Fusing theory and practice: Fusing theory and practice: Real practice, blogging and new

technologies in CLIL Florià Belinchón-CEIP Pràctiques I (LLEIDA)Florià Belinchón-CEIP Pràctiques I (LLEIDA)

EOI Lleida-April 2009

‘The future doesn’t just happen, it is shaped and modelled by our actions’.

‘The best teachers are those who equip students to THINK for themselves’

• Postgraduate certificate in “Teaching Content through a Foreign Language”. University of Nottingham. January-March 2008.

• The Departament d’Educació is trying to promote CLIL methodology among teachers in Primary and Secondary levels.

• Bringing the CLIL theory to an everyday classroom is not easy. Many reasons can be seen:

Lack of linguistic competence in English (students) Lack of materials and classrooms Not all workmates and parents see a need to foster CLIL methodology in our schools. No clear preference for any particular subjects The need for teacher training more focused on CLIL Not all pupils feel motivated to learn a Foreign Language.

IntroductionIntroduction

What is CLIL-AICLE?What is CLIL-AICLE?

• CLIL: Content and Language Integrated Learning.

• AICLE: Aprenentatge integrat de continguts i llengua estrangera.

What is CLIL-AICLE?What is CLIL-AICLE?CLIL offers opportunities to allow youngsters to use another language naturally,in such a way that they soon forget about the language and only focus on thelearning topic.

It is usually done through putting aside some time in the school week for learning subjects or special modules through another language. In CLIL the learning of language and other subjects is mixed in one way or another. This means that in the class there are two main aims, one related to the subject, topic, or theme, and one linked to the language.

It can be done in many ways. For example it might involve 8 year olds having 30minutes of language showers per week, in which they sing songs or play gamesin the other language. It could involve 13 year olds learning as much as half ormore of all their lessons in the other language.

‘The conscious teaching of content rather than language, using methods more in line with the subject being taught, but with an informed sensitivity to linguisticissues’ (Do Coyle)

Peeter Mehisto, Maria-Jesus Frigols and David Marsh "Uncovering CLIL". Macmillan

Books for Teachers. 2008

Why CLIL-AICLE? Why CLIL-AICLE? Tricky question, isn’t it?Tricky question, isn’t it?

School / DepartmentSchool / Department

CLIL!

TeacheTeacherr

But...WHY!!??

Introduction: Why CLIL-AICLE?Introduction: Why CLIL-AICLE?• It is a natural way of learning a language

• Different Children, Different Learning Styles…CLIL helps

• CLIL can provide a real way of approaching a language

• It fosters the language and Thinking Skills

• Social and cultural dimensions that CLIL offers.

• Its ICT potential

• It represents a good way of approaching the new curriculum (LOE)

SCHOOL CONTEXTSCHOOL CONTEXT

Catalunya

Lleida

CEIP Pràctiques I

Specific issuesSpecific issues• CEIP Pràctiques I (Lleida)

• Small school (237 pupils)• One form entry• At the heart of the city of Lleida• Projecte d’autonomia de centre (trying to

make a better school)• We teach English from the age of 4 (Artigal’s

methodology)• We believe CLIL can make a difference• The original building is being rebuild: this has

some implications.

• There are two English teachers.– English Language Learning– Projects (CLIL)

• Both are new in the school

• PROJECTS:– Imply Infant Education and– From the 1st Cycle of Primary onwards.

Specific issuesSpecific issues

PROJECTS PROJECTS (regarding FL)(regarding FL)::CLIL

CLIL project in the school(EVOLUTION)

Integrated in the main project: Projecte d’autonimia de centre

SCHOOL CONTEXTSCHOOL CONTEXT

(from 6 to 12 years)

2006 Future

From THEORY to practice...From THEORY to practice...

• Foundation. There is a need to consider the following:

– The 4C’s framework:

• COMMUNICATION:• It refers to

Language of LearningLanguage for LearningLanguage through Learning

• COGNITION:• It refers to

The process involved in thinking. We must help the learner to build up their own learning.

• CONTENT:• It refers to

Content matter is not only about acquiring knowledge and skills, it is about the learner constructing their own knowledge and developing skills

• CULTURE:• It refers to

Intercultural awareness is fundamental to CLIL

CLIL involves learning to use language CLIL involves learning to use language whilst using language to learn whilst using language to learn effectively.effectively.

A general overviewA general overview• Foundation. There is a need to consider the following:

– The 4C’s framework.

– Need to scaffold learning

– Using the CLIL matrix

– Taking into account how children learn

• From theory to practice: bringing CLIL into a From theory to practice: bringing CLIL into a real classroomreal classroom

Giving and example: ECOSYSTEMS. A general overviewGiving and example: ECOSYSTEMS. A general overview

ECOSYSTEMSECOSYSTEMSUnits

1.Introductory unit2.Interactions between living things.Food chains3.Three big ecosystems: forest, sea and desert4.Human influence in ecosystems: let’s save our planet

Always starting with a power point presentation and / or a thinking activity

• ‘Let’s think’ • KWL chart• Index • Scaffolding: 1 and 2 + many others

• ICT (an on-line song) + activity

– Blog– Google docs

• Word chart (keeping a record of new words)• Mind maps• Self assessment/peer assessment• CONTENT/COMMUNICATION/COGNITION/CULTURE

MAIN TIPS AND ACTIVITIESMAIN TIPS AND ACTIVITIES(trying to meet CLIL)(trying to meet CLIL)

Exemples d’scaffolding a l’aula

Exemples d’scaffolding a l’aula

Need to scaffold learning

The need of scaffolding is essential for CLIL, because CLIL aims to guide language processing and support language production in the same way as ELT by teaching strategies for reading and listening and structures and lexis for spoken or written language.

Need to provide the students with:

How?

SCAFFOLDING• Building on a student's existing knowledge,

skills, attitudes, interests and experience• Repackaging information in user-friendly ways • Responding to different learning styles • Fostering creative and critical thinking • Challenging students to take another step

forward and not just coast in comfort

Using language-CLIL MATRIX (Do Coyle)

High cognitive

3 4

Low HighLinguistic Linguistic

2 1

Low cognitive

Okay, but what happens Okay, but what happens when you want to foster when you want to foster

this CLIL teaching?this CLIL teaching?

A good way to face all A good way to face all these issues...CREATING A these issues...CREATING A

BLOG!BLOG!

HOW DO YOU DEFINE

A BLOG?

• As Pere Marques mentions, a blog is:

This is how we define our BLOG:This is how we define our BLOG:The main idea it is that this on-line resource that we use in our school, it is just a The main idea it is that this on-line resource that we use in our school, it is just a simple and easy web blog that tries to improve our learners' level of motivation and simple and easy web blog that tries to improve our learners' level of motivation and tries to foster their level of competence when learning a subject through a foreign tries to foster their level of competence when learning a subject through a foreign language (project CLIL we are carrying on in our school).language (project CLIL we are carrying on in our school).

This blog is intended to help our students when they are learning Science through This blog is intended to help our students when they are learning Science through English, so they have resources, materials and further explanations of what we have English, so they have resources, materials and further explanations of what we have done in class from wherever they are and whenever they want.done in class from wherever they are and whenever they want.

We have also added a category called "resources for teachers", where all our We have also added a category called "resources for teachers", where all our colleagues can find information, resources and news related to CLIL methodology. In colleagues can find information, resources and news related to CLIL methodology. In fact, after several months posting we have realized that this blog has become a fact, after several months posting we have realized that this blog has become a useful tool for many colleagues from other schools.useful tool for many colleagues from other schools.

We will keep on improving!We will keep on improving!

Use of the BLOGUse of the BLOG

What’s coming next? What’s coming next? (future plans)(future plans)

Every single day we work hard and we learn new things...so I guess we will improve!

CONCLUSIONCONCLUSION

• Need to reflect upon the needs of the pupils in our school. What

subjects? What units? How to approach them? How to scaffold?

• According to this, we have to take some time to think about HOW

to structure the blog (easy for your pupils!)

• CLIL seem to be a BIG challenge=big improvement

• CLIL can develop FL ability more effectively than conventional FLT

does. And, by using the blog, the students can bring what they

have done in class at home 24/7.

• Starting a Blog, means time. Updating is very important!

http://www.xtec.cat/ceip-practiques1-lleida/http://blocs.xtec.cat/clilpractiques1/

http://blocs.xtec.cat/http://phobos.xtec.cat/tic-lle/

http://blocs.xtec.cat/index.php?a=newhttp://www.google.com/google-d-s/intl/es/

tour1.html