30/11/2018

1

CLIL in France

Morning discussion

Universidad Catolica, Murcia March 16 2018Alice Henderson alice.henderson@univ-smb.fr

Université Savoie-Mont Blanc, Chambéry, France

Dates to remember

� March 20 : Journée internationale de la francophonie

� May 14-18: Semaine Nationale des Langues

� USMB

2

30/11/2018

2

Outline

� French educational system

� Brief history of bilingual education in France

� Issues re foreign languages & Reform of 2016

� How can we interact, help & measure success?

� Myths & realities of language learning

� A positive conclusion

English in/and France

Stakeholders

Key issues

Future3

French educational system

4

17 régions académiques 30 académies 26 in France + 4 overseas

30/11/2018

3

French educational system

Secondary School

15-18 yrs old Lycée (3 years)

11-14 yrs Collège (4 years)

Primary School

6-10 yrs Ecole élémentaire (5 years)

3-5 yrs Ecole Maternelle (3 years)

Teachers

• civil servants

• NSs & NNSs (*1990s non-Europeans can take exams)

• Follow a nationally set curriculum5

History of bilingual ed in the schools

� International sections (started in 1881)

� « foster high level of mastery by French pupils of

a foreign language »

� secondary AND primary school

� French AND foreign pupils AND teachers

� Pupils take the International Option of the

Baccalauréat

� Therefore, curriculum set up via collaboration

with other countries (Germany, Spain, Britain)

� 50% in each language for history-geography +

others6

30/11/2018

4

History of bilingual ed in the schools

� European sections (started in 1992)

� « proposer un enseignement ouvert sur un pays

étranger »

� « reinforced » teaching of a FL in collège

� lycée level: DNL subjects can be taught in a FL,

usually history-geography, life sciences, maths,

sometime sport)

� Pupils can obtain the « Euro mention » on their

Bac

7

Issues re foreign languages (LVEs)

� How much & when?

� Who & for whom?

� NSs teachers?

� For all pupils?

� Which languages?

8

30/11/2018

5

2016 Reform of collèges (lower secondary, age 11-14)

� Initiation to an LVE obligatory in primary school

� Bring in more NSs

� Maintain 4h/wk in 6ème/age 11

� 2nd LVE as of 5ème/age 12 = Minister’s « attachment »

to making LVEs accessible to all, 2.5hrs/wk

� Before 2016: all kids can choose to do « more », via

extra hours or European & bilingual « sections »

9

2016 Reform of collèges (lower secondary, age 11-14)

� Initiation to an LVE obligatory in primary school

� Bring in more NSs

� Maintain 4h/wk in 6ème/age 11

� 2nd LVE as of 5ème/age 12 = Minister’s « attachment » to

making LVE accessible to all, 2.5hrs/wk

� Before 2016: all kids can choose to do « more », via extra

hours or European & bilingual « sections »

� « rare » languages: probably by CNED

� Académie de Grenoble

� 2014 = 282 bilingual sections authorised

� 2016 = 106, « too elitist », move money to LV2 before collège

10

30/11/2018

6

Recurring, underlying principle: equality

Rare or less-frequently taught languages:

Pour favoriser la mutualisation de l'offre de formation et

… dans un souci de mixité sociale, le Cned proposera à

titre expérimental, dans quelques académies, un dispositif

de formation hybride (en présence et à distance), sur

des langues rares ou peu enseignées, à la rentrée scolaire.

Une palette de langues sera proposée au fur et à mesure

du déploiement de ce dispositif, qui a pour premier objectif

d'offrir à tous les élèves un égal accès aux langues

vivantes et d'éviter des stratégies qui entravent la mixité

scolaire

11

How can we interact, help &

measure success?

12

30/11/2018

7

Questions for the CLIL classroom ….

� Who are the key actors involved?

� Pupils

� Language teacher

� Subject teacher

� How do they interact?

� How can they help each other?

� How can we measure the « success » of the

interactions?

13

How to help subject teachers? : ADEB

� Association pour le Développement de

l’Enseignement Bilingue

� 2011 booklet for DNL teachers: Statuts, functions,

pedagogical practices

14

30/11/2018

8

15

FAQs from DNL teachers

16

30/11/2018

9

Qs re student’s language level

17

Mythes & réalités de l’apprentissage des langues (Roussel & Gaonac’h 2017)

• It’s best to learn another language as young as possible.

• Languages: you’re either gifted or not.

• The French are terrible at languages.

• With digital technologies, we learn languages better and in an innovative way.

• Watching films & TV series without subtitles or dubbing is the best way to learn a language.

• Watching films & TV series with French subtitles is the best way to learn a language.

• A stay abroad is the best way to learn another language.

• We kill 2 birds with 1 stone when we teach subjects in another language.

• Neurosciences: A pedagogical revolution in language learning.

30/11/2018

10

Myths & Réalités: L’apprentissage des langues (Roussel & Gaonac’h 2017)

• It’s best to learn another language as young as possible.

• MUST favour oral over written

• Home-fostered bilingualism≠schoool-based language learning

• Languages: you’re either gifted or not.

• Static vs dynamic view

• KEY: learn how to learn, to adopt language learning strategies

• The French are terrible at languages.

• French monolingualism is a state-sponsored reality

• French language is no more or less different to English than Spanish

(?), cannot explain so-called “deafness” to foreign languages

• French school system is not entirely responsible

Side note: Shocking stats (2011 First European Survey

on Language Competences)

France: next to last in Europe

Only 14% of pupils attain Level B1 at end of secondary school

(in English, the most frequently chosen FL)

(*England: only 9%, for French as most freq. chosen FL)

Eurostat, « feeling » of mastery of a FL: France in last position

Myth (set of beliefs, reps.) reinforces reality,

« it’s just who we are », national identity 20

Reading Listening Writing

France 13% 14% 16%

Sweden 81% 91% 75%

Belgium *Fr 29% 24% 27%

Spain 29% 24% 27%

30/11/2018

11

Myths & Réalités: L’apprentissage des langues (Roussel & Gaonac’h 2017)

• A stay abroad is the best way to learn another

language.

• Huge individual differences

• The key is engaging in interactions once there, engaging with

“communities of practice”

• We kill 2 birds with 1 stone when we teach subjects

in another language.

• CRUCIAL to recognize the dual-tasking cognitive processes

involved & to address this aspect

• BEWARE: simplification & approximation of knowledge,

“hidden agenda” of selection

Side note: 2011 Survey, What needs to be done

First European Survey on Language Competences (https://ec.europa.eu/education/)

“Language competences still need to be significantly improved, and educational

systems must step up their efforts to prepare all pupils for further education and

the labour market.

Language policies should address the creation of language-friendly living and

learning environments inside as well as outside schools and other educational

institutions.

The Survey points out those educational systems can make a positive difference

with an early onset of foreign language learning, increase the number of

foreign languages learnt and promote methods enabling pupils and teachers to

use foreign languages for meaningful communication in lessons.

The importance of the English language as a basic skill and as a tool for

employability and professional development requires concrete actions to further

improve competences in this language.

The need to improve language skills for employability in a globalised world must

be combined with the promotion of linguistic diversity and intercultural dialogue.”

22

30/11/2018

12

Example: EVLANG « Eveil aux langues »

� 1980s, Eric Hawkins , British sociolinguist

� European project, Socrates-Lingua 1998-2000

� Quantitative study of an experimental curriculum in

150 classrooms around Europe

� Evaluate 4 areas of acquisition

� deconstruction & reconstruction tasks with written texts

� FL memorisation & auditory discrimination tasks

� Openness towards linguistic & cultural diversity

� Motivation to learn FLs

23

Example EVLANG « Eveil aux langues »

� Goals of an EVLANG approach

� favour positive attitudes to languages

� develop metalinguistic abilities

� recognize and value the home languages of

pupils from minority language groups

� facilitate learning the language of the school

24

30/11/2018

13

A Positive Conclusion?

� Journées de la Francophonie

� http://20mars.francophonie.org/

25

Eva Joly

26

30/11/2018

14

THANK YOU / GRACIAS / MERCI

27