exploring the implementation of clil-based science lessons

ResearchPapersinLanguageTeachingandLearningVol.10,No.1,February2019,294-313ISSN:1792-1244Availableonlineathttp://rpltl.eap.grThis article is issued under the Creative CommonsLicenseDeed.Attribution3.0Unported(CCBY3.0)

ExploringtheimplementationofCLIL-basedSciencelessons

intheGreekSchoolEFLcontext

DimitraHASOGIA&KosmasVLACHOSEducation, andmore specifically foreign language teaching, has to adoptmore innovativeways in the teaching process, renew itself and manage to be compatible with themodernized communities in our digital society. The Greek educational system needs adynamicprogrammetoactivatebothteachersandstudentsinanattempttogetridoftheconventionalandtraditionalwayofteachingandlearning.Variedopportunitiesof learningusinginnovativeconceptsofContentLanguageIntegratedLearning(CLIL)andproject-basedlearning are required. CLIL is virtually a tool for the promotion of foreign languages. Thepurpose of the research presented in this paper is to scrutinize the ways learners couldimprovetheircompetencesandskillsduringtheprocessofcreatingaWebQuestprojectonthebasisofapplyingadequatelyCLIL-basedSciencelessonswiththeaidofICTsandexaminetheireffectivenessintheGreekPrimarySchooleducationalarena.Projectisamethodthatleadstowardsthisdirectionandmoderntechnologyprovideslearnerswiththeopportunitytohaveaccess tooverwhelmingamountsof information.Experiential learningmeans thatstudents are given the opportunity to use technology, to work in groups and developintellectualandsocialskills.Studentsactivateanddeveloplearningstrategieswhichenablethemtocarryouttaskssuccessfullyandbecomeautonomouslearners.Theresearchforthisstudyinvolvedsixthgradeprimaryschoolstudents.

�Η εκπαίδευση, και ειδικότερα η εκμάθηση της Αγγλικής, τα τελευταία χρόνια υιοθετείκαινοτόμους τρόπους στις διαδικασίες της διδασκαλίας και ανανεώνεται, ώστε νακαθίσταται συμβατή με τις εκσυγχρονισμένες κοινότητες της ψηφιακής κοινωνίας. ΗπαρούσαεργασίαεξετάζειπώςμπορείημεθοδολογίαCLIL,πουστοχεύειεξίσουστηγνώσητωνδιαφορετικώνγνωστικώναντικειμένων(πουστηνπερίπτωσήμαςείναιηΦυσική)καιστην εκμάθηση της ξένης γλώσσας (που στην περίπτωσή μας είναι η Αγγλική) ναεφαρμοστείστοΔημοτικόσχολείοκαιναενδυναμωθείαπότηχρήσητωνΤΠΕ.Ειδικότερα,η εργασία διερευνά τρόπους με τους οποίους οι μαθητές μπορούν να βελτιώσουν τιςδεξιότητέςτουςκατάτηδιάρκειατηςεφαρμογήςτηςμεθοδολογίαςCLILκαιδίνειέμφασηστα ενδιαφέροντα και τα κίνητρα που αναπτύσσονται κατά τη διδακτική πράξη.Υποστηρίζεται ότι η συγκεκριμένη μεθοδολογία, όταν εντάσσεται στο πλαίσιο τωνσύγχρονωνψηφιακώνμέσων,προάγει τηβελτίωσηόλωντωνγλωσσικώνδεξιοτήτων, την

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αφομοίωσητηςξένηςγλώσσαςμεέναντρόποφυσικόπουκινητοποιείτοενδιαφέροντωνμαθητών, την καλλιέργεια της διαπολιτισμικής ευαισθητοποίησης και την περαιτέρωανάπτυξητωνμεταγνωστικώντουςδεξιοτήτων.KeyWords:Small-scaleresearch,PBL,CLIL,ICTs. 1.IntroductionDuetotheexpansionofglobalizationandtheincreasedcontactamongcountries,thereisapure necessity to use the English language in numerous ways and fields. Although morecommunicative methods have been adopted in the recent years, there is still lack ofmotivation, cooperation and sincere experience related to a topic for discussion, analysisandpresentation.Hence, for this reasonthecurrentstudyaccommodatesan investigationonthepossiblewaysthatContentLanguageIntegratedLearning(CLIL)canbeintegratedandimplemented in the Greek Primary School educational realm, along with the aid ofInformationComputerTechnologies(ICTs), inanattempttopromotetheirsignificanceandfacilitate the transformation of traditional schools into a ‘modern learning environment’(Bartek et al., 2016). The purpose of the research focusesmainly on the development ofCLIL-basedSciencelessonswiththeaidofICTs.ThepromotionofCLILgrantsregularuseoflanguage to research and present information, leading to deep learning in both languageandsubjectareacontentintheEFLclasses.Furthermore, a WebQuest project is especially designed and applied to young learnersfostering collaborative and extensive work based on the existing CLIL Science project.Students are encouraged to practise all four skills (reading etc.), be given a reason forworking in a different way comparing to the traditional one, be motivated to workcooperatively and develop critical thinking skills along with electronic literacy skills.Comprehensibilityandlanguagedevelopmentarepromoted.LearnersaregiventhechancetoacquirebothFoundational1 andNewLiteracies2,while they ‘createprojects that reflecttheirknowledge’(Bell,2010:39)viaWebQuests.There exists a potential for accommodating diverse learners. There is also an effort toexploretheintegratedrelationshipofcontentandlanguageintegratedlearningandadvanceamore in-depth understanding of this relationship from a social perspective. Language ispresented as a primary tool,mediating the construction of knowledge and understandingthroughindividualandcollaborativework.

1 They concern the writing skill: knowledge in grammar, syntax, vocabulary, along with word-recognitionandinferentialmeaning.2 Information literacy throughBawden’s (2008) six stageswith the effective use of technology andelectronic resources: search information, access, evaluate its quality, organize and use itappropriately.


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2.ContentIntegratedLanguageLearning(CLIL)asapervasiveinnovationinEFLteachingIn the recent years, there has been aworldwide trend in language education, namely byintroducingandteachingcontentsubjectsemployingtheEnglish language.Thisaspecthasled to the emergence of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). There exists adebate among educators in the current years and an endless continuumof criticizing EFLtheories.Theystruggle foramore fruitful future for theyoung learners,basedonthe factthat youngsters are the promising generation who deserves to be praised and notcondemned.Radicalchangesinsocietyandtheeducationalsystemareconductedduetotheemergenceof the information age (i.e.: the introduction of ICTs in schools’ Educational Programmessupportedwithtechnologicaldevices).Anunprecedentednumberoflearnersareinvolvedinthe learningprocessofcontentsubjects throughEnglish.ThisprovestobeaglobalaspectsinceCLILhasmadeitspresenceinmostofthecountriesallaroundtheworld.Theintegrationoflanguageandothercontentisnotanoviceidea.Severalsubjectsorotherparts of subjects are taughtwith the aid of a different or foreign language amalgamating‘dual-focused aims3’ (Marsh, 2000) throughout many European schools for decades. Thisapproach was initially employed in bilingual areas and constitutes a far promising andefficienttoolinthepromotionofmultilingualism,whichismoreextensivelydefinedas‘theability to communicate in different languages’ (Salaberri, 2010:1). This new approach hasgained popularity nowadays. The main aspect that CLIL incorporates is the fact that thelearnersacquirenewknowledgeaboutthesubjecttaught(i.e.:Science)throughthemediumofaforeignlanguagewhichactsasavehicleforlearning.Itisprofoundthateducatorstendtointegratenotonlycontentandlanguagebutalsoanumberofproceduresandinstructionswhich,iffollowedrespectively,allowlearnerstoactivatetheircontentschemata4toaddressthecontentmeaningfullyandthentoreproduceapplyingtheL2effectively.Taking into consideration that CLIL ‘empowers the automatic change of class dynamics’(Ting, 2010), we reach the stage where the teacher operates as a facilitator and guide,motivatingthestudentstoapplyaninteractiveprocesswhileconstructingtheirknowledge.Inthisway,languagecompetenceisgainedmoreeffectivelyifwesynthesizebothlanguageand content simultaneously, employing various skills, while content knowledge itself isbetteracquiredthrough‘problem-solvingactivities’(Krashen,2011).2.1.TheGlobalDimensionofCLILInthenovelyears,Englishhasbeenconsideredasa‘linguafranca’(Sifakis,2004)allaroundthe world and more specifically in the European Union. It is the language used moreextensively to fulfill people’s communicative needs. Education, nowadays, is a status quo,notonlyfortheprivilegedandwealthycitizensbutalsoforalllearnerscomingfromvarioussocioeconomicbackgrounds.

3 ‘namely the learning of content and the simultaneous learning of a foreign language’ (Marsh,2000:1).4PriororbackgroundknowledgeofasubjectcontentactivatedthroughtheuseofL1.


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Likewise, the EFL communicative competence remains of prime significance for all thepeoplewho intend toexceed ina successful transnational career inaglobalisedeconomywhich targets to the 21st century multilingual citizens who emerge from a multilingualsociety. Furthermore, based on the fact thatmultilingualism iswidely spread in theWeb,CLILtendstomeettheneedsofanothersocialexpectationwhichisthesynthesisofreallifeand the web society. Among the main goals of the European Union’s language policy,multilingualism,thesupportandpreservationoflinguisticdiversityinEurope,arethemostprominent. The promotion of multilingualism concerns both English and non-Englishcountriesandthis leads instudents’capacitytomeetthedemandsoftheeducationalandsocialexpectations intheircountry.Content language is inproperdunewith linguisticand‘digital competences’ (Vlachos, 2009).Mostof thepeopleon theweb communicateusingEnglish and non-English web pages which is undoubtedly increasing the demand for‘multilingual-orientedlearningpractices’(Agolli,2013),leadingtoCLILanditsinexhaustibleuses. CLIL as pedagogical concept involves making practice of more than one foreignlanguageasavehicletoteachsubjects(i.e.:Geography,Science,Historyetc.) intheschoolcurriculum.2.2.TheNatureofCLIL:Learningtheoriesandthe4CsTheContentandLanguageIntegratedLearning(CLIL)initiativehasexperiencedasignificantgrowthsince it isbeing integrated intocurriculaallacrossEurope.Thedomainofapplyinglanguage is regarded as ‘one of the basic skills that everyone should acquire in Europeaneducational spacesduring the courseof their learning life’ (Council of Europe, 2001). CLILhasbeenintroducedintheeducationalsystemsinmostoftheEuropeancountriesinthelastdecadesandtheissueofCLILhasbeendiscussedandexaminedbothforits‘macrovsmicroandproductvsprocessdimensions’(Dalton-Puffer,Nikula&Smit,2010).CLIL is introduced as an umbrella term to underpin the common features which can befound in bilingual teaching, as well as its applications and practices worldwide. AmongvariousdefinitionsprovidedforthisnewmethodofinstructionMarsh(2002)describesCLILas ‘anapproach5ormethod’which isappliedforthesimultaneous learningof thecontentandthelearningofaforeignlanguage.ThegenerictermCLILreferstoanylearningactivitywhere ‘language is used as a tool to developnew learning froma subject areaor theme’(Coyleetal.,2009:6).In order to get a grasp of the theoretical concepts of CLIL, the experts presented thecombinationof ‘multiplemethodologiesappliedtosupport language’ (Coyleetal.,2010:3)thatprovetobeidealforCLILcontexts.Thelanguagehastobelearnedinanaturalcontexteitheritisaddressedthroughafocusonmeaningorafocusonform.Thisapproachprovestobe valuable for ESL6methodologies since there arenon-distinguishableboundaries andthe4Csframework,whosecomponentsarecontent,cognition,communicationandculture,ispresented inorder tounderstand themainprinciplesofCLILmatricesembedded in theteachingandlearningusage.

5CLILisadual-focusededucationalapproachinwhichanadditionallanguageisusedforthelanguagelearningandtheteachingofbothcontentandlanguagewiththeintentionofcultivatingthemasteryofbothcontentandlanguagetopre-definedlevels.6EnglishasaSecondLanguage.


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Figure1:The4CsframeworkforCLIL(Coyle,2005)

2.2.1.CommunicationinCLIL:TheCLILmatrixandTheLanguageTryptichCommunicationappearstobeoneofthefourkeyprinciples(Coyle,2002:27-28)thatCLILpromotes.Languageisconsidereda‘conduitforcommunicationandlearning’7(ibid:27-28).Toconceptualize,communicationisaCLILvariableinstilledintotwomajorlanguagetheoriesconceivinglearningasanaturalprocess.AccordingtoKrashen’sInputHypohesis8,learningispresented as an attainable acquisition9 process, provided that learners are exposed tocomprehensible input, improve and progress not only along the natural order of theutterancesbutwiththemessagestheyareconveying.To thisnotion, threedifferentconceptsof language learningshouldbe taken intoaccountandpresentedinatriangleformationcalledtheLanguageTriptych(Coyle,HoodandMarsh,2010).

a) LanguageofLearningisnecessaryforlearnerstoaccessthebasicconceptsandskillsof any given topic. Thus, language of learning is subject-specific as ‘previousknowledge is activated in ameaningful environment’ (VandeCraenandSurmont,2017:26).

b) Language for Learning is subject-compatible and focuses on the language whichstudentsadapttocarryoutclassroomtasksinteractively.

c) LanguagethroughLearningpromotesstudents’activeinvolvementoflanguageandthinkingthrough‘scaffolding’10(ibid:26)

7Itisusedinauthenticandunrehearsedyetscaffoldedsituationstocomplementthemorestructuredapproachescommoninforeignlanguagelessons.CLILservestoreinforcethenotionthatlanguageisatoolwhichtohavemeaningandsenseneedstobeactivatedincontextswhicharemotivatingforandmeaningfultoourlearners(ibid:27-28).8TheInputHypothesisisKrashen’sattempttoexplainhowthelearneracquiresthesecondlanguage.9 “Acquisition requires meaningful interaction in the target language –natural communication- inwhichspeakersareconcernednotwiththeformoftheirutterancesbutwiththemessagestheyareconveyingandunderstanding”.10‘Scaffoldingisateachingmethodthatrequirestheteacherstosupportthelearnerinbringingthegapbetweenwhat isalreadyknownandmasteredandwhat isyetunknownandnotyetmastered’(VandeCraenandSurmont,2017:26)


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Figure2:TheLanguageTriptych(Coyle,HoodandMarsh,2010)Sincethe languagepresented inCLILdoesnotcoincidewiththegrammaticaldevelopmentwe can find in an ordinary language learning context,we consider it an advantage asweacquire knowledge in a natural way similar to the one used in ourmother tongue.Withrespecttothetheoryaforementioned, inCLILclassrooms language is themediumthroughwhich content is transported. According to Swain’s Output Hypothesis11, learners areengaged inopportunities forequalparticipationanddeveloptheir ‘linguisticcompetences’(Chomsky, 1965), following the input-process output way of interaction and effectivecommunication (CEFR, 2001).More specifically, learners initiallymanage to ‘communicateeffectively in real-life oral communication’ (Grammatikopoulou, 2016:616) and afterwards‘becomecompetentreadersandwritersinthetargetlanguage(L1orL2)’(ibid:616).Hence,learners’communicationisauspiciouslyacquiredwhenlearningtousethelanguageisreliedon elements such as ‘authentic, scaffolded situations, developing skills, strategies andcompetences’(KofouandPhilippides,2017:123).This immediately results in the cultivation of communicative competence which can betranscended to the Task Based Learning12 approach (Willis, 1996; Ellis, 2003). In order toimplement the communicative elements effectively, teachers are required to employstrategies referring to language and meaning which include numerous techniques formeaningcomprehension.More chances for communication, in all education ranks, are prevailed via the PBL13approach as learners interact using authentic contexts and are free to use linguistic

11Heproposesthat ‘throughproducing languageeitherspokenorwritten languageacquisitionmayoccur’(Swain,1985:159).12TBL:ForWillis(1996:23)ataskisanactivity“wherethetargetlanguageisusedbythelearnerforacommunicativepurpose(goal)inordertoachieveanoutcome”.13ProjectBasedLearningisacomprehensiveperspectivefocusedonteachingbyengagingstudentsininvestigation.Withinthisframework,studentspursuesolutionstonontrivialproblemsbyaskingandrefiningquestions,debatingideas,makingpredictions,designingplansand/orexperiments,collecting


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resourcestheyhavesearchedfor,aswellasreflectonwhattheyhavelearned.Projectworkinvolvesreal-lifecommunicativesituationsandpromotesahigherlevelofthinkingthanjustlearningvocabularyandgrammaticalstructures.Projectworkallowsactiveparticipation inclassrooms and numerous chances for inexhaustible learning. This leads to what JohnDewey’s(1859-1952)motto:“Educationisnotapreparationforlife;educationislifeitself”. 3.Theuseoftechnology:WebQuests Astheworldoftechnologyisrapidlychanging,theideaof‘integratingtheuseoftheWorldWideWeb’ (Dodge, 1995) in classroomactivities, led us to the use ofWebQuests. BernieDodgedesignedWebQuestsin1995(Dodge,2007)aimingat‘utilizingthevast informationontheInternet’(PollyandAusband,2009:29)inawell-performedandmeaningfulway.WebQuests are activities that ‘follow a predictable format’ (Mangelson and Castek, 2008:46)andcanbeappliedforanygradelevel.Theyaredesignedto‘transformnewlyacquiredinformation into amore sophisticated understanding’ (ibid: 46). They foster ‘collaborativeproblemsolving’(SoxandRubinstein-Avila,2009:39),permittingstudentstoworkontasksand reach a ‘cumulative project’ (ibid: 39). The use of authentic tasks with the help ofinformation which derives from the Internet enables students engage in inquiry-orientedactivities, develop critical thinking skills along with electronic literacy skills . Most of thetimes the webquest tasks tend to simulate situations related to the real world. Thus,students are required to take on roles, design, persuade the other students throughdiscussionandcollaboration,reachaconsensusanddevelopafinalproduct.Duetotheirflexibility,theyhave‘greatpotentialforaccommodatingdiverselearners’(SoxandRudinstein-Avila,2009:39)especiallyELLs14whoareencouragedtodelveintothegiventopicboth individuallyandcooperatively.Theseexchangestendto ‘fosterdeeper levelsofreasoningandunderstanding’ (Echevarria,Vogt&Short,2000),promotecomprehensibilityandlanguagedevelopment.Krashen (1980) proposed that ELLs perform better when ‘language competencies areintegratedwithandtaughtthroughcontent’(SoxandRubinstein-Avila,2009:40).Echevarriaet.al. (2000) mentioned that students should be provided with clear instructions,comprehensible and well-organised tasks. Emphasis was placed on the use of visuals,appropriate input (articles, parts from books, newspapers etc.). For this reason, thewebquestbecomesnotonlystudentcenteredbutalsosupports‘scaffolding’15throughwell-structuredtaskactivitiesforthelearnerstoorganizetheirnewlyacquiredknowledge.However,itisessentialtoexaminetheprimaryschoolstudents’attitudetowardswebquestand its applications. Ikpeze and Boyd (2007) proposed comprehension strategies such aschunking, skimming and scanning texts on the Internet while learners work on thewebquest. Webquests’ ‘curricular elements’ (Sox and Rubinstein-Avila, 2009) should beevaluated before being introduced to class. Previous research indicates that students are

and analyzing data, drawing conclusions, communicating their ideas and findings to others, askingnewquestions,andcreatingartifacts"(Blumenfeld,etal.,1991).14English-languagelearners.15Fourtypesofscaffoldsaresuggested:conceptual,metacognitive,proceduralandstrategicthatmaybeusedtosupportresource-basedlearning(HillandHannafin,2001).


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influencedby ‘factors such asprior knowledge and self regulation strategies’ (MacGregor,1999)which affects their ability to collect and negotiate the information available on thewebsites.Wenglinsky(1998)arguedthattheintegrationoftechnologyrequiresteacherstodesignandfacilitate learning experiences which promote students’ ‘higher-order thinking skills’(HOTS)16(LewisandSmith,1993:136).Hence,WebquestfocusonHOTSandareorganizedtomeetthesecriteriaawebquestincludes:‘anintroduction,atask,aprocess,anevaluationandaconclusion’(PollyandAusband,2009:29).Students take ownership during the webquest, control the appropriate informationgathered(input) throughthewebandformthefinalproduct (output)afterhavingappliedallcategories17ofthinking(transformation).Lastbutnotleast,ifstudentsbecomeawareoftheirownthinkingpatternsanddevelopeffectivelearningstrategies,theywillbepromotedasindependent,expertlearners. 4.Methodology:BlendingTheoreticalperspectiveswithresearchpractice Thiscurrentresearchincludesthecombinationoftheory,researchandpedagogicalaspects,alongwiththeirindependentinteractionwhichserveasaprofitablefeedbackonthelinearprocessofthepresentstudy.4.1.ResearchQuestionsThefollowingresearchquestionsfacilitatetheprocessofexploitation:• CLIL-basedclassesandICTs:Howeffectiveandproductivecanthiscombinationbeina

primaryschoolenvironment?• Whichoftheselanguagelearningskills(i.e.:reading/listening/speaking/writing)are

improvedduringtheteachingprocessofCLIL-basedlessonswiththeaidofICTs?

4.2.TheSettingandtheParticipantsAsalreadymentioned,thissmall-scaleresearchisofpriorimportanceasweshouldtakeintoaccount feasibility issues in terms of time, the natural place where the actual study ismaterialized,alongwith therespondents’availability.Respectively,a ‘convenientsamplingstrategy’ (Dornyei, 2007:129) was employed, as it is quite practical for the teacher-researchertoconductherexperimentwiththegroupsofstudentsaccessibleinherclasses.Forthisreason,thissmall-scaleresearchtookplaceinthe1stPrimarySchoolofMarkopouloinAthens.TheCLILsubjectwasScience,sothestudentshavetobetaughtsciencethroughthemediumof theEnglish language (L2) or in some cases (L3) becauseEnglishwas the third languagebeingtaught(L1:mothertongue,L2:Greeketc.)forsixstudents.Theschoolbelongstothepublic sector, so the current teaching situation involves two multilingual, heterogeneous

16HOTShavebeendefined in the literatureas ‘occuringwhenapersontakesnew informationandinformationstoredinmemoryandinterrelatesorrearrangesandextendsthisinformationtoachieveapurposeorfindpossibleanswersinperplexingsituations.17Contentthinking,criticalandcreativethinking(CrawfordandBrown,2002).


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classesconsistingof48students,aged11-12.TheirlinguisticcompetenceinEnglishtendstobealteredonthegroundsthatthetargetlanguagelevelvariesfromA1‘Breakthrough’toA2‘Waystage’includingfewexceptionsofstudentsreachingtheB1‘Threshold’levelaccordingtoCEFR(2001).Actingasnon-nativespeakers,theysometimesusetheL1intheclassroomin an effort to fulfill certain communicative needs. They form dynamic classes willing toparticipate in innovative and challenging encounters. Students with special needs (i.e.:dyslexiaetc.)arealsoincludedinsomeofthegroups.Theyaredividedinsixgroupsoffourstudentsineachclasswhichallowsthemtoworkeitherinpairsorforminggroups.Mostofthem are computer literate which means that they managed to complete their miniWebQuestprojectasaformofalternativeassessment,insteadofaSciencetest,attheendof theCLIL lessons.Thepresentationof thestudents’workonwikispaceswassuccessfullyperformedpartiallyintheclassroomoratstudents’homes.4.3.InstrumentsappliedfordatacollectionAs mentioned above, an important aspect of the research approach is to conduct aninvestigation of the contemporary phenomenon (i.e.: CLIL and ICTs cline) in ‘its naturalsettingandtogain insight intotheparticipants’perspective’ (Borgetal.,2003:436).Small-scaleresearchmainlyinvolvescollectingasignificantamountofdata(Borgetal.,2003:437).As (Dornyei, 2007) states a ‘mixed methods research combining both quantitative andqualitativetechniquesfocusesonprovidingamoredetailedandprevailingpictureensuringmore reliability. Thus, the quantitative approach is conducted though the use of twosequential questionnaires (i.e.: pre- and post- course) with the prospect of gathering‘quantifiabledata in respectofanumberofvariableswhichare thenexamined todiscernpatternsofassociation’ (Bryman,1989:104)and leadingtomoreprecisedatacollectedfor‘more objective interpretations’ (Dornyei, 2007:26). Moreover, the qualitative approach,which is implementedinthisresearch,triesto ‘createadeepandcompletedescriptionanunderstanding of human experiences or phenomena’ (Lichtman, 2010:12). In-depthquestions such as ‘why’ and ‘how’ are raised to ‘generate meaning, understanding anddescription, which is interpreted by the researcher (ibid: 12). Interviews based on the‘participants self-report’ (Borg et al., 2003:254) and observation of learners in naturalsettings(i.e.:schoolclassroomandICTlab)are‘commonwaystocollectdatainqualitativeresearch’(Lichtman,2010:5).All these result in a more ‘naturalistic, inductive, contextualized and respectful of theparticipants’views’datacollection(Hyland,2002:157).Thissmall-scaleresearchmakesanattempt to find and clarify the benefits of employing ICTs in a CLIL educational setting,exploiting both quantitative and qualitative methods of research, resulting in amethodological triangulation which may ‘provide richness and detail or initiate newinterpretations’ (Dornyei, 2007:30). It is worthwhile to mention that this application oftriangulationmayaugment the collectionof information from twoormore sourceswhichenhance the ‘trustworthiness of the analysis’ (Gorard & Taylor, 2004:43), increasing thevalidityoftheconductedresearch.Thefirstmethodisapre-andpost-courseaddressedtothe 6th primary school students, an observation checklist and finally an interview that isbasedontheparticipants’selfreport.Allthesemeasurementinstrumentswillbepresentedanddiscussedaccordingly.


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5.ResultsandDiscussionoftheResearchStudyfindingsIt is apparent thatdataanalysis is a keyelement thatprovidesameticulousanatomyandguarantees themaximum of validity. The key findings of the research are presented anddiscussedbelow.5.1.LearnersmainpreferencesasregardsCLILbasedclassesandtheuseofICTsFortuitously,thesurveytoolsofthisresearchhaveshedlightonthepositiveimpactCLILandICTs can have for young learners. Both questionnaires confirmed the researcher’sexpectationsthatmostofthestudentsexpressedtheirpreferencetostudyScience(i.e.:thecontent subject) in the English language (L2), develop their listening, reading, speaking,writingandhigher-orderthinkingskills,becomedigitallycompetentandweremotivatedtocollaboratewith their classmates for theattainmentof theirWebQuestproject (App. I, p.23).Theirpositiveattitudes towards theWebQuestprojectwassignificant in lightofKrashen’s(1982)affective‘filterhypothesis’wheneverstudentsareinterestedandmotivated,theyaremorelikelytowelcomenewinputandassimilatethetargetlanguage.Theyanticipatedthattheir knowledge of the topic and of their foreign language would be enhanced. Theevaluationofallthesefindingsisanalysedinthefollowingsub-sections.ThedatafromthesecondQuestionnaire(App.II,p.24)demonstratedthatinsteadofusingthe internet for individual purposes, students considered worthwhile getting involved inrealistic contextualized activities as the idea of a WebQuest was ideal. The sixth gradelearners succeeded in developing their cooperative skillswhich become apparent throughclassroomobservationdata,eitherintheclassroomorinthecomputerlab.WhenVygotsky(1978), through his social constructivist theory introduced the importance of learningthroughinteractionwithothers,wecanclearlyfigureoutwhathemeant.Learnerscouldnotignore the fact that being active rather than passive members of the class communityenabled themtoachieveand fulfill theirpresetgoals.Even if theyseemedhesitant in thebeginning, while operating their computers to deal with problem-solving tasks, findadequate information and provide answers, ICTs proved to be a priceless tool for all thelearners. Enjoyment, active participation and a great sense of achievement led to thecompletionoftheWebQuestprojectbasedontheCLILlessons.Thedatacollectedfromtheinterview (App. II, p. 24) with the students, extensively supported the successfulimplementation of the CLIL lessons and the Web Quest because students had theopportunitytoexpressthemselves,theirfeelingsandanxietiesduringthecompletionoftheCLIL experiment via the use of technologies. Using the zunal webtool, the researcher notonlybroughtmotivationintheclassroombutalsopermittedthestudentstoavoidtheriskofbeingatalossbrowsingatirrelevantwebsiteswithinappropriatecontent.Workinginpairsor in groups, learnersmanaged to articulate their beliefs and ideas, raise questionswhileaskingfortheteacher’sencouragementandsupport.Studentscouldbebenefittedfromtheconceptofdealingwithapresupposedproblemwhichrequiresthelearnerstobeexposedtoreal-lifesituationsinordertodevelopanypossiblesolutions.Inthesamevein,thelearners’self-confidencewasaugmentedandachievedgainingahigherlevel intheEnglish language inrelationtocontent learning(i.e.:simultaneousexposuretoScience and English). To put it in another way, ‘Linguistic competence helps in the


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acquisition of content knowledge, and the content knowledge can make input morecomprehensible,whichhelpsthedevelopmentoflinguisticproficiency’(Krashen,2011:7).Allinall,theCLILexperimentwiththeaidofICTsseemedmoreexcitingforlearnersandfarmore challenging in comparison to the traditional language lessons in a Primary Schoolenvironment.5.2.CLILandthedevelopmentofLanguageLearningSkillsStudieshaveindicatedthatthepositiveimpactofCLILonthetargetlanguagedevelopmentis prominent in both primary and secondary education. To start with, in our case, thereceptive skills18 are influenced positively due to the sequential exposure with the aid ofICTs19.As faras theproductiveskills20areconcerned, theyseemtobebenefittedbecauselearners manage to collaborate, interact in pairs or groups and eventually create theirwrittenpiecesofwork.Duringtheinterview,learnersreportedabouttheirsuccesstodeveloptheirspeakingskills.Classroomobservationhas indicatedstudents’active involvement throughout the learningprocess where interaction through realistic tasks was eminent, conceiving a reason tocommunicate. Project work enabled them to cultivate their reading skills21 whilst beingentangled in real-life situation activities. The written output was a combination ofappropriate vocabulary, proper selectionofphotosand right structure.Obviously theCLILapproachtransformedcognitiveengagementtoeffectivelanguagelearningviahigher-orderthinkingskillsdevelopment.Moreover,theuseofICTs,asasourceofinformationsupportedthematerializationoftheassignedproject.6.ConcludingRemarksMotivated and affected by the prevailing needs of the Greek educational realm, thisresearchstudyaimedatamalgamating twobasiccompoments:CLILasanovelapplicationandtheuseofICTs.ThispresentstudyhasindicatedthatCLILandICTscanhaveapositiveimpact on young learners. The coexistence of CLIL continuum and ICTs satisfied learners’needs, preferences and expectations while their listening, speaking, reading and writingskills were gradually developed. Through the medium of theWebQuest project, learnerswere exposed to real life situations and promoted their higher-order thinking skills.Students’communicativeabilitieswereimprovedsincetheirmotivation,selfconfidenceandwillingness to participate actively in the demanding topic of Science were enhanced,moulding new learning individuals, more digitally aware to implement any novel ideas.Cooperation and collaboration among peers were advocated. Enjoyment, effectiveinvolvementandagreatsenseofachievementwereaugmented.The levelsofanxietyandstress were reduced for all learners and more specifically for those with special needs.Linguisticandcontentcompetencesseemedtoresultfromlearners’continuousexposuretotheL2.Lastbutnotleast,interactiveandmetalinguisticskillswerepromoted.

18i.e.:readingandlistening.19i.e.:videos,powerpointpresentations,songs,onlinetextsetc.).20i.e.:speakingandwriting.21i.e.:onlinetextreading.


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APPENDICES

APPENDIXI:AWEBQUESTLESSONPLAN

A WebQuest project based learning lesson Students Two classes of 24 students, A1-A2 (the majority), age range 11-12 (6th grade of primary school) Main aim Encouraging students to practise all their skills through a new designed Webquest project-based learning lesson, following the process of a project. Introducing new elements and integrating skills development Difficulties anticipated Students should be given the reason for working in a different way, comparing to the traditional one they use so far and be motivated to produce a well-formed final product (output) in a power point presentation (or even create a poster), after following all the appropriate steps Timetable fit Students have recently been involved in classroom discussion applying CLIL-based lessons over the issue related to Energy, its sources and the six types of alternative sources of energy which can cause a radical change to our world if applied more extensively. Moreover, certain problems are raised for discussion and ways of people’s active involvement are mentioned, in an effort to use these alternative sources of energy for the people’s benefit not only in Greece but all around the globe Teaching material Videos (from you tube), students’ worksheets with relevant material and hyperlinks for further and specific information to seek in order to complete each step of the given task using all the resources provided

AppendixIIA.InterviewQuestionsfor6THGradeLearnersandtheirresponses(sample)

1. DidyouliketheWebquestproject? Welikeditverymuchalthoughitwasquitestrangeinthebeginning Atfirst,wefacedsomedifficultiesbecausethereweremanysiteswehadtosearch and find information. Though,with someguidancewemanaged tocompletetheprojectwork

It was interesting,more helpful as we didn’t search the internet alone tocollectinformationforourproject

B.NeedsAnalysisQuestionnaire:Results-GraphicPresentations


309

1.IwouldliketobetaughtPhysicsintheEnglishlanguage

2.IwouldliketouseICTsforthepresentationofthePhysicslessons

3.IwouldliketouseICTsduringtheEnglishclasses

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

1.WouldyouliketobetaughtP hys ics intheE nglis hlanguage?

1.WouldyouliketobetaughtP hys ics intheE nglis hlanguage?

0% 0% 16,66% 29,83% 62,50%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

2.Wouldyouliketous eIC Ts forthepres entationoftheP hys ics les s ons ?

2.Wouldyouliketous eIC Ts forthepres entationoftheP hys icsles s ons ?

0% 0% 8,33% 16,66% 75%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

3.Wouldyouliketous eIC Ts duringtheE nglis hc las s es ?

3.Wouldyouliketous eIC TsduringtheE nglis hc las s es ?

0% 0% 8,33% 16,66% 75%

1 2 3 4 5


310

4.IwouldliketocollectinformationwiththeaidofmyEnglishteacher

5.Ithinkitiseasytoreadauthentictextsthroughtheinternet

6.IlikereadingEnglishtextsinmyEnglishbook

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

4.Wouldyouliketocollec t informationwiththeaidofyourE nglis hteacher?

4.Wouldyouliketocollec tinformationwiththeaidofyourE nglis hteacher?

0% 8,33% 8,33% 20,83% 62,50%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

20%

40%

60%

5.Doyouthinkit is eas ytoreadauthentic texts throughtheinternet?

5.Doyouthinkit is eas ytoreadauthentic texts throughtheinternet?

25% 0% 16,66% 58,30% 0%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

6.DoyoulikereadingE nglis htexts inyourE nglis hbook?

6.DoyoulikereadingE nglis htexts inyourE nglis hbook?

0% 33,33% 0% 25% 41,66%

1 2 3 4 5


311

7.IlikereadingEnglishtextsontheinternet

8.Itiseasytousetheinternetwhilehavinganassignment

9.Idon’tthinkEnglishclassesareinterestingwithouttheuseofICTs

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

7.HowmuchdoyoulikereadingE nglis htexts ontheinternet?

7.HowmuchdoyoulikereadingE nglis htexts ontheinternet?

0% 8,33% 16,66% 33,33% 41,66%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

8.Howeas yis ittous etheinternetwhilehavinganas s ignment?

8.Howeas yis ittous etheinternetwhilehavinganas s ignment?

0% 0% 16,66% 20,83% 62,50%

1 2 3 4 5

0,00%

20,00%

40,00%

60,00%

80,00%

9.DoyouthinkE nglis hc las s es areinteres tingwithouttheus eofIC Ts ?

9.DoyouthinkE nglis hc las s esareinteres tingwithouttheus eofIC Ts ?

20,83% 62,50% 16,66% 0% 0%

1 2 3 4 5


312

10.IwouldliketohaveaprojectbasedonaWebQuest

11.Iwouldliketocooperatewithmyclassmates

12.Iwouldliketoworkonaprojectdoingsomepairorgroupworkandpublishtheoutputonawebsite

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

10.Wouldyouliketohaveaprojectwhichwillbebas edonaWebques t?

10.Wouldyouliketohaveaprojectwhichwillbebas edonaWebques t?

0% 0% 20,83% 62,50% 16,66%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

11.Wouldyouliketocooperatewithyourc las smates ?

11.Wouldyouliketocooperatewithyourc las smates ?

0% 16,66% 20,83% 62,50% 0%

1 2 3 4 5

0%

50%

100%

12.Wouldyouliketoworkonaprojectdoings omepairorgroupworkandpublis htheoutputonawebs ite(wiki,blogetc .);

12.Wouldyouliketoworkonaprojectdoings omepairorgroupworkandpublis htheoutputonawebs ite(wiki,blogetc .);

0% 0% 16,66% 20,83% 62,50%

1 2 3 4 5


313

13.IwouldliketopresentmyprojecttotheotherstudentswiththeaidofICTs

DimitraHasogia([email protected])isagraduateoftheDepartmentofEnglishLanguageandLiterature,AthensUniversityandworksasanEnglish

languageteacheratthe1stPrimarySchoolofMarkopoulo.SheholdsaMaster’sinEducation(M.Ed.)inTeachingEnglishtoSpeakersofOtherLanguages

(TESOL)attheHellenicOpenUniversity.Hercurrentscientificinterestsfocusmainlyonlanguagelearningandteaching,CLIL,innovativeteachingandICTuse

ineducation.

KosmasVlachos([email protected])isAssociateLecturerattheDepartmentofEnglishLanguageandLinguistics,FacultyofEnglishLanguageandLiterature,NationalandKapodistrianUniversityofAthensandteaches

EducationalTechnologyintheMastersPrograminTESOLoftheHellenicOpenUniversity.HeworkedasateacherofEnglishfor24consecutiveyears,serving

thelast8yearsofthattimeasaschoolprincipal,and,also,wasforaconsiderableperiodofthoseyears,ChairandViceChairofthePan-Hellenic

AssociationofTeachersoftheEnglishLanguage.

0%

50%

100%

13.Wouldyouliketopres entyourprojecttotheothers tudents inyours choolwiththeaidofIC Ts ?

13.Wouldyouliketopres entyourprojecttotheothers tudentsinyours choolwiththeaidofIC Ts ?

0% 0% 16,66% 62,50% 20,83%

1 2 3 4 5

exploring the implementation of clil-based science lessons

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