Task 2: Teaching different languages in Saint George School

Hi bookworms!

Today, I am going to show you what have been my observations after having analysed the linguistic context of the academy where I work. These observations have been done in a chart format so that it could be appreciated the differences between the different teachers’ methodology.

First of all, I should mention that more or less 40% of students are sons or daughters of immigrants from South American, China or Morocco; the other 60% are Spanish. However, it is not a problem for learning English because all these children are totally integrated in Catalan schools; therefore, students speak either Spanish or Catalan without difficulties.

Teachers	Group-age	Group Level	Language in use	Materials	Plurilingual strategies
1	1st  -  4th E.S.O.	English reinforcement	30% English 70% Spanish	-Book + CD -Photocopies made by the teacher	-Translations -Translanguaging - Preview view review
Observations	All grammar explanations are made in Spanish, but exercises are expected to do in English (preview view review). The communication students-teacher is a mix of English and Spanish or Catalan. Heteroglossic pedagogy: Both teacher and students understand each other either use English or Spanish/Catalan to explain formal aspect of English language (structures).
2	4th E.S.O. – 1st “bachillerato”	PET Pre-FIRST	100% English Just Spanish for translations or jokes	-Book + CD -Photocopies made by the teacher -Films and songs in English	-Translations
Observations	Monoglossic pedagogy: this teacher uses a communicative approach, which is positive for students’ learning. However, she does not let pupils speak in Spanish nor Catalan. Therefore, she considers English teaching must be separated from other languages.
3	“bachillerato” and university students	FIRST CAE	100% English	-Book + CD -Digital board (oral activities, examples) -Songs	- Translations - Paraphrasing - Transfer knowledge strategies.
Observations	Heteroglossic pedagogy: If students make a mistake, she let them express their ideas without correcting; she only corrects them if it is a huge mistake. The teacher also allows students to express difficult ideas in Spanish or Catalan and motivates them to look for strategies to express these complex ideas in English. Sometimes, students speak among them in Spanish, Catalan and English at the same time. There is no difficulties to change from one language to another. Nevertheless, the teacher only uses English or a little bit of Spanish to make some translations.
4	1st -  3rd Primary	Flyers Beginners	50% Spanish 50% English	-Book +CD -Interactive activities on computers -Songs, films -Oral presentations -Cultural activities	-Translations -Preview view review
Observations	Monoglossic pedagogy: All activities done in class are bounded to learn vocabulary, basic grammar structures and promote oral communication. The teacher focuses more on pronunciation and fluency than communication in class. As teacher 1, some explanations are done in Spanish or Catalan, but exercises and other activities in English.
5	4th-6th Primary 1st and 2nd E.S.O.	PET Pre-First	90% English 10% Spanish	-Book + CD -Interactive activities on computers, -Songs, films -Oral presentations -Cultural activities	-Translations -Paraphrasing -Guessing games -Mimics
Observations	Monoglossic pedagogy: The teacher try to use just English for communicating ideas to students. Her objective is promoting communication spaces in class. That’s why, she puts into practice strategies where she has not to use so much Spanish or Catalan languages.
6	2nd “bachillerato”, university students and adults	CAE PROFICIENCY	100% English Native teacher from U.S.A.	-Book + CD -Computer activities -Speaking dynamics	-Paraphrasing -Mimics -Students translations (dictionaries) -Translanguaging
Observations	Heteroglossic pedagogy: He teaches in a meaningful and communicative way. All the class is in English, so students may make an extra effort to adjust their minds to a real English context (the teacher does not speak Spanish nor Catalan). There are a lot of plurilingual strategies in these classes. The teacher only corrects huge mistakes that can make difficult communication; other mistakes such as pronunciation ones are corrected just in specific cases. I must highlight that this teacher allows students to communicate in their L1 or L2 and sometimes he tries to be integrated in pupils’ conversations in order to learn some Spanish/Catalan expressions or words. Therefore, students help one each other in Spanish/Catalan, but often they start solving their doubts in English without noticing it. The teacher usually ask pupils to translate their conclusions or conversations to English, but it is important to state that there is no languages prohibitions.

As I could observe, there is a mix of monoglossic and heteroglossic pedagogies, since each teacher has different conceptions about teaching English. Generally talking, Saint George School academy aims to prepare their students to take Cambridge official exams. That’s why, the majority of teachers are expected to use formal approaches in order to teach English. However, teachers try to introduce communication approaches and other activities that motivate pupils to learn English in a meaningful way. For example, some teachers plan classes where students watch a film and then discuss some aspects of it; I consider that this is a good task for implementing English without following formal book activities.

 However, what it is really important is how it is treated plurilingualism in class. Teachers who follows a monoglossic pedagogy try to use just English because they feel that the best way to achieve a good command of language is being immersed in it. Teacher feel that speaking in Spanish/Catalan is not a good strategy to introduce some formal concepts (as teacher 1 does). In my case, I understand such feeling of guiltiness when I use Spanish for translating or explaining a formal aspect to children. However, some researches state that “bilingualism has a great positive influence in third language acquisition” (Cenoz & Genesee, 1998).  Actually, these benefits comes from “linguistic interdependence, the major metalinguistic awareness development and strategies of languages learning” (Cenoz, n.d.). Therefore, what is the problem to use Spanish or Catalan in class? What’s more, why shouldn’t we allow our students to speak their L1 and L2 in class?

Some plurilingual strategies I could observe are extremely interesting. For example, teacher number 6 comes from U.S.A. (Los Ángeles, California), so he does know a little bit of Spanish and Catalan. His classes are absolutely plurilingual which is positive for developing lots of strategies. Students speak Spanish/Catalan and even English among them for making clear some formal aspects of grammar or vocabulary; there is no languages prohibitions, so communication is essential in this class, independently the language you use. 

The unique rule this teacher sets is trying to communicate ideas in English; it doesn’t matter how long you take to build your ideas in your brain, the objective is learning to set connexions. In fact, I have evidences of adults that had a rusty English and they have improved a lot their communication skills in just 6 months by following such approach. For instance, in my case, I was enrolled in a 4 months intensive course with this teacher because I wanted to pass my Advanced Exam. Not only I got my Advanced Certificate in English, but I also improved a lot my English communication skills.

In case of translanguaging strategies, I think they are positive for students so that they can set links between their L1/L2 and English in an easier way. However, the objective of learning a language is communication. That’s why, I consider that formal aspects sometimes should be integrated as a part of oral communication activities in class, as it is the case of teacher number 6. Yet, we must take into account that this teacher is English native speaker and students are who solve their doubts among them by using Catalan/Spanish.

In conclusion, Saint George School academy mixes heteroglossic and monoglossic pedagogies, but I have evidences explained above that heteroglossic pedagogy works better. On the one hand, children set links between their L1/L2 knowledge and English (L3). On the other hand, they feel comfortable and don’t doubt to express themselves either English or Catalan/Spanish.

I also must highlight that Saint George School academy offers language exchanges for adults and cultural activities during the course for kids. In fact, there is offered a summer camp in July and August for children and teenagers where they can practice their English through communicative activities. In these cases, we can observe an heteroglossic pedagogy, since during all summer camp children communicate among them in Spanish or Catalan (it is unavoidable) and English in specific activities done with teacher’s control and guidance.

 More information about Saint George School: http://stgeorgeschool.es/

Potovsky's video: "No child left monolingual"

Hi bookworms! 

Today I am going to talk about some bilingual programs that are applied in some countries such as United Stated. The objetive is comparing such ones with those Spanish educational programs targeted to immigrant children. 

Here you are the video on which I based my arguments: 

Potovsky begins her discourse through an outstanding statement: “65% people over the world are bilingual or multilingual”. Contradictorily to such statement, little countries or education programs promote bilingualism or multilingualism. United States is a clear example of transitional programs for immigrant children whose goals are mastering the official language: English.  

As a consequence, there is language shift in immigrant families, which it is what we know as linguistic assimilation. Grandsons arrive to not communicate to their grandparents because of their heritance language loss. Immigrant children have to adjust their lives to speaking English, so this is a social issue to success in United States and other countries. Actually, some schools ask parents to not speak their L1 at home, since it is not beneficious for students learning. Really?

In Spain, something similar happens in our education. “Aules d’acollida” are a type of transitional programs for immigrant children. The difference with some United States programs is that such “aules d’acollida” don’t allow students to use their L1, so they are totally introduced into a Catalan or Spanish learning environment. Another difference is the fact these immigrant pupils are separated from the rest of classmates until they master Catalan or Spanish language. Therefore, all their social backgrounds and cultures are not integrated in class.

Why do Spanish “aules d’acollida” separate immigrant children from other classmates? I consider that the best way to learn a new language or to integrate a new culture is socialising within their context. What’s more, as I mentioned before, these pupils are not allowed to use their L1 in class, neither with their own classmates; they are expected to speak Catalan or Spanish. In such case, we can compare to some United States schools that ask parents not to speak their L1 at home, so these students are like in a cage; they cannot express their feelings nor their ideas even using Catalan mixed with their L1. 

In both cases, Spain and United States educational programs are targeted to be “monoglossic/bilingual pedagogies that treat each of the child’s languages as separate and whole, and view the two languages as bounded autonomous systems” (García, 2009). There is an educational program in U.S.A. that differs from others: two-way immersion program.

As we may know, in United States we have English-only educational programs; bilingual education programs (25% Spanish and 75% English are taught); and two-way immersion programs. This last one starts teaching by using children’s L1 and introduce English or Spanish progressively. In fact, this educational program compensates languages differences, since pupils learn better English language and their backgrounds and cultures are respected. Why cannot Spanish “aules d’acollida” apply such approach? I consider that it is the better to integrate our immigrants in class. However, we need people who know children’s L1.

Why can’t school hire foreign people that know Spanish/Catalan and other languages at the same time such as Moroccan or Chinese? “There is the native teacher and need to exclude mother tongue from foreign language class” (Noguerol, 2008). If we want integrated children, we may integrate foreign teachers, too.

Potovsky promotes linguistic appreciation, so heritance language maintenance. Specifically, she talks about looking for resources to practice such minority languages, so that parents don’t allow their children lose heritance language. Personally, I would go beyond this: why cannot we introduce minority languages at schools? I mean we can promote activities that integrate immigrant pupils or just let them participate in class. We must avoid the “static conception of language that contrasts with a plural and diverse reality of their social usages” (Noguerol, 2008).

In short, as Potovsky says bilingualism has a lot of cognitive benefits regarding setting links between languages; solving problems and, of course, advantages for our neurological health. Switch from one language to another is how really our brains work, even mixing 2 languages in a sentence. So, is it worth avoiding to use just one language in class? Is it worth putting our immigrant classmates apart, in other classes? 

30 minuts video: "Do you speak English?"

Today, I will reflect on 30 minuts program titled "Do you speak English?"

If you prefer watching the video before reading my reflection, you will find it below: 

Do you speak English? 

It is well-known that, historically, Spain has been influenced by Franco’s dictatorship besides some Spanish people’s illiteracy. Despite we got through this historical fact, Spain is not promoting strategies to improve our linguistic knowledge in English and other languages.

I totally agree with Portugal strategies: films, series and TV programmes are watched in their original versions. Actually, Spain also offers the possibility of watching films in original version if we program our channels to do that. However, people don’t take advantage of it. For example, when I am alone at home, I tend to watch foreign channels such as BBC or CNN in order to improve my listening skills in English. Nevertheless, my parents don’t hesitate to turn over the channel when I go to the toilet. They don’t like English! Perhaps because they don’t understand it, but they don’t even make an effort to learn it! Most parents don’t consider important learning English or other languages; their language identity is so strong that they think another language will make them lose such “attachment”.

In "30 minuts" video, Camilo Terrazón (President of Catalonia Cinema entrepreneurs) states that Catalan translations in films are “the most natural way of watching them”. I understand his concerning, since Catalan is a minority language and he may feel original versions like a threat for his language identity. Yet, Spain must go on and try to foster English in Education without leaving behind other minority languages. Indeed, a heteroglossic ideology of bilingualism or even plurilingualism it is for me the best option to keep all local languages at the same time students develop English communicative skills. Languages should be linked one to each other, not separated as teachers have been teaching them (García, 2009). However, how can teachers achieve that without society help? 

When it comes to the well-known statement “the sooner, the better”, I agree with all what we discussed last session in class: we don’t have enough capacities when we are babies to learn meaningfully a new language apart from our mother tongue. In my case, I didn’t enrol an academy until I needed it, when I was 16 years old. I started to learn English at Primary school, but I didn’t have to put my English communication skills into practice until my last Secondary course. Here it was when I felt I needed improve my English meaningfully as an extracurricular activity.  The grammar was not a problem for me, since I knew perfectly all English rules. Yet, I had to improve my pronunciation, widen my vocabulary and develop my fluency. It took me 6 years to achieve an advanced level.

There are families with little economic resources that cannot pay extracurricular English activities or summer camps to their kids. Moreover, pupils don’t have enough chances to practice English in class because of many reasons: teachers’ lack of English competences, a great number of students per class and so on. What I propose is looking for strategies. In my case, I haven’t any chance of travelling or living abroad. But, I found other ways of improving my English skills. For instance, I have a Scottish penfriend, I watch all films and series in English with subtitles, and twice a week I do language exchanges with an American teacher. Therefore, a great idea for schools, it could be fostering language exchanges by email, letter or Skype with other schools from UK or USA.

In short, I consider that teacher are not just the responsible for the lack of students' English proficiency, but it is also society. Indeed, schools are a reflect of it, so if Spanish population don't agree in promoting other languages at home, through TV programmes, and others resources at schools, teachers and learners will not be able to do anything else. In any way, teachers must go on learning and improving their English skills and teaching language strategies in class. If we have qualified teacher for education in multilingualism contexts, we will have competent and respectful students towards languages and cultures.

Task 1: Multilingualism and Plurilingualism in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat

Hello bookworms!

Today I will show my research on multilingualism in Hospitalet de Llobregat, the city where I live. It has 253.518 inhabitants; 47,94% of them were born in Catalonia, 24,96% come from other Autonomous Comunities and 27,10% left are from other countries (INE, 2014).

According to Idescat population registers (2015), there are people from more than 50 different nationalities living here. However, Bolivians (12.84%), Moroccans (11.85%), Ecuadorians (10.42%), Pakistanis (7.89%),  Dominicans (7.29%), Hindus (5.68%), Peruvians (5.03%) and Chinese (4.72%) are the most common nationalities we can find in Hospitalet de Llobregat. Therefore, the most spoken languages in this area are Spanish, Moroccan, Hindu, Pakistani and Chinese.

The majority of immigrants are between 25 and 40 years old, which makes me think that job is the main reason why they move to Catalonia, Spain. Moreover, there are just 7,29% of kids that immigrate with their parents (Idescat, 2015).  Therefore, those people who move to Hospitalet are likely to give birth their sons or daughters here, which means that these children are going to have Spanish nationality.

L'Hospitalet de Llobregat areas

I must highlight that I specifically live in Pubilla Cases, one of the six areas of Hospitalet de Llobregat. Statistically talking, Pubilla Cases is one of the most multilingual areas of Hospitalet, so 22.11% of its total population is immigrant (Idescat, 2015). However, I couldn’t find where this foreign population is from, which complicate my research on multilingualism.

I have also analysed what is the level of proficiency of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat inhabitants in Catalan. According to Idescat (2011), in Pubilla Cases, there are 38.856 inhabitants; 8.591 are foreigners and 85% of them understand Catalan. So, Catalan is not a social issue for immigrants.

In 2011, Hospitalet de Llobregat council promoted an Environmental Education Plan to foster social integration, coexistence and use of Catalan language (Servei Educatiu de la Ciutat de L’hospitalet de Llobregat, n.d.). To achieve these objectives, the council organised free workshops in order to practice Catalan; it also offered Catalan courses for Adults and other activities related to promoting Catalan. The council thought that Catalan language was the way to work social integration and coexistence in the different Hospitalet de Llobregat areas. Nevertheless, this Action Plan for integration finished two years ago. Thefore, we currently don’t have enough activities or workshops that enhance multilingualism.

MY PERSONAL REFLECTION:

As I could observe, there are a lot of plurilingualism in Hospitalet de Llobregat. What’s more, the vast majority of foreign people are totally integrated culturally and linguistically talking. However, there are not  enough social activities which promote other cultures and languages knowledge. That’s true social integration is widely fostered in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, but not plurilingualism.

If I could do something, my suggestion would be related to what European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages aims to: “to protect and promote regional or minority languages from a cultural perspective, emphasizing culture” (Baetens, 2009). As it is argued in Hugo Baetens' article (2009), I don’t expect to change Education System, but to foster plurilingualism in Education.

Plurilingualism

For instance, it would be interesting to offer to pupils intercultural workshops where they can learn about other languages and cultures. These workshops could be organised as extracurricular activities where both parents and children could participate. Actually, immigrants (parents and children) would plan all the activities with teachers’ help. Cooking workshops, language exchanges, cultural games are examples of activities that could be carried out. However, some parents are not available for doing such activities. Therefore, an alternative would be introduce this kind of multicultural workshops in class as a part of a school project.

Personally, I consider that there is no need of implementing vocabulary, customs and other cultural aspect of a language as a part of a project (despite it would be interesting). Plurilingualism should be a part of the class, I mean the teacher should take into account those children who have different nationalities in class; for example, when it appears an outstanding chance to know more about other cultures, there mustn’t be doubts about what to do: go for it! Make Chinese or Pakistani students explain some aspects of their culture. Indeed, Christmas and Easter are festivities that most schools take advantage of to implement plurilingualism in class.

A recent Eurodyce study reveals that “8 percent of schoolgoers aged 15 claim to speak a language other than the language of instruction at home” (Baetens, 2009). What’s more, English is the favoured as the first foreign language at schools, which makes difficult to learn other languages, above all, minority languages. So, if students are interested in learning other languages apart from English, why don’t schools offer to pupils more options?

In secondary schools, most students are offered a second foreign language to study (usually just French). However, what I would propose would be introducing a wide variety of minority languages so that pupils can choose. This alternative would enhance immigrants integration, so most teachers of languages such as Pakistani, Chinese or Moroccan would be from different countries. In other words, we may kill two birds with one stone: children are introduced to new languages and cultures as a part of their education; and most immigrants have the opportunity of teaching their own language and culture at schools.

Arabic courses in Hospitalet de Llobregat

In case that schools could not offer minority languages to their students, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat council could provide free languages courses of Chinese, Moroccan or Pakistani. Indeed, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat council is alrealdy promoting Arabic courses for kids and adults; they are totally free. It also offers Spanish and Catalan courses for those people who want to improve their level of proficiency. You can find more information here:

http://dinamitzaciolocallh.cat/detallAgenda_2.aspx?2uPbmywUMzaaHj3gtHEZkHtGHqazCvtrcIQ5jpUJoEnddRoqazB