Multilingual Pupils Research Articles

Science Achievement of Multilingual Pupils: A Study on the Effectiveness of a Read-Aloud Assessment Accommodation

To date, empirical investigations of the effects of test accommodations on the actual achievement of multilingual pupils have been inconclusive. In this present study, we investigated whether read-aloud accommodation contributes to better results in terms of science achievement for multilingual pupils. A computer-based science test, conducted with or without read-aloud accommodation, was administered to 1022 5th-grade pupils in 36 Flemish primary schools. We assessed the hypotheses that, first, pupils in a condition with accommodation perform better than their non-accommodated peers, and second, certain background characteristics are related to science achievement for different groups of pupils. The results indicate that read-aloud accommodation in language education does not significantly contribute to making assessments fairer. Overall, parental job status, grade retention, migration status, and self-reported oral proficiency significantly predicted pupils’ science achievement. For pupils taking an accommodated test, their age of arrival and the language they spoke at home did not significantly relate to their science achievement, but their self-rated literacy skills in the language of schooling did.

Qualifications in home languages: opportunities, barriers and policy implications

ABSTRACT There is a recognised need for stronger language skills in the United Kingdom which could be partly addressed by valuing and harnessing the home language skills of its population. One way in which these skills could be supported is through formal accreditation, an opportunity which is not consistently being offered to pupils who speak a language at home which differs from the classroom language. This article draws on data from focus groups with multilingual pupils, interviews with mainstream and complementary school staff, and information from university admissions teams to explore the experiences of these stakeholders regarding home language qualifications, the perceived value of qualifications, as well as barriers and opportunities with regard to language qualification uptake. We discuss actions that could support higher levels of uptake and offer three short-term feasible policy interventions which could make a positive contribution to support for home language skills.

More than a few words?

Research shows that multilingual pupils’ school achievements and socio-affective development may improve when their home languages are valued positively and used as educational resources. Meaningful shifts in education for social justice must therefore be based on valuing pupils’ home languages and implementing sustainable translanguaging methods. However, the implementation of these methods is often limited to symbolic interactional acts and superficial engagement with multilingual practices. Based on longitudinal case studies of three teachers in the north of the Netherlands, the current study investigates what changes occur in the function of translanguaging strategies in primary classrooms participating in an educational design research intervention, to what extent interaction and multilingual language use evolves, and the presence of dialogic empathy. Using Kruskal-Wallis, Chi-Squared and Fisher’s Exact analyses, we examined the frequency and quality of translanguaging interactions at three measurement points. An in-depth analysis of recorded video-data of several lessons per teacher (N = 123:06 minutes) revealed how opportunities for dialogic interaction arose with symbolic translanguaging. Although these opportunities were not always seized, they provided possibilities for active pupil participation.

Språkuppfattningar och röster i österbottniska flerspråkiga elevers stiliserade tal

Language beliefs and voices in stylized speech of Ostrobothnian multilingual pupils This qualitative study investigates stylized speech performed by multilingual pupils who use a Finland-Swedish dialect, Finnish, and standard Swedish as linguistic resources. Moreover, the aim is, by using methods from interactional sociolinguistics, to identify linguistic and paralinguistic features of their stylized speech and what kind of explicit and implicit language beliefs and voices they convey. The analysis shows that the pupils stylize the standard Swedish language as well as the Finnish language in different ways, but not their Finland-Swedish dialect. The stylizations reflect both explicitly and implicitly the pupils’ beliefs about the language policy in the classroom, as well as their attitudes towards their language resources and their experiences with them. Moreover, the stylizations reflect beliefs about a shared language register. The voices identified in connection with the stylizations are polyphonic: partly, the pupils’ voice is heard, and partly the pupils impact each other’s voices. A voice of authority is identified as is the voice of someone not belonging to the same language group. The stylizations, language beliefs, and voices are linked to the pupils’ personal experiences, the norms and expectations that apply in the interaction, and the explicit and implicit discourses about their language resources.

Teaching Pronunciation to Young Learners in an ELF Context An Analysis of Pronunciation Activities in English Coursebooks for the Primary School

This paper deals with the teaching of English pronunciation in the primary classroom. It starts from two major premises. First, the Lingua Franca status of English (ELF), which has prompted a shift in pronunciation teaching from the attainment of a native accent to the achievement of mutual intelligibility. Second, the features of today’s primary classroom, which is de facto an ELF context, the school population being characterised by a growing number of multilingual pupils and of non-native teachers of English. Three English coursebooks for the primary school are analysed to investigate: 1) if and which pronunciation-focussed activities are suggested; 2) if and what support is provided to the primary teacher to make the most of the activities; 3) whether any of such activities/support show a trend towards an early inclusion of ELF-aware pronunciation pedagogy.

Attitudes and beliefs on multilingualism in education: voices from Sweden

ABSTRACT Sweden is often commended for the inclusion of home languages in the formal education system: both mother tongue instruction (where a pupil’s home language is taught as an optional school subject) and study guidance (where a pupil is given content support in their home language or prior language of schooling) are offered. Still, while many national educational policies are supportive of multilingualism, their enactment on the ground is often problematic. The attitudes and beliefs of teacher educators, in-service teachers, and pre-service teachers are crucial here, yet few studies have investigated how these key actors in Sweden perceive their encounters with linguistic diversity. Furthermore, an understanding of the similarities and differences in the perspectives across these three cohorts is lacking. We have analysed interviews with five teacher educators, five in-service teachers, and eight pre-service teachers concerning their attitudes and beliefs on multilingualism. These interviews reveal orientations towards language and language use in teacher education and primary schools. Specifically, language is seen both as a problem and as a resource. Our results uncover tensions in the expressed attitudes and beliefs about multilingualism, as well as about multilingual pre-service teachers in teacher education and multilingual pupils in the Swedish school.

Special issue 20/1: Development of ‘deficit perspectives’ among primary school teacher students in Austria

ABSTRACT Our contribution depicts the emerging of a ‘Deficit Perspectives’ scale (Döll et al., 2021) by surveying prospective primary level teachers’ deficit perspectives regarding migration-related multilingual pupils, based on the theoretical framework of Migration Pedagogy (Mecheril, 2015). We therefore collected and analysed qualitative and quantitative data concerning questions about students’ beliefs towards, and experiences with, multilingual pupils and (inner) multilingualism. The aim was evaluating, whether and, if so, how students’ deficit perspectives on migration-related multilingual pupils change over the course of two semesters of a required university module on topics such as migration and multilingualism, among others. Our findings show no increase in students’ deficit perspectives, but no increase in appreciation and resource orientation either.

Biliteracy Metaphor Analysis: Examining Multilingual, Multicultural Pupils’ Interpretation of Canon Literature

ABSTRACT This article unfolds and argues for Biliteracy Metaphor Analysis (BMA), a methodology for examining the interpretation and use of metaphors in canon literature in a biliteracy context, in this case the canon of Danish literature read and interpreted by multilingual students in a ninth grade classroom. BMA combines Spradley’s ethnographic framework with conceptual blending theory, Bakhtin’s theory of the literary chronotope, and Hornberger’s continua of biliteracy. BMA seeks to guide researchers in examining the interpretive dialogue about Danish canon texts without favoring interpretations of familiar metaphors that only evoke literate trajectories matching the literacy experiences of Danish monolinguals. BMA invites researchers to also account for ways in which pupils critique, transform and expand the familiar Danish registers and already instantiated meaning potential by mapping and reframing metaphors differently and creatively. Applicability of the methodology will be analyzed, exemplified and discussed based on a contextual background consisting of monolingual, bilingual and multilingual pupils interpreting the inherent conceptual metaphors of chronotopes in texts by authors belonging to the canon of Danish literature. Examples from Kaasby’s previous Master’s thesis will be used to illustrate possible contributions of the methodology when analyzing literacy acquisition.

Othering through language: English as an Additional Language in England’s educational policy and practice

AbstractAbout one‐fifth of the total school population in England was recorded as having English as an Additional Language (EAL) in 2018. This paper reflects on the problems presented by the lack of a comprehensive national strategy and guidance for EAL provision, support, and training, and how these issues reveal the existence of ethnocentrism within educational policy and practice in England. The findings are based on interviews with educational staff and participant observation in schools conducted in three schools in Manchester, UK between December 2019 and February 2020 as part of the Horizon 2020 MiCREATE project. The authors question whether categorizing multilingual pupils in opposition to monolingual English speakers serves any practical purpose or merely ‘others’ these children, and they call for broader recognition of multilingualism within the national curriculum and educational practice.

L’interdidacticité en lecture pour aider des élèves plurilingues à comprendre le vocabulaire

Dans le cadre de la didactique du français à visée inclusive, cet article sur l’inclusion des élèves alloglottes et allophones a pour objectif de comprendre comment est prise en compte la diversité sociolinguistique en classe ordinaire. L’examen d’adaptations didactiques de trois enseignantes de l’éducation prioritaire dans l’enseignement du vocabulaire en lecture permet d’étudier les passerelles entre FLM, FLE et FLS dans une logique d’interdidacticité.

“Accept All Pupils as they are. Diversity!” – Pre-Service Primary Teachers’ Views, Experiences, Knowledge, and Skills of Multilingualism in Education

Summary Schools across Europe are experiencing a growing number of multilingual pupils; however, teachers claim to be generally underprepared for dealing with this ever-increasing linguistic and cultural diversity. Initial teacher education often pays insufficient attention to multilingualism, thus there is a call for research on what pre-service teachers learn about the topic during training. Against this background, this small-scale exploratory study sets out to explore pre-service primary teachers’ (a) views of multilingualism in education in general, (b) experiences of multilingualism in education as trainee teachers, and (c) self-perceived knowledge and skills acquired and developed during training, in the context of the Netherlands. Based on 195 survey responses, descriptive statistical analyses indicate that the sampled pre-service primary teachers have slightly positive views of multilingualism in education, specifically regarding their opinions on the role of multilingualism in education, focusing on school and home languages, and their tolerance of multilingualism in the classroom and at school. A qualitative content analysis reveals that several pre-service primary teachers have had general experiences of teaching pupils with migrant backgrounds, such as in transition classes (Dutch: schakelklassen), and of teaching pupils who communicate with each other only in their home languages. Challenges in teaching multilingual pupils are also reported, such as the implications of being unable to understand pupils’ home languages. Regarding their self-perceived knowledge and skills, the content analysis shows that some pre-service primary teachers in this study are aware of how to encourage collaboration between multilingual pupils to involve their languages in their learning, and have knowledge of language comparison and awareness approaches that can be implemented in multilingual classrooms. A concerning finding, however, is that according to pre-service primary teachers’ self-reported communication skills for multilingual pupils, there is a tendency to use simplified language, which may have a negative impact on pupils’ language development. These findings highlight the need for further research that employs a mixed-methods longitudinal approach to gain insights into the depth of knowledge and skills acquired during training and how views of multilingualism in education influence classroom practices. This study further reveals shortcomings of primary teacher education in the Netherlands regarding the topic of multilingualism, which are followed up by preliminary recommendations for improving training programmes; for instance, training institutions should aim to collaborate with more multilingual schools where pre-service teachers can gain first-hand practical experience.

Modulatory effects of SES and multilinguistic experience on cognitive development: a longitudinal data analysis of multilingual and monolingual adolescents from the SCAMP cohort

ABSTRACT Previous research has shown that cognitive development is sensitive to socio-economic status (SES) and multilinguistic experiences. However, these effects are difficult to disentangle and SES may modulate the effects of multilingualism. The present study used data from a large cohort of pupils who took part in the Study of Cognition, Adolescents and Mobile Phones (SCAMP) at ages 11–12 (T1) and 13–15 years old (T2). Cognitive measures were derived from tasks of cognitive flexibility, verbal, spatial and visuo-spatial working memory, speech processing and non-verbal reasoning. Using SES information collected through questionnaires (school type, level of deprivation, parental education and occupation), the sample was clustered into high/medium/low SES groups. Comparisons focused on 517 monolingual and 329 multilingual pupils in the high/low SES groups. Having controlled for multiple comparisons, the results indicated a significant beneficial effect of bilingualism in measures of working memory, visuo-spatial processing and non-verbal reasoning. These effects were present in both high and low SES individuals and sustained at both times of development, with a particularly significant improvement of working memory abilities in low SES bilinguals at T2 as compared to monolingual peers. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are considered and guidance for educators is discussed.

Engaging in and creatively reproducing translanguaging practices with peers: a longitudinal study with three-year-olds in Luxembourg

ABSTRACT The increasing societal and linguistic diversity in schools challenge traditional teaching approaches and call for pedagogies that cater to the growing number of multilingual pupils. Translanguaging pedagogies can offer multilinguals a productive learning environment that helps them leverage their resources for learning. Translanguaging studies in early childhood education are still scant, especially those that involve emergent multilinguals, focus on adult–child and peer interactions, and examine children’s agency. The present paper from multilingual Luxembourg examines the engagement of two three-year-olds in adult-led and child-led activities in two early childhood education settings as well the ways in which they creatively reproduced translingual activities and strategies in peer interactions. The data of the qualitative study stem from 128 excerpts, video-recorded over the course of a year. The findings show that the children’s language use and active engagement depended on the pedagogy and the practitioners’ language-supportive strategies. In peer interactions, they creatively reproduced routine activities, thereby transforming formulaic speech, as well as the practitioners’ strategy use. The findings can guide curriculum developers and practitioners when implementing inclusive translanguaging practices in early childhood education.

Conceptual Framework For Multilingual Bidayuh’s Pupil In Teaching And Learning Arabic As Foreign Language

This paper outlines the conceptual framework of the study that takes into account the elements of the environment during the learning and teaching sessions of Arabic as well as the role played by teachers as knowledge movers in giving the maximum possible Arabic experience to these Bidayuh’s pupils, located in a rural area in Sarawak. In addition, the conceptual framework was created by combining two language theories, the bi/multilingual language theory by Cummins and the social theory by Vygotsky. These theories are relevant to be used and combined to suit the issues regarding teaching and learning the Arabic Language among Bidayuh’s multilingual pupils. Arabic is their fourth or fifth language. Based on this conceptual framework, the combined two theories play a significant role in teaching multilingual pupils because it can be seen from the formation of language from the pupils’ brain (common underlying proficiency). Teachers can strengthen the use of foreign languages by the Social Theory proposed. It is crucial to the teachers to know how to be competent to let the pupils use the language whereby the language is already stored in their brains. Based on that, the research came with ‘The Shopping Cart’ analogy. It describes the importance of teachers controlling the cart, which determines how competent they create the lesson (using social theory) while the things in the cart as the pupils and the cart itself as a lesson created. The analogy fills the 'paradigm gap' of previous studies in looking at how Arabic teachers in primary schools impart Arabic language education to pupils of different races and ethnicities

Teachers negotiating multilingualism in the EFL classroom

AbstractThis article sets out to explore English as foreign language (EFL) teachers’ views of teaching migrant pupils with multilingual backgrounds in a regular classroom. Previous studies on multilingual pupils have mostly concentrated on second language learning contexts or on the role of pupils’ L1. In an increasingly multilingual world and due to growing migration, this study concentrates on EFL. The data were interviews with English teachers (n=7), who reflected on their experiences with migrant pupils in the foreign language classroom. The data were analysed through qualitative content analysis. The participants had not really pondered on the role of multilingualism in the EFL classroom and some underlying preconceptions could be detected. Teachers’ perception of the multilingual pupil was controversial in that they did not want to draw attention to the linguistic background of the pupil but, on the other hand, they had noticed that multilingual learners had greater language awareness than their mainstream peers. Although not fully aware of the potential of multilingualism and the pupils’ linguistic resources in EFL teaching, the teachers had used several ways of supporting their multilingual learners, reflecting the principles of translanguaging.

‘It is okay if you speak another language, but … ’: language hierarchies in mono- and bilingual school teachers’ beliefs

ABSTRACT How do teachers deal with multilingual pupils, and what reasons govern these choices? Whereas most studies on this topic have examined teachers in schools with monolingual policies, this paper includes teachers at bilingual schools. Framed by pedagogical theory, we present a qualitative research study based on interviews with teachers in the German state North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). This area constitutes an interesting research site since 30-50% of the children are multilingual, but language policies in schools differ: Whereas most schools have a monolingual orientation, bilingual schools aim to purposely integrate languages beyond German in regular classes. Our results show that despite the differences in school language policies, despite different professional biographies and independent of knowledge on multilingual upbringings, teachers in mono- as well as bilingual schools reproduce the unquestioned perception of a monolingual norm. Furthermore, teachers at bilingual schools focusing on European languages deem migration-induced multilingualism as even less important than do teachers at regular schools. Finally, the results underline the importance of institutional policies and allow for insights into individual logic. On a larger horizon, the study contributes to issues of language-responsible teaching, equal opportunities, educational equality and social cohesion.

Empowering learners of English as an additional language: translanguaging with machine translation

The use of machine translation is increasingly prevalent in language education and social communication. This study explored how multilingual pupils who are learning English as an additional language (EAL) use machine translation within their formal education and everyday lives. A translanguaging framework was employed to understand the ways in which learners use machine translation and how they interpret these practices. Qualitative data was collected from a series of pupil (n = 28) focus groups and teacher (n = 14) interviews across five secondary schools in Northern Ireland. The findings demonstrate that machine translation permeates various learning and communicative aspects of learners’ lives across each stage of their multilingual development. In addition, learners view machine translation as a legitimate multimodal tool which they flexibly, critically and pragmatically incorporate within their semiotic repertoires. These findings show how EAL learners are empowered by their own, and their teachers’, use of machine translation and offer insights which inform the continued development of translanguaging pedagogies.

Teaching and learning in a multilingual Europe: findings from a cross-European study

School classrooms within the EU are multilingual learning environments. The diversity of pupils in classrooms raises significant challenges for teachers, but to date, there are no data from large-scale surveys that compare views within and across European countries. A bespoke questionnaire was designed to examine views of current classroom learning environments with respect to the multilingualism. The questionnaire was piloted and subsequently completed by 2792 teachers across different European countries. Eleven countries provided sufficient data for analyses. Results from structural equation modelling showed that teachers’ attitudes could be reliably measured across Europe with the use of carefully devised questionnaire, whose loading and factor structure remained invariant across countries. Teachers’ views about multilingualism were most challenged by the numbers of children in their classes, not the percentage of multilingual pupils in the class. Countries differed in how they perceived multilingualism, with their differences leading to distinctive country clusters. Gender and education level (elementary vs. secondary) differences were also observed irrespective of country. These findings enhance our understanding of the role that the characteristics of teachers and their classrooms play in a multilingual setting across diverse European settings. The practical relevance of the results and new opportunities for teacher training are discussed.

Mother tongue other tongue: nine years of creative multilingualism in practice

ABSTRACT This article assesses the impact over nine years of the Mother Tongue Other Tongue multilingual schools’ poetry competition led by Carol Ann Duffy from Manchester Metropolitan University, in which over 35,000 pupils from 77 schools have participated to date. It reviews evidence from a 2019 evaluation of the project and from a project anthology compiling several years of winning entries. The evidence suggests that the project is achieving its expected outcomes in increasing the self-confidence of bilingual and multilingual pupils, enhancing inclusivity and cultural exchange in the classroom and fostering dialogue and co-creation between children and their families. This article sets these outcomes within the context of research on urban multilingualism in Manchester, poetry in the UK National Curriculum, and creative multilingualism in English education, and seeks to extend the case made by previous articles in this journal for the educational value of multilingual creative writing.

The Effects of Multilinguality on the Development of Causal Speech Acts in the Geography Classroom

This explorative, qualitative study examines the use and effectiveness of resources of multilinguality, with particular regard to the development of causal links in geography classes. Contentual and linguistic strategies of multilingual pupils in creating causal links were collected and evaluated systematically. This was done by means of a qualitative content analysis of oral, cooperative lesson sequences. A model on how to deal with multilingual, systemic learning settings is presented as a resulting hypothesis.