The CLIL thinking hat

The CLIL thinking hat

The role of the CLIL practitioner

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Jesús M. Hernández González University of Edinburgh

CLIL

C = Content L = Language I = Integrated L = Learning

Language/s

Content/s

The key is the "i" of integration

CLIL models and types

• Top-down (top-down) or bottom-up (bottom-up) approach
• Interdisciplinary* or disciplinary model
• Language-led approach
• Content-led approach

The importance of the "i" in CLIL

• Recent studies show a less than favourable picture in content learning acquisition within CLIL settings (Bruton, 2013).
• Several studies in the field have shown that the greatest difficulty lies in the integration of language and content (Dalton-Puffer, 2013; Vollmer, 2008).

How can we solve this issue?

• Putting on our CLIL thinking hat
• Maintaining a balance between content and language but above all identifying which elements link or bridge the gap between cognition, language, content and literacy.

Literacy is understood as the development of skills related to the comprehension and production of both oral and written texts at a high level, using different text formats and modes of delivery.

The CLIL thinking hat

I would like you to think of a wonderful, exuberant hat that you would want to wear at all times. It must be something extraordinary and majestic. You have to 'wear' it when you are designing, planning, implementing and assessing CLIL. This is your CLIL thinking hat which will help, guide and support you at any time when delivering CLIL.

The CLIL thinking hat makes us see reality/realities from a holistic and integrative perspective; through the eyes of both the language teacher and the subject teacher.

What is the CLIL thinking hat?

• It is Jiminy Cricket
• It is a metacognitive strategy
• It is our CLIL conscience: a way of how to reflect on our teaching praxis
• Its main function is to make us aware to keep a balance between content and language

The thinking hat is part of our intrapersonal competence, and it is related to the growth of mindset

The CLIL thinking hat

There are hundres of ways to deliver CLIL

Two different contexs to see the role of the language and the content teacher

The CLIL thinking hat

Two perspectives

Content teacher

Language teacher

The CLIL thinking hat

Language teacher's perspective

The language teacher's perspective

• Expert on the field
• Know how to teach the L2.
• Language-led approach.

• Challenging: Teach content or subjects in a L2 within a CLIL approach.
• Supporting content learning in language lessons. Ball, Kelly & Clegg; 2015.

Do I have to teach content in my subject? Supporting content learning and content awareness.

Language teacher's perspective

The CLIL thinking hat

Language teacher's perspective

• Language literacies (CDFs, languaging...)
• Academic content, Mehisto, 2017
• Learning skills and critical thinking
• Language (academic language, language and communication awareness)

• Pedagogical practices
• Support content subject through the academic language
• Integrating content into language lessons
• Activity domains (doing, organising, exploring and arguing) Polias, 2016; The Graz Group, 2016

• Cooperation and collaboration with content teachers (Julian de Vega, 2017)

Do I have to teach content in my subject? Supporting content learning and content awareness.

Content teacher's perspective

The CLIL thinking hat

The content teacher's perspective

• Expert on the field
• Know how to teach his/her content subject in L1.
• Content-led approach.

• Challenging: Teach his/her content subject in a L2 within a CLIL approach.
• Supporting language learning in content lessons. Ball, Kelly & Clegg; 2015.

Do I have to teach language in my subject? Supporting language learning and language and communication awareness.

Content teacher's perspective

The CLIL thinking hat

Content teacher's perspective

Whether we want our students to think like scientists, we have to deeply engage them with scientific content. Christodoulou, 2016; Mehisto, 2017

• Academic literacies (ability, CDFs, languaging...)
• Academic content (core content and big ideas) Mehisto, 2017.
• Academic language (language tryptich, language and communication awareness)
• Learning skills and critical thinking

• Pedagogical practices
• Activity domains (doing, organising, exploring and arguing) Polias, 2016; The Graz Group, 2016

Do I have to teach content in my subject? Supporting content learning and content awareness.

The CLIL thinking hat

There are no right or wrong statements. The following tips and food for thought are ways of reflecting on our teaching practice when we are playing the role of a CLIL practitioner.

What hat should I choose?

It is up to you to decide which CLIL thinking hat to choose. This depends on your beliefs; what suits you best in the role of CLIL practitioner in the context in which you are implementing CLIL pedagogy.

There is no ideal a CLIL thinking hat, just as there is no ideal way of developing CLIL.

The CLIL thinking hat

• We cannot teach part of a content subject or a content subject in the same way as we do in our L1 .
• And, we cannot expect that our students reach the same learning outcomes they do in L1, if our way of approaching the content is the same one as we do in L1.

The CLIL thinking hat

The CLIL thinking hat can be very annoying and sometimes tires me out. However, it tries to get the most out of us, involving us in producing new ideas, creating resources and, above all, making us think and reflect, and so it always gives us "food for thought".

Swaping hats

Whether we want to take one step forward, we need to put our CLIL thinking hat on. In occassions, we might to consider change the hat as the new horizons of CLIL imply a more challenge way and a different approach.

We cannot consider CLIL as a fixed and a static approach, but a flexible and a constant evolution approach

Collaboration is essential

Have you ever thought about having two o more thinking CLIL hats at the same time? One of the key aspects to move forward is to do it with other colleagues. The more collaboration, guidance and support you have, the better you will be able to tailor your ideas of how to approach CLIL. It is like Vygotsky's ZPD; there is a field to explore and we need others CLIL thinking hats to help you to move on.

A key of success in CLIL is collaboration and therefefore the different perspectives of those teachers (Julián-de-Vega & Fonseca-Mora, 2017).

Different levels of CLIL teachers

CLIL beginner practitioner thinking hat

CLIL proficient practitioner thinking hat

The type of CLIL thinking hat we wear will also depend on our experience and knowledge of CLIL pedagogies. This is the reason why you will have a different hat depending on the level you are.

CLIL expert practitioner thinking hat

The CLIL thinking hat for beginner CLIL practitioners

• I think that the integration of content and language is important; however, I'm not very sure how to do this (LT+CT)
• I would like to change my pedagogical practices to integrate content and language in an appropiate way (LT+CT)
• I need to have more ideas to develop CLIL and to find ways to support content/language (LT+CT)

Language teacher

Content teacher

CLIL beginner practitioner. Adapted from Mehistos' book: CLIL essentials, 2017

The CLIL thinking hat for proficient CLIL practitioners

• I think that the integration of content and language is important and I support if from my subject (LT+CT)
• I look for and use ways of integrating content and language (LT+CT)
• I have developed content/language awareness in CLIL subjects (LT+CT)
• I would like to learn more and therefore to shape my pedagogical practices to integrate content and language in a more appropiate way (LT+CT)

Language teacher

Content teacher

CLIL proficient practitioner. Adapted from Mehistos' book: CLIL essentials, 2017

The CLIL thinking hat for expert CLIL practitioners

• Students will learn more if I support them to unpack academic/content language (LT+CT)

• I believe that CLIL is essential and therefore, content and language learning is developed in my lessons (LT+CT)
• I feel confident to develop an integrated curriculum as well as to work with academic language and content (LT+CT)
• My students will be become more effective learners of CLIL, if they expand their repertoire in learning skills (LT+CT)

Language teacher

Content teacher

CLIL expert practitioner. Adapted from Mehistos' book: CLIL essentials, 2017

Conclusion

I would suggest you use the CLIL thinking hat while designing, planning, implementing and assessing situations of learning in CLIL. I believe that the more you use, the better CLIL practitioner you will be. And remember, if the CLIL thinking hat suits you, don’t get rid of it, I’m sure that it can be used in other learning and teaching contexts.

References

• Coyle, D. Hood, P. & Marsh, D. (2010). CLIL: Content and Language Integrated Learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Coyle, D., Holmes, B. & King, L. (2009). Towards an integrated curriculum – CLIL National Statement and Guidelines. London: The Language Company.
• Graz Group. (2015). The Graz Group model: Mapping pluriliteracies development. A pluriliteracies approach to teaching for learning. European Centre for Modern Languages. http://pluriliteracies.ecml.at/en-us/

• Julián-de-Vega, C., & Fonseca-Mora, M.C. (2017). Language policy and teacher team coordination practices in secondary CLIL schools. European Journal of Language Policy 9(2), 183-202. https://www.muse.jhu.edu/article/677224.

• Marsh, D. (2000). Using Languages to Learn and Learning to Use Languages. Finland, University of Jyväskylä.
• Mehisto, P., & Ting, Y. T. (2017). CLIL Essentials: For Secondary School Teachers. Cambridge University Press.

• Vygotsky, L. (1980). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

Food for thought

• Do you think all inclusive long-life learning can only be taught at school? What do other factors interfere? How can we include them in the learning process?

• What learning strategies and skills are needed when teaching through CLIL approach?
• How important do you consider teaching learning strategies and abilities? How do you include them in your planning? Do you consider them important?
• How could you implement deeper learning into your praxis? Is it relevant in CLIL?
• How do you think deeper learning can improve the development of the teaching learning process?

• Do you think mediation between students is important for the learning process? How often do you use mediation in your sessions?

Food for thought

• When you design a learning intervention what is the first thing you think of, the language or the content? Do you think as language teacher or a content teacher?
• Do you consider that teachers must know more about the language they use or about the content they are teaching?

• When creating the resources and materials, do they have a determined aim? Is this aim centred on language or content? or Do you integrate both concepts?
• How important do you consider the involvement, coordination and engagement of the teachers department for the development and implementation of CLIL programmes?

• Think about the initial assessment you normally do, do you assess linguistic skills (listening, reading, speaking, interaction, writing)?Do you assess content?

Food for thought

• Do you consider learning skills and critical thinking when dealing with CLIL?

• Do you usually plan a final task in which both content and language can be assessed?
• Do you include cooperative learning in your tasks or do you work in group? Do you work on cooperative abilities?

• Do students participate in the creation and planning of the learning situations? Do you take into considerations their opinions, preferences, ways of learning and so on and so forth?
• Do you take into account the 4 C’s Model? Do you consider integrating the cognition and cultural part to your tasks or do you centre only the communication and content?

Thank you for your attentionAnd be happy Jesús Hernández jhergong@icloud.com