Enrique Arias Castaño

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Bilingualism

Definition

Maximalist Minimalist Functional

The almost native control of two languages Bloomfield, 1935

To have linguistic abilities even in a minimal way Macnamara, 1969

To use 2 or more languages in daily life, over regular bases

Grossjean, 1982

“Bilingualism as a countenance”

(Hornberger 1989)

Intensification Bilingual • Subject (English)

• 10 Hours• Language as an aim

• Foreign language teachers

• “Trained teachers”

• Curriculum is articulated through the 2 languages (content – language)

• Language as a “resource”

• Content is a way to acquire the language

• Bilingual subjects – Specialists

• “no trained teachers”

- Bilingualism as a social phenomenon- Societal bilingualism- Bilingualism as an element of cross cultural

communication or conflict

BilingualityBilinguality-Bilingualism as an individual phenomenon-Individual bilingualism-Effects of bilingualism on mental processes

BilingualismBilingualism

Interdisciplinary nature of bilingualismLanguages in contactCommon occurence of bilingualismDomains of language useDiglossiaLanguage shift

• More than the sum of two monolinguals (Grosjean, 1985)

• Degree of bilingualism• Language as a tool of cognitive

functioning• Influence of feedback mechanisms• Codeswitching in bilingual

development development

Definitions based on levels of proficiency(maximal and minimal)-balanced bilinguals-semilinguals

Definitions based on use (functional)-conversational fluency (BICS)-academic language competence (CALP)

What conclusions can we come to about the nature of bilingualism in general, and as related to the Colombian context in particular?

Total immersion program

% of Lge

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

50 50 50

grade

pre

1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th

11th

Bilingual process

Partial immersion program

% of Lge

75 75 75 75 75 75 50 50 50 50 50 50

grade

pre 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th

11th

Bilingual process

Preview (first language)

View(second or target language)

Review(first or second or foreign language)

Preview-Review Methodology

1 Teacher does not repeat in the otherlanguage what has been taught in the first phase of the class

2 `Bilingual` methodology but no codeswitching Principle of language separation

3 Flexibility of different stages

Objective of Cali Research Project (Marulanda, 1995)

To compare the level of acquisition of mathematical concepts, using two instructional strategies: the traditional method (all in English) and the `Preview-Review` methodology

Advantages and disadvantages of ´Preview-

Review´

Advantages

Parents more involved in children´s learning of Maths

Students understood mathematical concepts more easily

“A mi me favoreció porque primero lo hicimos en español. Eso me dio una idea de lo que íbamos a hacer en inglés

“porque con el español ya tenía más alternativas para comprender el inglés”

Review-Review had helped most students understand the new concepts presented

Results of Maths evaluations for Preview-

Review group were higher than for control group

Evidence that Maths class was more motivating

Conclusions from study

Stage 1Establishing the problem and bibliographical

consultation (English teacher)

Stage 2Establishing knowledge and personal conclusions

(Science teacher)

Stage 3Formulation of hypotheses and experimental design

(Science teacher)

Stage 4Report of conclusions (English teacher)

Team Teaching Methodology

Language and academic or conceptual development are seen as parallel processes

No danger of one being subordinated to the other (different teachers)

Possibility of harmonious integration

Teachers need time and space to plan and develop curriculum appropriately

Teachers need to be open and tolerant towards different teaching styles and able to work together.

Advantages and requirements of Team Teaching

Selection of appropriate content matter

Adjustment of language demands in evaluation of content knowledge

Modification of scoring criteria

Informed expectations about rate of acquisition of measurable language gains in specific skill areas

Team teaching and evaluation

Preview-Review and Team Teaching as methodological alternatives to current consensus on dividing the curriculum into the use of English and Spanish

Inclusion of different modules in different languages in certain subject areas

Implications