Investigating young Finnish CLIL pupils’ perceptions of foreign language use through visual narratives

Abstract
This article explores how pupils in early CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) education perceive language skills and use. The participants were 25 French-medium and 16 English-medium CLIL pupils in Grade 2 (aged 8 years). They had received CLIL education since the 1st Grade. The data were visual narratives drawn by the pupils and some associated open-ended questions they answered in writing. The data were analyzed using visual and content analysis. The results show that the pupils’ perceptions of language were a combination of traditional and modern views of language. The pupils compartmentalized the different languages as separate entities. They mostly saw language being used with native speakers. Technological artefacts were absent even though they are an integral part of children’s life in Finland. Also, the pupils considered language being a vehicle for oral communication outside school. The results bear implications for CLIL education and early language teaching in general.
Main Authors
Format
Articles Research article
Published
2023
Series
Subjects
Publication in research information system
Publisher
John Benjamins Publishing Company
The permanent address of the publication
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:jyu-202206303740Use this for linking
Review status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
2212-8433
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1075/jicb.21033.man
Language
English
Published in
Journal of Immersion and Content-Based Language Education
Citation
  • Mäntylä, K., Roiha, A., & Dufva, H. (2023). Investigating young Finnish CLIL pupils’ perceptions of foreign language use through visual narratives. Journal of Immersion and Content-Based Language Education, 11(1), 29-54. https://doi.org/10.1075/jicb.21033.man
License
In CopyrightOpen Access
Copyright© 2022 John Benjamins Publishing Company

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