Linguistics and Sociolinguistics of CLIL

This subject is not offered in 2014.

120 hours total commitment.

Attendance at all classes (tutorial/seminars/practical classes/lectures/labs) is obligatory. Failure to attend 80% of classes will normally result in failure in the subject.

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject will review the linguistic and sociolinguistic issues involved in content-based programs including such issues as general vs specific purpose language, the language of the discipline (and the integral relationship between them) and of the classroom (including the language of instruction), discipline-specific terminology, and the conventions of writing in a discipline (including text structure and reporting). The subject will also refer to the notion of English as an international language, contextualisation, the nature of the language acquired by students in CLIL programs, and the effect of CLIL and learning through a second or foreign language on the first language, its development, possible domain losses, and the survival of the local language. It will also examine cultural issues in CLIL including issues involved in cross-cultural communication, the relevance of culture, the influence of culture on learning and on world view, ways of facilitating comprehension to promote learning of both content and language, the need for language support for the students, and the forms that such support might take. Reference will be made to the intellectual and cultural consequences of teaching through a second or foreign language and the relationship between culture, language, concepts and cognition and, in particular, the transfer of knowledge acquired through the second or foreign language to the first.

On completion of this subject, students should be able to demonstrate:

• understanding of the linguistic, sociolinguistic, cultural and cross-cultural issues that impinge on the success of courses taught through a second or foreign language
• awareness of the relationship between language, concepts and cognition
• understanding of the role of the first language, code switching, and bilingual dialogue
• understanding of the differences between the language of the everyday world and that of their particular discipline (e.g., science, mathematics or technology) and of how bridges may be built from the discipline- specific language to the everyday language
• understanding of the nature of discipline- specific terminology, text structure and oral and written conventions of discipline-specific language
• ability to identify and support the language needs of students who are learning through a second or foreign language, to facilitate their comprehension and learning of the content, and to help students developing their language through a discipline also to develop their general proficiency and their ability to communicate outside of their discipline

There are 3 assessment tasks:

• Blog entry (1000 words) due early semester (20%)
• In-class group presentation (15 mins) due late semester (30%)
• Unit of work (2500 words) due end of semester (50%)

There is one hurdle requirement:

• Blog response (200 words) due mid semester

Llinares, A., Morton, T., & Whittaker, R. (2012). The Roles of Language in CLIL. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

• Commitment to professional and academic ethics and excellence
• Ability to set personal targets and plan to achieve them
• Development of the students' ability to direct their own independent learning
• Ability to discuss their discipline area in appropriate English and to communicate it to students
• Ability to read critically and present material concisely and coherently in written and oral presentations relevant
• Skills in observing teaching, evaluating it and applying their findings to their own teaching situations
• Skills in reflecting upon, evaluating and developing their own teaching
• Ability to develop pedagogical strategies appropriate to their teaching situation (in CLIL)
• Reflect critically on their teaching, program planning and/or the management of relevant educational programs
• Understand and apply principles of teaching, assessment and evaluation
• awareness of the nature and implications of the global role of English and the impact that English and learning through English can have on the students' first language.