Comparative research in multilingual urban primary schools indicates that the pedagogical and political goals of schooling may operate at cross-purposes.Classroom observations and teacher interview-discussions were conducted in classes for immigrant children in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the language of instruction is French, and in classes in Pretoria, Gauteng Province, South Africa, where children from many different language backgrounds are taught in English. Two main themes emerged: (1) Pedagogically, effective teacher-learner communication can break down when teachers are unaware of the roles that language and culture play in second language classrooms. (2) Politically, efforts to assimilate learners into new socio-cultural/political contexts sometimes take precedence over sound pedagogical practice, such as drawing on the linguistic and cultural repertoire that learners bring to the classroom. This on-going qualitative research underlines the importance of preparing pre-service and inservice teachers for the linguistic and cultural diversity they are bound to encounter in their classrooms, and of deepening their understanding of the influence of such diversity on the teaching-learning process.

This article stems from an on-going qualitative study of the ‘environment’ of Montreal’s elementary level welcome classes for new immigrant students (classes d’accueil), including teachers’ language attitudes and actual language practices in the classroom. Since the official language of instruction in Quebec is French, the classe d’accueil provides a unique setting for exploring many issues: how teachers look upon the linguistic and cultural diversity of their learners; how teachers negotiate their way between potentially opposing tensions-- to integrate newly arrived children into Quebec, and, to reinforce Quebec’s distinct cultural and linguistic status. By drawing on socio-cultural theory of language learning, this study explores the manner in which teachers might foster an inclusive learning environment in the classe d’accueil. Cet article est le résultat d’une étude qualitative en cours à l’école primaire qui analyse l’environnement des classes d’accueil pour nouveaux immigrants à Montréal. Elle analyse également les attitudes linguistiques et les pratiques langagières des professeurs dans la salle de classe. Comme la langue officielle de l’éducation au Québec est le français, ces classes d’accueil offrent un environnement unique pour explorer beaucoup de questions : comment les professeurs perçoivent-ils la diversité culturelle et linguistique de leurs apprenants, comment négocient-ils les tensions opposées, c’est-à dire comment font-ils pour intégrer des enfants qui viennent d’arriver au Québec en même temps que renforcer la particularité linguistique et culturelle de la province. Tout en se basant sur la théorie socio culturelle de l’apprentissage des langues, cette étude explore les différentes façons offertes aux professeurs qui encouragent la mise en place d’un environnement d’apprentissage inclusif en classe d’accueil.

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