CLIL

1. CLIL
eTwinning Learning Event
“Teaching English differently”
Marina Screpanti
Italian eTwinning Ambassador

2.
CLIL
Content Language Integrated Learning
Content and Language Integrated
Learning is an umbrella term which
encompasses any activity in which
a foreign language is used as a tool in
the learning of a non language subject,
where both language and subject have a
joint role (Marsh 2002:58).
1995
First mention
of CLIL
1978
European
Commission
1996Council ofEurope

3. European Commission :
"Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), in which pupils
learn a subject through the medium of a foreign language……"
"CLIL refers to situations where subjects, or parts of subjects, are
taught through a foreign languagewith dual-focused aims, namely
the learning of content, and the simultaneous learning of a foreign
language".
"It [CLIL] provides exposure to the language without requiring
extra time in the curriculum".
"…an approach to bilingual education in which both curriculum
content (such as science or geography) and English are taught
together. It differs from simple English-medium education in
that the learner is not necessarily expected to have the English
proficiency required to cope with the subject before beginning
study".

5. Why CLIL?
CLIL can:
develop subject knowledge
increase intercultural awareness
develop FL ability
improve cognitive skills
prepare students for a wider job market
It provides exposure to language
without extra-time in the school
timetable

6. How many kinds of CLIL?
Different kinds of immersion: from partial to total where some,
most or all of subject content is taught through the target
language
Subject courses where curricular subjects apart from language
can be taught through the target language (specific classes with
CLIL approach)
CLIL language showers where there is a regular, short exposure to
CLIL usually in one subject area, delivered in the target language
for 15 or 30 minutes several times per week
Language classes based on thematic units with emphasis on
content
Double immersion programmes where two foreign languages plus
the mother tongue are used to teach the curriculum

7. CLIL PRINCIPLES
1Content matter is not only about
acquiring knowledge and skills, it is about
the learner creating their own knowledge
and understanding and developing skills
(personalised learning);
2Content is related to learning and
thinking (cognition).
3This language needs to be
transparent and accessible;
CHUNKS OF
LANGUAGE

8. 4. Interaction in the learning context is
fundamental to learning. This has
implications when the learning context
operates through the medium of a foreign
language. The relationship between cultures
and languages is complex.
5. Intercultural awareness is fundamental
to CLIL. Its rightful place is at the core of
CLIL.

9. What does CLIL expect to achieve?
The overall goals of CLIL can be wide-ranging but should
include:
■ Develop intercultural communication skills;
■ Prepare for internationalism;
■Provide opportunities to study content through
different perspectives;
■ Access subject-specific target language terminology;
■ Improve overall target language competence;
■ Develop oral communication skills;
■ Diversify methods and forms of classroom practice;
■Increase learner motivation.
These are often expressed as the ‘4Cs.

10. It gives opportunity to
learn the content through
different perspectives.
It leads to achieve a
deeper
understanding of the
subject
The key factor is the
emphasis on communication
and interaction. It focuses on
oral
communicative skills and
fluency
It promotes the
development
of thinking skills
CLIL can help develop
intercultural
communication and
learning about European
countries’ culture

11. 4C
Content: subject matter; progression in new
knowledge, skills and understanding.
Cognition: learning and thinking processes;
engagement in higher-order thinking and
understanding, problem solving, and accepting
challenges and reflecting on them.
Culture: developing intercultural understanding
and global citizenship; ‘self’ and ‘other’
awareness, identity, citizenship, and progression
towards multicultural understanding.
Communication: language learning and using;
interaction, progression in language using and
learning.

12. Cohexistence of L1 and L2
The use of two languages is not a factor for failure in
bilingual classes. Language strengths, not
limitations, come from the combination of both
languages under adequate pedagogic conditions.
Unsatisfactory results are due to inappropriate use
of teaching resources and methods.
The ‘dual iceberg’ hypothesis: knowledge tranfers
across languages, what has been learnt in one
language does not need to be learnt again, it just
need to find the words that best label this common
knowledge.
L1 L2

13. Advantages in students working
with CLIL modules
Listening and understanding, speaking,
reading;
Fluency and a large quantity of spoken
language;
Vocabulary;
Morphology;
Technical language (specific of each school
subject)
Creativity;
risk-taking;
collaborative skills;
development thinking skills (cognitional
development)

14. Motivation
Motivation may increase when ‘real
issues’ become the centre of study.
Learners who are interested in a
particular topic are motivated to acquire
language in order to communicate. So the
focus is not on language but there is a
huge language improvement.
Meaningful learning/
activities

15. Meaningful activities
Involving learners in whatever there is to
be learned seems to be the crucial point in
teaching. Learning can occur if learners are
involved in meaningful interaction with
others. The task for CLIL teachers, then, is
to enable learners to become engaged in
meaningful interaction in a foreign
language regarding topics and problems
posed by the curriculum of the subject.

16. TIPS
1) Always start from the pupils’ perspective (BRAINSTORMING)
2) Create opportunities for the integrated use of content and language
3) The final product must integrate language and content; it can be a
talk, a film, a poster, an interview, a mind map, a dialogue, a quiz, an
experiment etc. These products need to be seen, watched, listened to,
perceived by others, by classmates, teachers, parents or other pupils;
4) Use textbooks and texts written in the second language. These only
become too challenging if pupils do not learn how to work efficiently
with them. Specialist terms play a key role in subject texts.
5) Create opportunities for communication about the subject in the
second language in every lesson. Pupils can for example be asked to
discuss in pairs which aspects of the lesson they felt were most
important, providing arguments to support their views. This does not
take up much time, but brings major benefits. The introduction of
complicated specialist terms in a foreign language is easier when
illustrations are used.

17. Principles for successful and sustainable CLIL
teaching and learning (from Meyer 2010)
■ Rich input: classroom materials should be meaningful, challenging, and authentic, so
that new topics enhance motivation and link to prior knowledge. This may include
Video clips, flash-animations, web-quests, pod-casts or other interactive
materials on foreign language websites. Such materials can offer challenging tasks,
creative thinking and create opportunities for meaningful language output.
■ Scaffolding: it is a support students and enable them to accomplish a given task
through appropriate, supportive language production by providing phrases, subject-
specific vocabulary and collocations needed to complete assignments.
■ Rich interaction and pushed output: Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) should be
an integral part of CLIL teaching. TBLT focuses on bringing authentic communication
into the classroom. Authentic communication in tasks promotes negotiation of
meaning necessary and enables a greater depth and bandwidth of content learning.
■ Intercultural communication: students need to become aware of the hidden cultural
codes and the appropriate linguistic and non-linguistic means and strategies to
address them.
■Thinking skills: the intersection of content, cognition and language, the ability to
express complex thought processes appropriately. Cognitive skills are crucial and
systematic language work is of paramount importance when teaching thinking.
Students need to be shown how to express their thoughts in an increasingly complex
manner.
REALLY IMPORTANT !!!

18. Put in the right order: taxonomy game
http://en.educaplay.com/en/learningresources/
2284041/unscramble_taxonomy.htm

19. Bloom’s taxonomy
Blooms taxonomy (2).doc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ySwJpGIW-
s&feature=youtu.be

21. http://farr-integratingit.net/Theory/CriticalThinking/revisedcog-creating.htm
types of thinking.pdf
Table of cognitive skills-1.pdf
Thinking skills_UVIC-1.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvWZtiSfuo8
LOTS= Low order thinking skills
HOTS= high order thinking skills

23. Table 1 adapted from Anderson and Krathwohl,
2001

26. WHAT HAPPENS IN NORMAL FL
LESSONS?
Generally, in the normal FL lessons there
is insufficient exposition to the language.
Very often, in these lessons, the language
the children are exposed to is composed
precisely of the language items that are
to be. Thus the children are exposed to
language objectives rather than to
naturally-occurring language

27. What is LEARNING?
Learning is an active process of making
sense.
The starting point of playing CLIL is to see
learning as an active mental process of
making sense of the world. Learning aims
for understanding, for giving meaning to
experience. There are infinitely numerous
ways of experiencing the world and giving
meaning to it (e.g. from various
perspectives or affective states)

30. Scaffolding
Scaffolding is the process of supporting
students during their learning process and
gradually removing that support as your
students become more independent.

31. Scaffolding
Language and Learning
You can scaffold both the language as well as
the learning process of students.
Scaffolding a language can be done by
providing language frames or example
sentences (CHUNKS OF LANGUAGE)
Scaffolding learning can be done by
providing the step by step instructions for
the task ahead. This can also be an example
exercise

32. Language of learning/language for
learning/ Language through learning
Language of learning: It is the type of language that learners
have to acquire in order to be able to access the new
knowledge that is going to be introduced through the specific
content of the subject. It is language specific to the subject,
so it can be related to the genre. For instance, a CLIL lesson of
History would include terms and vocabulary related to houses,
clothes, customs, etc., together with descriptions and
generalizations and the use of, for example, the past tense.
Language for learning: It is the language that learners will
need to use during the lessons, so that they can develop and
do the tasks and activities efficiently. It is related to the
classroom language. This type of language would include a vast
number of examples.
Language through learning: It is the kind of language that
cannot be planned in advance and which will ‘emerge’ through
the learning process.

33. Resources and materials for CLIL lessons in the web
iTunes
You tube
Teacher tube: http://www.teachertube.com/
Teachers TV: http://www.teachers.tv/
Learning English (BBC): http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/
learningenglish/
Learn English (British Council): http://
learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/
English central: http://www.englishcentral.com/watch
Voxy: http://voxy.com/
Yappr: http://es.englishyappr.com/welcome/VideoList.action
Ted subtitles: http://www.ted.com/translate/languages/spa
Scoop.it: http://www.scoop.it/clil%20resources

34. Lesson planning has to take into account the
following aspects:
• choice of a subject content or a portion of it appropriate for the
age and included in the school curriculum;
• examination of children’s language proficiency and cognitive
skills required to deal with the content;
• consideration of children’s learning styles and multiple
intelligences;
• definition of content objectives in terms of what children will
learn or do;
• definition of language objectives in terms of receptive and
productive skills, academic language, functional language;
• choice of strategies to activate children’s background
experiences and prior learning (see “tuning in” activities in the
planning format);
• choice of appropriate activities aimed to facilitate language and
content learning, organise knowledge, develop higher-order
thinking skills (observe, recognize, locate, identify, collect,
distinguish, categorize, select, construct, etc.) and apply
knowledge to new;
• choice of outcomes

36. Tools for planning a CLIL
module/lesson
http://learningdesigner.org/

37. Lesson plan samples
http://www.onestopenglish.com/clil/
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/
teaching-kids/resources/clil
http://multidict.net/clilstore/

38. Some references
• Coyle, D., Hood, P., Marsh, D., (2010), CLIL: Content and Language Integrated
Learning, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• Coonan C.M., (2014), I principi base di CLIL, I Quaderni della Ricerca. Fare CLIL -
Strumenti per un insegnamento integrato di lingua e di disciplina nella scuola
secondaria, Torino, Loescher Editore.
• Marsh, D., Wolff, D., (2007), Diverse contexts – Converging goals, CLIL in Europe,
Peter Lang, Francoforte.
• Marsh, D., Mehisto, P., Wolff, D., Frigols, M. J.. (2010), European Framework for
CLIL Teacher Education: A framework for the professional development of CLIL
teachers, European Centre for Modern Languages, Graz.
• Marsh, D. (2013), The CLIL Trajectory: Educational Innovation for the 21st century
iGeneration, University of Cordoba.
• Mehisto, P., Marsh, D., Frigols, M.J., (2008), Uncovering CLIL, Macmillan.
• Serragiotto G., (2014), Dalle microlingue disciplinari al CLIL, Torino, UTET.
• Bentley, K., (2010), The TKT Course – CLIL Module, Cambridge University Press.
• Dale L., Tanner R., (2012), CLIL Activities. A resource for subject and language
teachers, Cambridge University Press.
• Last modified: Monday, 23 November 2015, 4:09 AM