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The Spanish case studies focus on three schools in Navarre, Northern Spain where the extremely low birth-rate and consequent falling pupil intake has led schools to use their bilingual programmes as a means of making their curriculum more attractive to parents, pupils and local government alike.The three schools chosen have been selected for the following reasons:
- The increasing importance of teaching in the Basque language
- The importance of French due to geographical location and cultural tradition
- The huge demand for English courses due to the prestige value attached English a world language
The studies examine different models of bilingual teaching in both private and state schools at primary and secondary level.
Spanish Case Study 1: Colegio Público García Galdeano
Over the past 2-3 years this state primary school (3-11years) has introduced a considerable proportion of teaching in English to the curriculum, beginning at the age of three. This initiative has effectively saved the school from closure by attracting financial support from the Ministry of Education in co-operation with the British Council and the local regional government.The school is now a fully accredited centre for running a pilot project that focuses on extra L2 lessons in preparation for the teaching of Art and Craft and later Science through the medium of English to ALL pupils.
COLEGIO PUBLICO GARCIA GALDEANO
(Public Schools, i.e. State School)
3 – 11 years
Innovative project: Learning of a Foreign Language (English L2) in Early Years
STAGE
AGE
WEEKLY SESSIONS
TEACHING PROCEDURES
PRE-SCHOOL
PRIMARY (1st Cycle)
3 years
5 hours
Adapt L1 curriculum Contents
4 years
5 hours
Story telling technique
5 years
5 hours
Story telling technique
6 to 7 years
English
5 hours
Create and adapt specific Materials
Arts through L2
1 hour
PRIMARY (2nd & 3rd cycle)
8 to 11 years
English
5 hours
Science through L2
Government funding has provided for the secondment of an English specialist together with the employment of an English native speaker.
Children aged 4 to 5 are taught using the Artigal method which is based on storytelling with the emphasis on pupils understanding language rather than producing it.
Between the ages of 6 and 7 Art & Craft is taught in English – something which demands much coordination and cooperation between the staff to ensure that:
- Teaching is pitched at the correct conceptual level
- Existing materials are exploited to the full and adapted for use in the L2
The pupils have a very positive attitude towards English, perhaps because they associate it with enjoyable activities.
The case study also deals with such issues as parental support, teacher supply, materials, selection of pupils and preparatory L2 teaching.
Spanish Case Study 2: Colegio San Cernin
This private school (3-18 years) was originally founded by a French religious congregation. It is now a parents’ cooperative and operates as a trilingual French/Spanish/English school. It has approximately 1800 pupils, all of whom are taught through the medium of a foreign language.Main subjects such as Spanish, Mathematics and Environmental Studies are taught in Spanish, while other subjects are taught within the framework of the following multi-lingual learning programme:
COLEGIO SAN CERNIN
(PRIVATE SCHOOL)
3 – 18 Years
Innovative project: Multilingual learning program (French, English, German)
STAGE
AGE
WEEKLY SESSIONS
TEACHING PROCEDURES
PRE-SCHOOL
3 to 5 years
12 + 12 hours
Partial immersion French (L2) / Spanish
PRIMARY
(1st Cycle)
6 to 7 years
French L2 (4 hours)
P.E. in French (2 hours)
Create and adapt specific Materials
English L3 (1/2 hours)
Arts (1 hr) Music (1 hr) & I.T. (1/2 hr) through English
PRIMARY
(2nd Cycle)
8 to 9 years
French L2 (4 hours)
Music (1 hr) & P.E. (2 hrs) through French
Create and adapt specific Materials
English L3 (4 hours)
Drama (1 hr) & Arts (2 hrs) through English
SECONDARY
12 to18 years
English (L3)
3 hours
Create and adapt specific materials
I.T. and P.E. through English (L3)
2 hours + 2 hours
Social Studies through French (L2)
1 hour
German as an optional subject
4 hours
The multi-lingual ethos of the school is reinforced by government-subsidised exchange visits to France, Germany, the UK and the USA. Such an exchange programme provides an excellent source of materials for the bilingual classroom.
The case study also deals with such issues as the history of the project, official approval, teacher supply and the selection of pupils.
Spanish Case Study 3: Paz de Ciganda Ikastola
This private Basque immersion school (3-16 years) was originally part of the Ikastola Movement that sought to promote Basque language and culture in the aftermath of the Franco dictatorship. It is now a parents’ cooperative and has approximately 1000 pupils who are all taught in the Basque language on a total immersion basis.English is also taught from the age of 4 with a view to it being used to teach content subjects (Technology, Art, Social and Physical Science, Geography and Music):
IKASTOLA PAZ DE ZIGANDA
(PRIVATE SCHOOL)
3 – 16 Years
Total immersion in Basque language (L2).
Innovative project: Learning of English (L3) in a total immersion model
STAGE
AGE
WEEKLY SESSIONS
TEACHING PROCEDURES
PRE-SCHOOL
3 to 5 years
4 half-hour sessions
Storytelling technique
PRIMARY
(1st Cycle)
6 to 7 years
4 sessions
Topic-based
PRIMARY
(2nd Cycle)
8 to 9 years
4 sessions
Topic-based
PRIMARY
(3rd Cycle)
10 to 11 years
4 sessions
Project work
SECONDARY
12 to16 years
English (L3)
3 hrs + 1 hr Social Studies through L3
Project work
French (L4)
2 hours
French will also be introduced next year on a similar basis. The School received the Sello Europeo award in 1998 for innovation in the teaching and learning of foreign languages. Teachers and parents welcomed the new project introducing English as L3. English benefits enormously from existing in-service training and resources provided through the Ikastolas Federation and from that provided by Artigal.
The case study also deals with such issues as official approval, policy documentation, the development of English tuition from the age of four with a view to its use in MBE in secondary school, teacher supply and materials.
Although the Spanish case studies illustrate three different models of bilingual education, it is possible to identify factors that are common to all:
- In most cases the teaching of content subjects through the medium of a foreign language is still in its initial stages.
- The use of the foreign language is regarded as functional, with few cognitive demands placed on the pupils.
- Finding suitable teaching materials can be problematic; necessitating the adaptation of existing Spanish materials or target language materials from the relevant country.
- There is a lack of teachers specialised in both the foreign language and the content subject and therefore a need for teacher training in bilingual education.
The fact that in Spain foreign languages are compulsory from the age of 8 can only benefit MBE in the future.
