CLIL Teachers Research Articles

Becoming a “language-aware” content teacher

Abstract Building on and extending the frameworks of Teacher Language Awareness (TLA) in second/foreign language education and content-based/CLIL education (Andrews, 2007; Lindahl & Watkins, 2015; Andrews & Lin, 2017), this paper argues that effective teaching of academic content in an L2 requires a special kind of teacher knowledge that goes beyond simple addition of content knowledge and Knowledge About Language (KAL). Through an ethnographic case study, the researchers investigated the development of a science teacher’s TLA and teacher identity through her participation in a school-university collaborative project. Based on analysis of data from classroom observations, interviews, and lesson video stimulated commentaries, the researchers have developed a model focusing on CLIL teacher professional development as a collaborative, dynamic and dialogic process, where both teachers and teacher educators (TEs) are co-developing their knowledge and expertise in CLIL.

Towards a Cognitive-Linguistic Turn in CLIL: Unfolding Integration

The aim of this paper is to unfold the process of integration in CLIL by describing the role of the cognitive processes involved in the construction of knowledge. While there has been extensive research of various aspects of CLIL, the actual process of integration of content and language has largely been neglected. Therefore, this paper argues that the role of language in building knowledge has to be stressed further and made transparent to CLIL practitioners, particularly in “hard” versions of CLIL. Raising teachers’ awareness of the epistemic function of language and drawing their attention to the human cognitive architecture can help them achieve a higher level of understanding of the process of integration of content and language. Using the example of a task taken from a training course for CLIL teachers, this paper describes how a focus on the cognitive architecture of learners can improve the integration of content and language in CLIL.

ПРЕДМЕНТО-МОВНЕ ІНТЕГРОВАНЕ НАВЧАННЯ (CLIL) В АГРАРНИХ І ТЕХНІЧНИХ ВИЩИХ НАВЧАЛЬНИХ ЗАКЛАДАХ ОСВІТИ В УКРАЇНІ

The paper considers the effectiveness of CLIL programmes in higher agrarian and technical educational institutions in Ukraine. CLIL courses are compared with ESP (English for Specific Purposes) and EMI (English as a Medium of Instruction) courses. Current status of CLIL, ESP and EMI in Ukraine has been analyzed and CLIL ideas implementation strategy has been considered: what is a CLIL course in higher educational institutions, why CLIL, teacher and course materials preparation, requirements for students entering the course, motivation and scaffolding, current difficulties and problems, expected linguistic outcomes and content achievements. The results of the investigation show that CLIL approach proved to be effective, however, there is a lack of teacher training programmes and developed course materials for CLIL teaching in agrarian and technical higher educational institutions today.

The Key Role of Foreign Language Teachers in Content and Language Integrated Learning at a University Level

Content and language integrated learning is a teaching formula that is recently proliferating in Andalusian universities with the implementation of programmes including bilingual education. In such a context, the recognition of the profile of the participants in these CLIL teaching proposals is extremely important for the identification of roles that may exist linked to this didactic formula. The role of the content teacher facing CLIL teaching seems to be clearly defined. Additionally, we have at our disposal the contributions that foreign language teachers can offer since they can provide didactic strategies that are enriching to content teachers to become co-responsible for the linguistic learning of their students. In particular, the didactic proposals that can be made by teachers whose didactic approach is part of the Foreign Language Acquisitive Teaching Method can be very useful for a content teacher who has to face the linguistic progress of their students. There seems to be agreement on the value of collaboration between both groups of teachers (those of linguistic areas and those of non-linguistic areas). However, at a university, there is not always a bilingual coordinator to help the CLIL teacher. For this reason, the establishment of this collaboration in the university context is extremely important, since the exchange of ideas between both contributes to the generation of quality bilingual education. The creation of a protocol of cooperation between the content teacher and the FL teacher must be a crucial component of bilingual programmes in higher education that guarantees optimal CLIL teaching.

From EMI to CLIL

We report on a small-scale study carried out in the University of Cantabria, Spain, which investigated teaching strategies and methodology for CLIL at the tertiary level. The study was carried out in two stages: in the first one we designed a questionnaire for primary and secondary school teachers, and interviewed 10 CLIL teachers. The focus was on teaching strategies and methodology, with the explicit aim of collecting advice applicable to the tertiary level. In the second stage we have tested these tips in a university context through a second questionnaire and round of interviews. We have interviewed 10 EMI university lecturers and asked them about methodological strategies, and specifically about the advice suggested by their colleagues. Our findings suggest that CLIL teachers from lower levels are well acquainted with CLIL methodology and that EMI practitioners at university find their advice very useful, although they show reluctance towards deeper methodological changes.

Does the teaching of physical education in a foreign language jeopardise children's physical activity time? A pilot study

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to design and validate a tool to observe the teaching of physical education (PE) through a foreign language (L2) and to measure the engaged time and language learning aspects of children's physical activity in PE classes where a content and language integrated approach (CLIL) was used. A first draft of the tool was tested for validity by experts, revised and then tested in a pilot study by three trained observers to 613 min of video-recordings of 15 different CLIL teachers conducting real PE classes. The results of the pilot study indicated that motor-engaged time in PE lessons applying the CLIL approach was, on average, 41.86%, which is lower than what is generally recommended by educational authorities for PE classes. Non-parametric tests indicated that this shortfall in the amount of physical activity time may be accounted for by the excessive use of language support materials such as flashcards to facilitate communication or the types of physical activity involved in the lessons. It is suggested that this imbalance in physical activity time vs. L2 language learning could be addressed by either extended the duration of PE-in-CLIL classes or by providing more focused training for PE-in-CLIL teachers.

Content Teachers’ Written Comments on Their Life-long English Language Profiles

CLIL in Italy has been compulsory by law since 2003 (Moratti’s Law) for the last year of all secondary schools. Subject-matter teachers were chosen to be the CLIL teachers, and only in 2012 did methodological and linguistic training begin (provided by universities all over the country). This study explores the profile of content teachers attending CLIL training not in terms of their linguistic competence but in terms of their relationship with English as an additional language. To do so, 115 trainees were asked to fill in a questionnaire composed of 10 open-ended questions and 2 close-ended ones. This questionnaire had both a research and training goal, since it was submitted at the beginning of the training course to investigate content teachers’ perceived linguistic profiles, which served as a psychological and pedagogical starting point for the course. Results show that content teachers have a specific linguistic identity and have had similar past experiences with the English language. These results could have repercussions and be exported to other training programmes, especially in terms of shifting teachers’ personae from subject-matter to fully-fledged CLIL teachers.

EFL Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions of CLIL

This study aims to investigate EFL pre-service teachers’ perceptions of CLIL concerning what CLIL is, what CLIL provides, what CLIL requires, who should implement CLIL, and where CLIL teachers should be trained. The participants were EFL pre-service teachers studying in the faculty of education, Mahasarakham University, Thailand. Questionnaires were used to collect the data after the introduction of CLIL. The findings revealed that most of the participants knew the notion of CLIL as they had taken the teacher training course. The majority of the participants viewed that CLIL provided the opportunities to integrate language into the content subjects. They believed that CLIL helps students develop both language skills and subject knowledge. However, it was revealed that the difficulties in CLIL implementation concerned content, a combination of culture to the lesson, and language (communication). The factors causing the difficulties were mainly related to teachers’ lack of content knowledge, students’ low English proficiency, and the difficult content interrelated to the technical vocabulary. Another factor directly related to CLIL was 4Cs integration into the lessons. It can be seen that although the EFL pre-service teachers have taken the CLIL training course, they still find CLIL difficult to apply and cannot make CLIL classes effective. The factors can be a guide to develop the CLIL training in order to produce qualified CLIL teachers. Content subject and language training, principles of 4Cs and of CLIL, as well as how to apply to the lessons should be highly emphasized in the training course.

Language policy and teacher team coordination practices in secondary CLIL schools

AbstractForeign language learning at schools protects not only Europe’s cultural heritage but it is also a key issue for our children to become world citizens. One of the ways in which educational systems are coping with this demand is through the CLIL teaching approach where content teachers and language teachers need to work in teams and to collaborate. Though the relationships established between teachers are key processes when dealing with CLIL programmes, few empirical studies from an emic point of view have been carried out. The present case study analyses the role of coordinator teachers supporting CLIL teachers to develop pedagogical practices in their CLIL classes. Direct observation, interviews and questionnaires help to describe CLIL teams in Spanish/Andalusian secondary schools and examine the development of their professional learning. Results indicate some training guidelines that should be included in European language policies of similar contexts to help CLIL teachers in their professional development.RésuméL’apprentissage des langues étrangères dans les écoles protège non seulement l’héritage culturel de l’Europe, mais c’est aussi un élément clé pour que nos enfants deviennent des citoyens du monde. Une des façons dont les systèmes éducatifs font face à cette demande est l’approche d’enseignement CLIL/EMILE où les enseignants et les enseignants de langues doivent travailler en équipe et collaborer. Bien que les relations établies entre les enseignants soient des processus clés lorsqu’ils traitent des programmes CLIL, peu d’études empiriques ont été réalisées d’un point de vue émique. La présente étude de cas analyse le rôle des enseignants coordonnateurs qui soutiennent les enseignants de CLIL pour développer des pratiques pédagogiques dans leurs classes CLIL. L’observation directe, les entretiens et les questionnaires permettent de décrire les équipes CLIL dans les écoles secondaires espagnoles et andalouses et d’examiner le développement de leur apprentissage professionnel. Les résultats indiquent certaines lignes directrices de formation qui devraient être incluses dans les politiques linguistiques européennes de contextes similaires pour aider les enseignants CLIL dans leur développement professionnel.

Application of CLIL teaching methods in the educational process of physics lessons

Application of CLIL teaching methods in the educational process of physics lessons

Application of CLIL teaching methods in the educational process of physics lessons

Application of CLIL teaching methods in the educational process of physics lessons

Inmersión Lingüística Para Profesores Aicole. Un Enfoque Comunicativo Y Práctico

Training teachers in CLIL methodology is one of the biggest challenges any educational institution must face in order to have the highest quality bilingual program. This work summarizes collects and analyzes an in-service training modality, carried out by the Language Center of Rey Juan Carlos University (Madrid-Spain) in collaboration with the Education Department of Madrid Regional Government. This training was specifically designed to improve the teachers’ linguistic competence and at the same time, provide them with the necessary tools and resources. The in-service training modality we present in this work aims to meet and satisfy the needs and demands of CLIL teachers from all educational levels, whose results confirms it as a highly applicable model both in bilingual and non-bilingual fields.

Creating Materials with ICT for CLIL Lessons: A Didactic Proposal

Abstract When planning a CLIL lesson, the teachers have to plan the input that they want to teach their students, that is to say, the amount of knowledge that the students are going to learn and how this information will be presented and introduced in the CLIL class. However, one of the most concerns of CLIL teachers when looking for materials is that they can’t find appropriate materials for their lessons. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of commercially produced CLIL course books and the content knowledge is usually inferior to that of the L1 subject. For these reasons, teachers often have to spend their time preparing their own materials. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to introduce CLIL teachers the creation of materials in an easily way. For doing this, we are going to develop a lesson planning from the second course of Natural Science entitled “Our bones”. Just for the students to learn the vocabulary related to this topic, we have developed different interactive activities, which can also be printed, created with free online programmes, and resources.

The main social roles of English language in Russia in their connection with CLIL university teaching and classroom interaction

This study investigated the main social roles of English language in Russia in their connection with CLIL university teaching and classroom interaction. Data comes from two stage expert research with CLIL and ESL university teachers (N=33). They were asked about the social roles of English language in the nowadays Russian universities and preferable conception for future development of CLIL university program. Four conceptions were chosen by experts: Global English, Russian English, multilingual conception and English as an investment. The features of each concept were identified and discussed in terms of their influence on the process of CLIL education. The «conceptions-leaders» were determined by ranking. They are Russian English and Multilingual conception.  Despite the fact that the concept of Russian English considered appropriate at the present time, future preferences are associated with the concept of multilingualism.

An approach to CLIL teacher language awareness using the Language Triptychh

La formación del Profesorado para CLIL es una de los mayores retos a los que se enfrentan la teoría y la práctica CLIL. Este trabajo intenta contribuir a este ámbito por medio de un ejemplo de análisis de necesidades de formación de profesorado en lo que respecta a requisitos lingüísticos para la enseñanza de contenidos en inglés. El marco teórico que subyace en esta propuesta es el Language Triptych (Coyle et al., 2010) y la dicotomía BICS/CALP (Cummins, 1984). Se administraron cuestionarios de preguntas abiertas a seis de los profesores participantes en una titulación bilingüe de la Universidad de Valladolid y se realizaron entrevistas informales. Las referencias a aspectos lingüísticos que aparecen en sus respuestas se clasifican según los tres elementos del Language Triptych (la lengua del /para / a través del aprendizaje) o la distinción BICS /CALP. Los profesores muestran una conciencia lingüística básica que puede percibirse en sus reflexiones. El trabajo concluye con una propuesta de contenidos lingüísticos que, según los datos analizados, parece ser adecuada para una actualización lingüística de los que van a iniciarse en docencia CLIL.

Teachers’ Perspectives on CLIL and Classroom Innovation in a Method based on Drama Games

This paper presents an analysis of a set of semi-structured interviews conducted with a group of CLIL and non-CLIL teachers from Germany and Spain on topics related to CLIL and the use of drama games. The purpose of this study is to determine the conceptualizations and attitudes they have about these two methods and the combination of both. We conducted a thematic analysis and a case study, and determined the similarities and differences among the teachers interviewed. We also examined the degree of ‘investment’ (Norton, 2013) they may be willing to make regarding a new method resulting from the project ‘playingCLIL’.

The more the merrier – revisiting CLIL-based vocabulary growth in secondary education

One crucial aspect of CLIL-based foreign language learning in instructional settingsis vocabulary growth. As a consequence, research should be interested inhow CLIL fosters vocabulary learning. Noticing an apparent shortage of data-drivenquantitative research on vocabulary growth in this field of CLIL is, therefore,problematic. The present paper reports findings from a mixed-methods studyof vocabulary growth in an Austrian lower secondary school CLIL setting, withEnglish as the language of instruction and learning. The aim of the study was toanalyse how the use of CLIL in the English classroom could benefit learners in theiracquisition of vocabulary in the target language. First, a repeated-measure-designwith experimental and control groups assessed receptive vocabulary growth bymeans of a standardized vocabulary size test. Second, students’ questionnaire dataas well as vocabulary profiling of the CLIL teachers’ linguistic input explored possiblecovariates for the vocabulary test scores. We found that CLIL-related effectswere only co-determined by input frequency, while extra-mural factors did notplay any role in this study. As a consequence, overly optimistic expectations regardingthe linguistic impact of CLIL in a mixed-ability setting guided by a predominantlyimplicit language teaching approach need to be re-evaluated critically. doi:10.5294/laclil.2016.9.1.3

Developing a CLIL textbook evaluation checklist

In the last decades, the number of bilingual schools in Europe has increased significantly.Most of these schools implement CLIL methodology in their teachingand, consequently, there is a demand for new and appropriate materials for eachcontent subject taught through a foreign language: new textbooks written in L2are needed, and the existent offer does not meet the current demand. Given thatCLIL materials development is a relatively recent field, there is not much researchon the evaluation of those still insufficient course books. In this paper, and in orderto evaluate CLIL textbooks, we propose a tentative checklist twofold based: onthe one hand, based on previous checklists created to evaluate ELT textbooks - CLILmaterials use principles/techniques of foreign language teaching (Steirt and Masser,2011)-, and, on the other hand, based on the criteria for producing quality CLILlearning materials drawn up by Mehisto (2012). Further research is in process inorder to refine the checklist with the results of an analysis of the criteria carriedout by a focus group of CLIL teachers, and of a survey addressed to teachers whoare currently implementing CLIL in their schools. doi:10.5294/laclil.2016.9.1.7

Simulated enterprises: a CLIL teaching method for developing students’ entrepreneurial skills and language competence

Simulated enterprises: a CLIL teaching method for developing students’ entrepreneurial skills and language competence

Integrating Curricular Contents and Language through Storytelling: Criteria for Effective CLIL Lesson Planning

Storytelling is a receptive and productive educational resource in which social values, content and language are linked and integrated (López Téllez, 1996; Hearn & Garcés, 2005; Miller & Pennycuff, 2008, etc.). Hence, as a current approach to language teaching, CLIL represents the best framework for providing young learners the effective acquisition of some topics from the curriculum (Bentley, 2010, p.6). However, this methodological approach requires establishing quality criteria for successful and sustainable CLIL teaching and learning. This paper aims to explore the complex process of delivering effective CLIL lessons through storytelling and to illustrate a framework (Bloom, 1956; Coyle, 2005 and Coyle et al., 2010) that a pre- primary teacher needs to apply in order to facilitate learners’ linguistic development and acquisition of content knowledge. These theoretical principles are then exemplified and assessed in the development of microteachings conducted at Universidad de Alcalá, where student teachers could reflect on 1) the establishment of an appropriate framework for successful and sustainable CLIL teaching and learning, 2) the effective teaching and learning of some curricular topics through storytelling and 3) the potential development of language and cognitive skills. The findings of the study report that storytelling can be considered an effective educational CLIL resource that facilitates not only the effective acquisition of contents from the curriculum, but also cognitive development and communication in another language. Limitations of the present paper call for further research in the young learner classroom.