This paper presents a study in which primary, secondary and tertiary CLIL teachers, teacher educators and researchers used video observation and joint reflection to explore and develop classroom interactional practices for integrating content and language. Implications for the content and processes of teacher education for CLIL are discussed.
In most teacher education contexts it is considered essential that teachers reflect on their own practices. However, reflection to be effective needs real data and a shared metalanguage (Mann & Walsh 2017). In CLIL/immersion teacher education, a key challenge is supporting teachers to maintain a dual focus on content and language in classroom interaction. This requires a shared metalanguage with which CLIL/immersion teachers can describe their interactional practices, identify areas for improvement, and collaborate with others (peers, teacher educators, researchers) in taking appropriate action. One tool for facilitating this process is video-enhanced observation (VEO), a software application which allows teachers to record and tag classroom interactions and share them in a learning community (Haines & Miller 2016). We report on a project in which primary, secondary and tertiary CLIL teachers, teacher educators, and researchers combined VEO with Walsh's (2011) SETT framework for exploring and reflecting on classroom interaction. Our findings show that CLIL practitioners used shared metalinguistic terms to reflect on their own, and their peers’, performances. However, there were differences in the aspects of practice each group focused on and we found that the framework needed considerable adaptation for use in CLIL contexts. We also found that despite differences reflecting the concerns of primary, secondary and tertiary teaching, there was common ground regarding aspects of interaction important for content and language integration, which we argue has implications for building a knowledge base for CLIL/Immersion teacher education across educational levels. References Haines, J., & Miller, P. (2016). Video-Enhanced Observation: Developing a flexible and effective tool. In M. O’Leary (Ed.), Reclaiming lesson observation: Supporting excellence in teacher learning (pp. 127-140). London: Routledge. Mann, S. & Walsh, S. (2017). Reflective Practice in English Language Teaching Research-Based Principles and Practices. London: Routledge. Walsh, S. (2011). Exploring classroom discourse: Language in action. London: Routledge.
