CLIL in Latvia
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The British Council in Latvia organized a two-day
introductory workshop on content and language integrated learning for 27
teachers from Dugavpils on April 20-21st 2006.
… Inta Baranovska gets us started … |
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Teachers attended the workshop in twos and threes mixed
subjects including English, Maths, Sciences, Business studies, German,
Culture and History with the aim of preparing participants with a basic
understanding of what CLIL involves and get them started in the field back
in school.
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The plan is to carry out follow-up workshops in Latvia focusing
on materials design for specific subjects in the Autumn and bring in teachers
from other towns and cities around Latvia.
Inta Baranovska from BC Latvia booked us in to the Baltic Beach Hotel in Jurmala
on the Baltic coast. The teachers were offered a programme presenting tasks for
language skills development through content subjects including examples of
Geography, Biology, History, Chemistry and others.
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On day one the teachers investigated language demands of
specific subject texts and set about designing visuals for information
transfer and in doing so provide learners with instruments for highlighting
core knowledge within text.
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… identifying structure in texts … |
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We also considered what makes a good listening activity drawing up a check list
for evaluating listening tasks and conclusions focused on ‘semi-scripts’ as a
tool for teachers to offer good models of language for listening in their
subjects. Semi-scripts play a central role in content and language integrated
learning for learners to be guided during listening tasks.
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… reading and discussion … |
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Colleagues practiced a number of speaking activities
including a Biology Question Loop and tested their knowledge of the
vocabulary of the digestive system through word activating tasks.
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We looked at presentation work in the classroom… |
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| … the group had the homework of preparing a one-minute
presentation on a new food product with a Latvian theme
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Inventions were very creative and the winning team developed a Latvian
Laima Chocolate ice cream cone. |
Day two focused on Science Across the World as a manageable project for getting
started in CLIL.
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Teachers were offered background information on the Science Across programme as
well as several example materials from the 20+ topics including Road Safety,
Talking about Genetics, Climate Change, Eating and Drinking and many others.
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… investigating speed reactions in the group … |
Colleagues were then taken through sample activities which
represent the focus on survey work and investigation in the classroom which
make up the core of the Science Across programme.
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We spent the afternoon at a nearby school to make use of
their computer room and internet facilities so that colleagues could sign up
to the Science Across programme (currently free for teachers in Latvia).
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A CLIL Latvia yahoogroup was set up to facilitate communication among teachers
in the network in Latvia and participants were given the opportunity to browse
the Science Across site, check out the materials and also begin to make some
decisions about getting started on the programme back in their schools.
It was a very positive feeling at the end of the two days, there is a lot of
experience in bilingual (Latvian-Russian) education in Latvia and the teachers
were pleasantly surprised by their own success in the English language at the
workshop, despite my Manchester accent!
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There was time set aside to action planning for a return
visit and workshop in the autumn which will focus on materials, language
development for teachers and networking. |
We are already in discussion about this visit and an autumn visit has been
penciled in the calendar to coincide with a similar visit to Estonia.
On to Lithuania!
Best wishes
Keith
Keith Kelly (Language Education Consultant)
FACTWorld Coordinator (www.factworld.info)
NILE Associate Trainer (www.nile-elt.com)
SAW Consultant (www.scienceacross.org)
Home address: 146 St Leonards Rd, Leicester, LE23BZ, UK
Home tel: 0044 1162700962
Mobile: 0044 778 2356776
email: keithpkelly@yahoo.co.uk
The Forum for Across the Curriculum Teaching - Supporting and Developing Content
and Language Integrated Learning
Download the report in PDF format here.
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