CLIL in the Classroom- Alberto Lanzat

Principles of CLIL in the Classroom

TASK: Read the following article and answer the questions

What are the principles of CLIL in the classroom?

Source: http://www.cilt.org.uk/14to19/intensive/principles.htm
http://www.icpj.eu/?id=10

A successful CLIL lesson should combine elements of the four principles below:

 Content - progression in knowledge, skills and understanding related to specific

elements of a defined curriculum.

 Communication - using language to learn - whilst learning to use language. The

key is interaction, NOT reaction.

 Cognition - developing thinking skills which link concept formation (abstract

and concrete), understanding and language.

 Culture - exposure to alternative perspectives and shared understandings, which

deepen awareness of otherness and self.

Planning

 When teaching CLIL lessons, plan thoroughly to ensure that the foreign
language is accessible and that the content is not ‘watered’ down. Accessing and
understanding the content is the main aim of a CLIL lesson. The language is a
tool for delivering the content.

 Use the most effective teaching and learning styles from each subject area and
combine them for a CLIL lesson. This will cater for a variety of learning styles;
in addition teachers will develop professionally from working together,
transferring the different teaching techniques across the two subjects.

 To ensure language acquisition, use a range of activities to suit different learning

styles; kinaesthetic, auditory, and visual. Pupils will need to be given sufficient
opportunities to practise the language before producing it. However, traditional
classroom repetition of newly acquired language may not be appropriate in a
content driven lesson.

Teach language learning skills explicitly

 Pupils will need to be armed with language learning skills and strategies in order
to help them access cognitively challenging content.

17.4a CLIL in the Classroom - Nina Lauder - UPO 2009 1

  In reading, pupils need to be taught to skim and scan texts, looking for words
they know, words they can guess as well as cognates. Pupils need to practise
reading for gist and extracting key information from a variety of texts. They may
need to ‘read’ a photo, a picture, a graph, a timeline.

 Again, key listening skills and techniques need to be taught. This might consist
of brainstorming vocabulary prior to listening, listening for gist, predicting.

 Listening activities in a CLIL lesson are unlikely to consist of listening to a CD,

but may consist of a debate in the classroom, activities to classify information,
listening combined with kinaesthetic activities, putting events into order,
matching images and text.

 Writing will be more effective if a staged approach is used, starting with single
word based activities, like labelling, checklists, bullet points. Writing frames are
an integral part of the success of the early writing that pupils are able to produce.
The aim of writing activities will be for pupils to effectively communicate the
content they have learnt, demonstrating their understanding.  Pupils will
undoubtedly make grammatical errors, which will need to be addressed in a
language lesson. 

Read and answer True or False.

According to the article….
1) Abstract and concrete thinking skills should be worked on in CLIL
lessons True

2) Content should be ‘watered down’ in CLIL lessons False

3) Understanding the concept CONTENT(SERÍA PARA A CLIL) is the False

main aim of a CLIL lesson

4) Only the English teacher should focus on learning styles, not the content False
area teacher
5) Drilling and traditional classroom repetition activities are a fundamental False
part of CLIL
6) Pupils need to work on reading skills like scanning, skimming and True
reading for gist in CLIL lessons
7) In CLIL listening tasks should always be done with a CD False

8) A staged approach to writing should be employed True

NinaLauder/BILINGUAL MASTERS/2008

17.4a CLIL in the Classroom - Nina Lauder - UPO 2009 2