and activities6.1.4Cognitions about teacher competences and demands6.1.5Cognitions about student characteristics6.1.6Summary6.2Research question 2: What language-related educational goals do teachers work toward?6.2.1Foreign language learning goals6.2.2General pedagogic goals that support language learning6.2.3Summary6.3Research question 3: What approaches do teachers believe are best for achieving these goals?6.3.1Focus on input6.3.2Know the students6.3.3Scaffolding6.3.4Motivate students6.3.5Student choice of language6.3.6Teach language explicitly6.3.7Plan for more time6.3.8Build links to other subjects6.3.9Summary7Discussion7.1Teachers' cognitions about teaching and learning in primary school CLIL7.2Teachers' cognitions about language-related educational goals in CLIL7.3Teachers' cognitions about approaches most effective for achieving CLIL goals7.4Influence of the DIPS program design on teachers' cognitions7.5Summary8Conclusion8.1Limitations8.2Implications8.3Further re
About the author
Paul Berge ist Grundschullehrer in Dortmund. Er promovierte an der Universität Trier.
