I Congreso Internacional de Educación Bilingüe en el mundo globalizado

TEACHERS ARE THE KEY

Throughout the last month I had several conversations with lots of School Directors who showed me that the only way to create a teaching evolution is to arise a good attitude towards new times and to invest money in their formation.

For these reasons a positive teaching adaptation will be needed if we want to learn the latest trends and methodologies.

I consider our teaching processes like applications which need to be continuously updated.

CLIL KEYS

is:

PROGRAMA PARA LA IMPLANTACIÓN DEL BILINGÜISMO - UNIR on Prezi4

• more than a change of the language of instruction.
• taught through L2.
• for all type of learners.
• making a strong sense of affiliation: Teacher - Students.
• not suppressing L1
• fosters:
• critical thinking.
• self-esteem.
• co-operation.
• autonomy.
• dialogic discourse.
• meaningful, explicit and visible.
• creates high expectations = engaging
• reflecting on learning processes.
• scaffolding L2 and contents.
• connecting cultures.
• participative.
• cognitively challenged.

MADRID CLIL PROJECT

The goal of this project is to evaluate a CLIL module that works in Science, Art and English. This means you have to put it into practice and then evaluate the teaching process, the module and the contents acquired by the group. The evaluation will consist of a group of multiple choice tests and/or some videos.

Teaching process will be evaluated by Do Coyle through the LOCIT process which is an inclusive approach involving teachers and their learners in constructing a shared understanding of successful learning.

The contents acquired by pupils will be evaluated using Dr Fred Genesee's guidelines at the end of the module development.

All the information about the module and extra-material will be given.

I will always be available to provide support.

The CLIL module demands a special school organization but it is not a requirement.

BILINGUALISM GOOD FOR THE BRAIN

Neuroscience researchers are increasingly coming to a consensus that bilingualism has many positive consequences for the brain. Several such researchers traveled to this month's annual meeting of the American Assn. for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C., to present their findings. Among them:

• Bilingual children are more effective at multi-tasking.

• Adults who speak more than one language do a better job prioritizing information in potentially confusing situations.

• Being bilingual helps ward off early symptoms of Alzheimer's disease in the elderly.

These benefits come from having a brain that's constantly juggling two — or even more — languages, said Ellen Bialystok, a psychology professor at York University in Toronto, who spoke at the AAAS annual meeting. For instance, a person who speaks both Hindi and Tamil can't turn Tamil off even if he's speaking to only Hindi users, because the brain is constantly deciding which language is most appropriate for a given situation.

This constant back-and-forth between two linguistic systems means frequent exercise for the brain's so-called executive control functions, located mainly in the prefrontal cortex. This is the part of the brain tasked with focusing one's attention, ignoring distractions, holding multiple pieces of information in mind when trying to solve a problem, and then flipping back and forth between them.

"If you walk into a room, there's a million things that could attract your attention," Bialystok said. "How is it we manage to focus at all? How does our mind pay attention to what we need to pay attention to without getting distracted?"

To test one's ability to identify pertinent nuggets while being bombarded with extraneous information, scientists use something called the Stroop test. Subjects are presented with a word for a particular color and asked to identify the color of ink it's printed in. So if the word is "blue" and it's printed in blue, no problem. If, on the other hand, the word "blue" is printed in red, they have to sort out which piece of information — the color of the ink, or the color being spelled out — is the one they need.

"This is extremely hard to do, because it's terribly difficult to block out the information from the word," Bialystok said.

In monolingual speakers, this kind of mental curveball will add 240 milliseconds to their reaction time — a significant delay, in brain reaction terms. Bilingual people, on the other hand, take just 160 extra milliseconds to sort this out. Bialystok theorizes that it's because they're used to prioritizing information in potentially confusing situations all day.

Bilingual speakers rarely use the wrong language with a monolingual speaker. But if the listener also knows both languages, speakers can switch between them to most accurately express their thoughts.

Taken from: Los Angeles Times

PISA

PISA is an international study that was launched by the OECD in 1997. It aims to evaluate education systems worldwide every three years by assessing 15-year-olds' competencies in the key subjects: reading, mathematics and science. To date over 70 countries and economies have participated in PISA.

Finland is the first European Educational System and there is not only a reason for this.

Let´s compare our Educational Systems to the Finnish one and We will see how different are they...

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WHAT VS HOW

For a long time, teachers were busy trying to transmit contents they had in their heads to pupils' heads. Nowadays the information is public, open and accessible. Here is one of the first changes, teachers must play a different role, the role of a guide. 
It is not a matter of passing information, teachers might transmit to pupils in a way which permits students to achieve the expected goals , for the rest of their lifes. That is why we have to pay attention to the way we teach. If students are engaged and they receive the contents in an easy way, in context and connected to real life situations, they will have learnt.
"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." 

Benjamin Frankling

In the past, Second Language Teachers were focus on the knowledge of the language and it made students produce a very accurate grammar structures on paper, but they could not have a fluent conversation. The main language objective is now upsidedown and the oral interaction has reached a higher importance. Oral skills are the first step and Reading and Writing are secondary. This learning map will show people able to communicate fluently.

         vs       

THE IMPORTANCE OF WORKING IN GROUP

The learning progress is evaluated through individual activities while important and real  learning happens in groups. There is a common tendency for teachers to think that individual activities show what a person can do and it is not completly true. We are preparing people to live in groups but we do not take into consideration what they can do when they collaborate with each other. Surprisingly, the growth of all cultures along history is based in a collaborative development.

We as teachers should also work together as a group. If we share our knowledge with our co-workers, teaching and learning processes will be richer and of higher quality. 

Yes, we can but as a group

In the following Video: Change the word "TRAVEL" to the word "WORK"

PUPIL MULTITASKING

Human multitasking is the best performance by an individual of appearing to handle more than one task at the same time. An example of multitasking is taking phone calls while typing an email. Some believe that multitasking can result in time wasted due to human context switching and apparently causing more errors due to insufficient attention.
Some researchers say that is difficult or impossible to learn new information while engaging in multitasking.

NEW INFORMATION
New technologies can be used to introduce new information but it is difficult to print it in pupil's mind if they are not focused. My idea is to support the new information with sounds and gestures, giving students the possibility to print it in their easiest brain way.Sometimes, I show on the digital board a power point presentation of new contents while they are working on a small group activity. They are able to take info from the board...

REVIEWING
This is the moment when I consider I can take advantage of their capacity to do different things at the same time, multitasking. Try to show them on a TV or a digitalframe situated beside them, a series of images of the taught contents at the same time you are reviewing the module contents on the board.
Try to do it 5 minutes before an exam.

MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES

This is the case of the Theory of Multiple Intelligences (Dr. Howard Gardner). It is a theory that consists of the classification of a unique term, intelligence. Intelligence is the capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding and similar forms of mental activity. It was thought as one and unique term which by studies has been divided into concrete capacities.
 ‘We are as different from one another on the inside of our heads as we appear to be different on the outside’ (Robert Fulghum). 
We all belong to the same species and we have got similar behaviours and outside similarities. Every single person depends on his capacities and especially on the abilities he develops along his life. It would be a good idea to make our pupils think about what is the easiest way to grasp information. Pupils have to figure out that there is a natural, innate capacity that makes them different and that can be used to his favour, (Herbert Puchta). When I first learnt how to lace up my shoes I found all the ways complicated, so finally I chose my way.


 

Dr. Howard Gardner classified the term intelligence into his Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Originally there were seven and the latest studies have included two more. These strengths show ways to acquire a piece of information and no one is more important or better than the other.

1.    Logical Mathematical Intelligence: It is the capacity of understanding patterns, of solving problems. In terms of language it is related to grammar. Logic-smart.

2.    Linguistic Intelligence:  It is focused on learning using and comprehending written or spoken words. It allows us to use languages in a meaningful way. Word-smart.

3.    Bodily – kinaesthetic Intelligence: The strength of coordination, balance and skill involving the body. It is required movement. Sometimes it demands guiding processes in which the body energy is used in a positive way. Body-smart.

4.    Visual – Spatial Intelligence: Using and recognizing patterns and open space. This capacity involves learning processes based on visual support, diagrams, images, etc. Picture-smart.

5.    Musical Intelligence: The ability to play and write music. The sense of rhythm, melodies and being able to learn by songs. Music-smart.

6.     Interpersonal Intelligence: The social interaction capacity that allows people to communicate with and understand others. The skill of a leader and a person that is capable to work in a team. People-smart.

7.    Intrapersonal Intelligence: The capacity to enjoy learning alone and that permits you to understand and accept yourself. The strength that permits us to control our emotions, our self steam and be confident within oneself. Self-smart.

8.    Naturalistic Intelligence: The capacity to notice things in nature, the way to classify things and processes that take place in the natural environment. A valuable survivor skill.

9.    Existential Intelligence: The ability to make questions about life, death and ultimate realities.



HERBERT PUCHTA

There are some key points about this Theory that are important to bear in mind (Thomas Armstrong):

·       Each person possesses all intelligences in different levels and intensities.

·       Most people can develop their intelligence to an adequate level of competency.

·       There are many ways to be intelligent within each category. There is a more developed strength in all of us.

·       Intelligences usually work together in complex ways.



'One who makes no mistakes, makes nothing at all' Giacomo Casanova
'At the end, It´s not the years in your life that count, it's the life in your years' Abraham Lincoln

ABOUT LANGUAGES

A LANGUAGE REFERENCE
When a bilingual teacher gets into the school or is at the main door surrounded by pupils he has to speak in English. This is because the most important thing we have to be, is a language reference for them. That is to say, our piece of the cake is English, so throughout all our schedule or time at school pupils can only hear English from us. We have to find the moment to speak to our Spanish co-workers... It is vital because pupils create a strategy to understand the language, They know they have to speak in English to be understood and they are learning in context using a vehicle, English: CLIL.

SEVERAL LANGUAGES GROWING TOGETHER

Our world is getting smaller because nowadays it is not too far-fetched to think that if we wanted to, in just a small amount of time, we could live on the opposite side of the globe. Means of transport are getting better year by year and our house economies have created a situation in which the majority of the people could fly and move from country to country. And because of these changes in our society, the demand and need of learning a second language has grown faster than ever. It´s almost becoming a necessity that each of learn a different language than our native one. And as teachers we must remember that: Our pupils are growing with several languages around them.

TRANSLATE OR NOT TO TRANSLATE
This is a term that makes lots of misunderstandings and it is because it was the way we learnt a language in the past. C.L.I.L. is very clear with it. We are learning the language through a context created in a subject and it is also merged with daily situations. The fact is to translate or not to translate. If we translate we are creating a strategy which helps pupils with large memory to respond in lots of situations but not in all of them. This strategy will be based on searching for information in L1 to respond in L2. So when something has never been taught in L1 the student will not have a strategy formed which permits him to isolate the contents and use everything in his mind to understand the content instead of using L1 to support L2. On the other hand, if we demand them to understand the contents of a subject and situations they will have created a strategy that will enable them to use the language fluently and with sense. If we focus on subject terms and in Science we will be able to see that if they have to translate they have double work. If students understand the contents they do not need to translate and they are not loosing the chance to know it in their mother tongue or other languages. During their mind development they will link the language acquired and the contents to different languages but perhaps the root of those kinds of contents will be in English. This is providing them with a large strategy and a bigger space in their experiences storage.

HOW TO WORK PHONICS

My suggestion is to work mastering triangles.
Triangle 1
 Children listen to a sound, look at a gesture and identify the previous input to an image: grapheme.
/sssssssss/, waving hands imitating the movement of a snake , S grapheme card.
Once they are able to tell us 2 of the corners when we show them 1, it is time to work on the next triangle.

Triangle 2
Children go on listening to the same sound but now they have to link the sound to a word card and the image of the main word of the sound.
/ssssssssss/, SNAKE, the picture of a snake

Triangle 3
Children still listen to the sound but they have to find the sound in words pronounced and in word cards.
/ssssssss/, /sneik/ /spot/ /s^n/ /sneil/ /spaida/; SNAKE, SPOT, SUN, SNAIL, SPIDER.
Once they master these triangles it is time to start blending.

If we teach and practice phonics, children will have richer reading skills


The order of sounds was selected to make many simple words at the beginning.
set 1: s, a, t, i, p, n
set 2: c k, e, h, r, m, d
set 3: g, o, u, l, f, b
set 4: ai, j, oa, ie, ee, or
set 5: z, w, ng, v, litlle oo, long oo
set 6: y, x, ch, sh, voiced th, unvoiced th
set 7: qu, ou, oi, ue, er, ar

All sounds can be supported by songs that repeat the sounds through the chant. There are teachers who use the same chant for all the sounds and change the lyrics depending on the main word of the sound and the gesture.

Resources
http://www.starfall.com/
http://www.more.starfall.com/
http://www.letters-and-sounds.com/
http://www.genkienglish.com/
www.jollylearning.co.uk

ICT IN THE CLASSROOM

DIGITAL NATIVES

Marc Prensky´s thoughts must be considered too. ‘Teachers of 21^st century are in charge of preparing children for an uncertained future’.  It is impossible to know what is going to happen in the future but we can have an idea if we think about how people live in the 21^st century. During the last fifteen years people have became digital natives and they are living a different type of life if we compare it to the adult’s childhood. Our opinion about videogames usually has a bad connotation and this is because we do not really like them, play with them and because the publicity the games have received is usually not positive. Videogames have a challenge in terms of use. The balance between use and abuse is the real fight, because it is thought that the benefits are low. From my experience I am able to say that when I give new technology assignments not only the majority of students do them, many do them several times, as compared to when I assign homework they have to do in the notebook, and there are pupils who will not complete the work.

Video games have conflicts, challenges and opposition and provide us with entertainment and pleasure. But the profit is in the rules that organise, structure and demand discipline and in the short goals that encourage us. Other benefit is that they teach us to take risks and to evaluate several situations. They allow children to do things at their own pace and the videogame award has to be reinforced by us. They permit us to learn from our actions through lots of trials. Video games have awards which are to pass to the next level and they even permit us to share experiences with others creating a cooperative atmosphere that can be linked to social nets. And if they are able to play with our emotions the experiences lived will be remembered. This is what from my point of view, is the most important thing we have to copy from videogames. The unreal world in which they are learning through playing that makes them feel different and that attracts and motivates them. This engaging atmosphere has to be copied in the classroom and teachers have to hide the goals of the exercises in favour of this magic place.

The idea of multiple attentions is getting bigger and this is something that makes our pupils different from the previous generations. The case was studied with two groups of kids. The first group was watching a movie, while the second group was playing a video game in front of another screen where the same movie was being played. The result was that both groups could tell us about the movie.

The 10 best tools: A video with tools to be used in the classroom (Spanish)

Digital Bloom's Taxonomy: Stages to acquire digital competence

ICT in the CLIL Classroom on Prezi

CLIL SCIENCE MODULES

                            III INTERNATIONAL MEETING OF MEDICINE

–CHILDREN ARE DOCTORS OF MEDICINE ATTENDING TO A MEETING.

–FOR A FEW WEEKS, THE DOCTORS WILL LISTEN TO EXPLANATIONS.

–THEY WILL DO ON-LINE ACTIVITIES.

–THEY WILL WORK WITH OTHER DOCTORS.

             –THEY WILL PRESENT SOME SYSTEMS TO THEIR CLASSMATES.

IN THE FOLLOWING CLIL MODULE PUPILS ARE ASTRONAUT CANDIDATES

OUTER SPACE THROUGH CLIL - on Prezi