Journal of Immersion and Content-Based Language Education - Volume 5, Issue 1, 2017

Content and language integrated learning (CLIL) programmes have recently gained momentum in many European countries in the belief that students will significantly improve their foreign language proficiency while content learning is not negatively affected. Based on a longitudinal qualitative approach, this article focuses on students’ reflections on their experience with CLIL. Previous studies have shown that students are able to reflect on organizational conditions and their learning process, while their reflections allow researchers to identify some of the key elements in students’ beliefs. Through focus groups carried out over a three-year period, this study gathers secondary education students’ reflections on their motivational stance, the CLIL experience, and the use of their linguistic repertoire in the CLIL classroom. By tapping into students’ language beliefs, reflections, and motivation, a clearer picture of CLIL settings will be available by bringing to light both the strengths and weaknesses of these programmes.

In the field of second language education, researchers increasingly call for crosslinguistic pedagogical practices meant to encourage bilingual learners to draw on all of their linguistic resources regardless of the focus of instruction or the status of the target language. These recommendations include a relaxation of the strict language separation common in many bilingual education programs. Specifically, some Canadian French immersion researchers suggest that it may be beneficial to allow immersion students to use English for peer interaction during instructional time allotted to French. In this position paper, we argue that researchers should proceed with caution in calling for increased majority language use in the minority language classroom. We use Canadian French immersion as a case in point to contend that until empirical evidence supports increased use of English in immersion, crosslinguistic approaches that maintain a separate space for the majority language may represent ideal pedagogical practices in these contexts.

This research study examined the experiences of teachers and learners as they engaged with a CLIL programme, a physical education course being taught through the medium of the Irish language (L2) in English-medium primary schools in the Republic of Ireland. Five primary fourth grade teachers and the students (9–10 years old) in their classes from three primary schools in the Republic of Ireland participated in a unit of physical education (4–8 lessons) through the medium of the Irish language. Qualitative data collection and analysis included direct observation of lessons, an interview with each teacher, teachers’ written reflections and a focus group with 3–5 students from each class. Teachers reported that students became highly motivated as they were given the opportunities to use the Irish language in situations of personal choice. This new autonomy and motivation in turn fostered confidence and competence in language use. Several complex and persistent pedagogical challenges (e.g. balancing content and language in instruction) were uncovered in the analysis of data. This study increases our understanding of the complexity of the processes underlying and shaping a coherent CLIL pedagogy. Findings shed light on the yet-to-be-realised potential of CLIL as a lived embodied reality for all.

English-medium Instruction (EMI) has become increasingly common in non-English speaking countries such as China. EMI instructors’ inadequate English proficiency has been reported as a major hindrance to successful EMI. This study examined EMI instructors’ perceptions on the effectiveness of overseas training programs. The participants of the study were 75 instructors from 20 universities in a big metropolis in China who were engaged in a four-month international assignment in one of the universities in Australia, Canada and the US between 2009 and 2010. Data sources included survey and written reports. Constant comparison was applied to generate common themes. Results indicated that the instructors regarded the training programs that focused more heavily on pedagogy as more effective and hoped for more context-specific pedagogy applicable to Chinese educational systems. They perceived the training programs with an emphasis on supervised teaching practices as more effective. Implications are provided for EMI instructors and administrators.

This article summarizes the essential theoretical and empirical findings of a large-scale doctoral dissertation study on content and language integrated learning (CLIL) streams at German secondary schools (Gymnasium) with up to three content subjects taught in English (Rumlich, 2016) . A theoretical account rooted in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL), language acquisition and educational psychology provides the basis for the development of a comprehensive longitudinal model of general EFL proficiency, which incorporates cognitive, affective-motivational, and further individual variables.

In a second step, the model is used to estimate the effects of CLIL on general EFL proficiency, EFL self-concept and interest over a span of two school years (Year 6 to Year 8). The statistical evaluation of the quasi-experimental data from 1,000 learners finds large initial differences prior to CLIL due to selection, preparation, and class composition effects brought about by the implementation of CLIL within streams. After two years, the analyses found no CLIL-related benefits for general EFL proficiency or interest in EFL classes and solely a minor increase in EFL self-concept that might be attributable to CLIL. The results make a strong claim for comprehensive longitudinal model-based evaluations and the inclusion of selection, preparation, and class composition effects when conducting research on CLIL programmes in similar settings. The findings also suggest that not all language competences and affective-motivational dispositions might benefit from CLIL (the way it is currently taught in Germany) to the same extent.