Content and Language Integrated Learning is an interesting way of learning a language. The meaning of CLIL is to teach a normal subject or topic in a foreign language. By doing this the focus is on the subject/content. We watched a clip from a CLIL lesson where Social Science was taught in English. The pupils got an assignment and before they started they made a word list on the blackboard with important keywords on the topic. By doing that they all got a vocabulary helper and also different cues to use when discussing and working with the topic. They were then divided into different groups. While working in the groups they were supposed to speak in English, but if they felt they could express themselves better in Norwegian they were allowed to do so. The teacher walked around to the different groups but she never corrected their language. This was a Social Science lesson and not an English lesson, so correcting their language wouldn't be right. The pupils will develop automatically and often correct their own mistakes (Krashen's thoughts of the monitor.)
When you look at Krashen's theory you can see that CLIL expresses a lot of his thoughts about language learning.
One of Krashen's main points is that language is acquired, that it's a subconscious process. When they had a Social Science lesson in English the focus was on the subject/content and not the language. When the pupils understand the meaning, language is acquired subconsciously. They don't think of the language itself, but by using it to express themselves on a topic they develop their English without even knowing. It's important that the topic discussed is comprehensible, that the pupils have knowledge about it. Krashen calls it Comprehensible Input. The comprehensible input must be in the zone of what you can do independently and what you can reach with help from others. Then language will be acquired automatically. When the pupils were put in groups they were able to help each other.
I think CLIL is a good way of learning a language. You certainly make the different subjects more fun! I think I would have liked having for example Social Science or History taught in English and I think I would have improved my English skills by doing so.
Check out these sites!!
CLIL seems to be a big word these last few years. Are there many schools in Norway incorporating this in their classes? In general, the Scandinavians are excellent in English anyway, so I doubt they'd have many problems.
SvarSlettFeel free to use any of the the material here: http://acliltoclimb.blogspot.com
Regards,
Chiew
Hi Chiew!
SvarSlettHow nice of you to drop in on my blog!:)
CLIL is getting more common in Norwegian schools,especially in High Schools. There are twelve High Schools that offers CLIL in Norway and two of them are actually in my home town. Other schools may have projects involving CLIL.
Many Scandinavians are good in english and I think one of the reasons for that is that people think it's fun. CLIL can therefore be a very successful teaching method in Norwegian schools. There has also been attempts to teach in other languages like German and French.
Thanks for the link, your site looks really good and I will certainly check it out!
Synnøve
Hello from the Netherlands,
SvarSlettI came across your blog post because I've got a Google Alert on all things CLIL (a tip for you by the way). CLIL is great and growing really well in NL. By now there are also a lot of resources on the web by the way.
Another tip for you is to look into the European training database and look for a CLIL course where you learn with other Europeans all about CLIL. I've just returned from one, see my blog about that.
Don't let my disappointing experience hold you back, there's a lot to say in favour of taking such a course with other European nationalities. Don't forget to apply for a grant at your National Agency.