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Home > ECML-Programme > Programme 2020-2023 > CLIL in languages other than English > Collaboration

CLIL in languages other than English –
Successful transitions across educational stages

Overview

Concepts and
background

Portfolio and formative assessment

Collaboration between students, teachers and institutions at different educational levels

Collaboration to support transitions between different educational levels can vary in terms of duration, goals and participants. This section presents some examples of collaboration in support of transitions to give ideas and inspiration for collaboration between learners in classrooms (nano level), classes/groups/teachers (micro level) and institutions (meso level). Collaboration is also possible at the macro and supra level, but these levels are not covered here.

Collaboration and CLIL LOTE transitions

Why should transitions in CLIL LOTE be supported through collaboration between students, teachers and/or institutions at different educational levels – what is the added value?

Collaboration supports the continuity of educational pathways and smoother discontinuity in transitions between different educational levels. Collaboration supports professionals working in this area and this mutual support can be extremely important because CLIL LOTE contexts may be in weaker position than CLIL English-programs. There may, for example, be unfavourable organizational factors, such as lack of time, geographical distance between primary and secondary schools, a lack of professionally prepared staff or reduced support at one of the schools involved, either from staff or parents. Collaboration is needed in terms of pedagogical and methodological transitions, to ensure appropriate linguistic support and the need to cope with new curricular requirements. From a student perspective, Chambers (2020, p. 80) Gary N. Chambers (2020).
What Pupils Say about Transition (KS2–3) and What This Might Mean for CLIL. In: K. Bower et al. Curriculum Integrated Language Teaching. CLIL in Practice. Cambridge University Press, p. 63-92. emphasizes: ‘If a smoother, more informed transition is to be experienced by pupils, communication and collaboration between primary and secondary schools are the key.” In order to make the necessary discontinuity an opportunity for development, it is crucial to invest in collaboration between a range of different stakeholders.

This section explores the added value of different forms of collaboration to ensure continuity within CLIL LOTE programs and to map the challenges that students identify as affecting their CLIL LOTE transitions.

CLIL LOTE study

The CLIL LOTE study has shown that:

Collaboration between students, teachers and/or institutions from different educational levels are considered essential by approximately 35% of the survey respondents to support CLIL LOTE transitions.
The lack of collaboration is seen as one of the challenges in implementing transitions in CLIL LOTE.
The survey respondents assume that collaboration mainly exist at the institutional level and suggest to also strengthen collaboration between teachers and between students to support CLIL LOTE transitions.

Resources

Are you a teacher or a leader at an institution – and do you want to gather ideas for how to support transitions in CLIL LOTE? On this page you can find two main resources:

Examples of collaboration

The following examples serve as a starting point for collaboration to support transitions and can be modified and adapted to different educational contexts and goals.

Collaboration between learners as agents (nano level)

Learners from different educational levels work together, for example:

Secondary school students create a story presenting, e.g., forest animals and they plan a teaching activity for
(pre-)primary pupils.
Upper secondary school students create a CLIL teaching activity for lower secondary school students and carry out this activity in a concrete lower secondary classroom with the help of their teachers.
Primary students prepare questions to secondary school students about their CLIL experiences in secondary education. University students prepare CLIL orientation activities for new students.
Pupils from different educational levels (e.g. pupils from secondary, primary and pre-primary) are given the opportunity to work together to write and rehearse a multilingual play that is performed together at the festival for the European Day of Languages.

Collaboration between classes/groups/teachers (micro level)

Two classes (teachers and pupils) carry out collaborative work: one class of the final year of primary and the other class of the first year of secondary. The aim is to facilitate continuity and smooth CLIL transitions.
Primary pupils participate from time to time or on special occasions in secondary CLIL school lessons.
Pupils from different educational levels work together with the same CLIL project planned and taught together by teachers from both levels.
Classes in the same educational path have every year a few events (e.g. a sport competition, spring festival, charity event or multilingual concert/play/other cultural event) to get to know each other and to facilitate the transition from one level to another.
Teachers and researchers collaborate to develop CLIL materials to smoothen the transition for learners and to develop an understanding for how to support learners in transition.

Collaboration between institutions, e.g. schools, universities (meso level)

Heads of institutions and CLIL teachers have regular meetings

to plan the academic year in terms of transitions.
to get an understanding of the needs of different educational levels.
to plan specific activities together in support of both horizontal and vertical transitions.

Institutions have resources and a clear structure for teacher collaboration to create and share CLIL teaching materials supporting transitions.
Institutions provide possibilities to teach together and encourage co-teaching to enable the transitions between different languages and disciplines.
Teachers and heads from all/a number the schools/institutions of the educational path of pupils work together (national and/or local level)

to create a clear structure for CLIL transitions from a level to another.
to discuss the needs of all stakeholders to facilitate pupils’ CLIL transitions.

Exemples de collaboration

Les exemples suivants servent de point de départ à une collaboration visant à soutenir les transitions et peuvent être modifiés et adaptés à différents contextes et objectifs éducatifs.

Collaboration entre les apprenante·es en tant qu'agents (niveau nano)

Des apprenant·es de différents niveaux d'éducation travaillent ensemble, par exemple :

Les élèves de l'enseignement secondaire créent une histoire présentant, par exemple, les animaux de la forêt et planifient une activité pédagogique pour les élèves de l'enseignement (pré)primaire.
Les élèves de l'enseignement secondaire supérieur créent une activité d'enseignement EMILE pour les élèves de l'enseignement secondaire inférieur et réalisent cette activité dans une classe concrète de l'enseignement secondaire inférieur avec l'aide de leurs enseignant·es.
Les élèves de l'enseignement primaire préparent des questions à l'intention des élèves de l'enseignement secondaire sur leurs expériences EMILE dans l'enseignement secondaire.
Des élèves de différents niveaux d'enseignement (secondaire, primaire et pré-primaire) ont la possibilité de travailler ensemble pour écrire et répéter une pièce de théâtre multilingue qui est jouée ensemble lors du festival de la Journée européenne des langues.

Collaboration entre les classes/groupes/enseignante·es (niveau micro)

Deux classes (enseignante·es et élèves) effectuent un travail collaboratif : une classe de dernière année primaire et l'autre classe de première année secondaire. L'objectif est de faciliter la continuité et les transitions en douceur de l'EMILE.
Les élèves du primaire participent de temps en temps ou à des occasions spéciales aux cours de l'école secondaire EMILE.
Des élèves de différents niveaux d'enseignement travaillent ensemble dans le cadre d'un même projet EMILE planifié et enseigné par des enseignante·es des deux niveaux.
Les classes qui suivent le même parcours éducatif organisent chaque année quelques événements (par exemple une compétition sportive, un festival de printemps, une manifestation caritative ou un concert/une pièce de théâtre/une autre manifestation culturelle multilingue) afin de faire connaissance et de faciliter le passage d'un niveau à l'autre.
Enseignante·es et chercheur·es collaborent pour développer des supports EMILE afin de faciliter la transition des apprenant·es et de comprendre comment soutenir les apprenant·es en transition.

Collaboration entre les institutions, par exemple les écoles, les universités (niveau méso)

Les chefs d'établissement et les enseignants EMILE se réunissent régulièrement afin

de planifier l'année académique en termes de transitions.
de comprendre les besoins des différents niveaux d'éducation.
de planifier ensemble des activités spécifiques à l'appui des transitions horizontales et verticales.

Les établissements disposent de ressources et d'une structure claire pour la collaboration des enseignants en vue de créer et de partager du matériel pédagogique EMILE favorisant les transitions.
Les établissements offrent la possibilité d'enseigner ensemble et encouragent le co-enseignement pour permettre les transitions entre les différentes langues et disciplines.
Les enseignant·es et les directeur·rices de toutes les écoles/institutions du parcours éducatif des élèves travaillent ensemble (au niveau national et/ou local) pour

créer une structure claire pour les transitions de l'EMILE d'un niveau à l'autre.
discuter des besoins de toutes les parties prenantes pour faciliter les transitions des élèves vers l'EMILE

Two collaboration scenarios

This section presents two inspiring collaboration scenarios that go across all three levels (nano, micro, meso) involving diverse stakeholders. These examples can take place as Research Practice Partnerships (RPP) RPPs refer to collaborative and systematic partnerships between researchers and practitioners aimed at addressing authentic problems and improving educational practices. RPPs may bring together teachers, administrators, policymakers, and researchers to engage in an ongoing collaboration to bridge the gap between research and practice (Penuel & Gallagher, 2017).
See also the ECML-project Action research communities for language teachers.
Penuel, W. & Gallagher, D. (2017). Creating research-practice partnerships in education. Harvard Education. .

Collaboration scenario: Reconstructing transitions through students’ visualizations of CLIL experiences in primary and secondary schools

This scenario describes “transition as lived”, i.e., the way pupils perceive or reconstruct their CLIL transition, in French and Spanish.
It makes use of a draw-and-write methodology that enables pupils to compare their actual situation in CLIL with past or future experiences.
It unveils how students perceive obstacles and affordances in CLIL transitions, related to linguistic skills, methodological approaches, structural and curricular changes, and their own personal emotional and physical development.

Download pdf

Collaboration scenario: Student agency in investigating secondary education CLIL LOTE as means of softening transitions

This scenario describes how students can take agency of their own CLIL LOTE transition, by collaborating with students and teachers of the school to which they will eventually transition
It involves active student participation and critical reflection, thus preparing students still in primary education for what they will encounter when transitioning into secondary education.

Download pdf

Deux scénarios de collaboration

Cette section présente deux scénarios de collaboration inspirants qui couvrent les trois niveaux (nano, micro, méso) et impliquent diverses parties prenantes. Ces exemples peuvent prendre la forme de partenariats recherche-pratique (RPP) RPPs refer to collaborative and systematic partnerships between researchers and practitioners aimed at addressing authentic problems and improving educational practices. RPPs may bring together teachers, administrators, policymakers, and researchers to engage in an ongoing collaboration to bridge the gap between research and practice (Penuel & Gallagher, 2017).
See also the ECML-project Action research communities for language teachers.
Penuel, W. & Gallagher, D. (2017). Creating research-practice partnerships in education. Harvard Education. .

Premier scénario de collaboration : Reconstruire les transitions à travers les visualisations des étudiants sur les expériences EMILE dans les écoles primaires et secondaires.

Ce scénario décrit la « transition telle qu'elle est vécue », c'est-à-dire la manière dont les élèves perçoivent ou reconstruisent leur transition EMILE, en français et en espagnol.
Il utilise une méthodologie de dessin et d'écriture qui permet aux élèves de comparer leur situation actuelle en EMILE avec des expériences passées ou futures.
Il met en évidence la façon dont les élèves perçoivent les obstacles et les possibilités dans les transitions EMILE, liés aux compétences linguistiques, aux approches méthodologiques, aux changements structurels et curriculaires, ainsi qu'à leur propre développement émotionnel et physique.

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Deuxième scénario de collaboration : L'action des élèves dans l'enseignement secondaire EMILE LOTE comme moyen d'adoucir les transitions

Ce scénario décrit comment les élèves peuvent prendre en main leur propre transition EMILE LOTE, en collaborant avec les élèves et les enseignant·es de l'école dans laquelle ils·elles passeront éventuellement.
Il implique une participation active des élèves et une réflexion critique, préparant ainsi les élèves encore dans l'enseignement primaire à ce qu'ils·elles rencontreront lors de la transition vers l'enseignement secondaire.

Télécharger (disponible en anglais)

Quotes: Recommendation

“Those responsible for national, regional and institutional policy in all educational sectors should […] encourage and facilitate communication and collaboration between teachers of different languages and different curriculum subjects”

“When a key goal of education is to develop learners’ plurilingual and intercultural repertoires, active collaboration between teachers of different languages is a precondition for successful implementation; and collaboration between language teachers and teachers of other subjects is also essential.”

The Council of Europe’s Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)1 on the importance of plurilingual and intercultural education for democratic culture highlights the key role of collaboration.

Groupe de travail

The collaboration group which prepared the resources of this section was coordinated by Joana Duarte (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen and Universiteit van Amsterdam, Netherlands) and Sílvia Melo-Pfeifer (Universität Hamburg, Germany).

Group members: María del Mar Martín de Nicolás Moreno (Universität Heidelberg, Germany), Sylvie Hautenauve (Fédération de l’Enseignement fondamental Catholique, Segec, Belgium), Susanne Jacobsen Perez (Roskilde Universitet, Denmark), Jelena Mišković (Osnovna škola „Sveti Sava“, Serbia), Fozilet Simoni (National Directorate of Pre University Education, Albania), Sarah Thome (Universität Heidelberg, Germany) and Nastja Valentincic Al Bukhari (Šolski center Nova Gorica, Srednja ekonomska in trgovska šola, Slovenia).

CLIL in languages other than English – Successful transitions across educational stages