231159 Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) (alternative to Teaching Specific Domains) (S) (WiSe 2013/2014)

Course objectives:

A combination of theory and practice should enable you to: (1) engage in meaningful discourse about bilingual education and CLIL, (2) make critical and educated decisions about how to appropriately integrate language learning objectives with content objectives, and (3) put theoretical knowledge about CLIL into practice.

Course description:

To begin the semester, this course will provide an overview of bilingual education in America, Canada, and Germany, introducing historical backgrounds and theoretical underpinnings of teaching content matter in a foreign language in these contexts. We will consider, in particular, the development and evaluation of different bilingual education models, paying specific attention to the European model of bilingual education called Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). Notions of CLIL and questions about how it can be implemented in diverse contexts inside and outside of Europe will be debated. Following this introduction, considerations about how language and content teaching can be effectively integrated will be discussed. Based on these ideas, we will collect thoughts about criteria for good CLIL lessons and possible observation possibilities for CLIL lessons. In the middle of the semester, we will transform theoretical ideas of content and language integrated learning into practice by looking at models from a CLIL curriculum design. This knowledge will help us create a comprehensive lesson CLIL lesson plan and target group appropriate materials and tasks. In particular, we will focus on speaking and writing tasks that can be helpful for the integration of content and language, fulfilling one of CLIL’s main goals, that is, a dual focus on language and content. Finally, we will deliberate about the topic of assessment in CLIL, as the topic is complex and the body of research in this area is still incomplete. In addition to our regular course activity, this course cooperates with Gymnasium Heepen in Bielefeld. In this cooperation, students have the opportunity to put their theoretical knowledge acquired in this course into practice. In other words, you have the possibility to be personally mentored by a teacher, and teach a lesson in their class. Details of this cooperation can be read in the following sections. In sum, by the end of this course, you will have read and discussed literature about bilingual education, interacted with teachers and learners in bilingual programs, as well as observed or taught a bilingual lesson, and should, therefore, possess an overall good understanding of the theory and practice of CLIL.

Requirements for participation, required level

It is recommended that students have completed the course (Introduction to) Second Language Acquisition from BM3.

Bibliography

There is a reader for this course (€8.50) which should be purchased by Week 3 at the latest (Frau Peschke in C4-225. Office hours: Mon., Wed., Thurs., and Fri. from 08:45-10:30 and 11:30-12:30). There is also additional material on the reserved reading shelf in FB15.