“Das bin ich...”: Corporeality and early German language education in (Slovak) kindergarten

Abstract

This paper, based on ethnographically obtained data, discusses German language acquisition at an early age: the discovery of the interconnection between language and corporeality is the key component of the analysis based on videostudies. The body—conceived as an intermediary and content element of education, becomes an essential base for foreign language acquisition. This will be documented by tangible data and subsequent theoretical analysis with respect to relevant terminology of cultural anthropology (Körper and Leib). The principle of corporeality is further used as a means of perceiving German language education in the sense of the so called language propaedeutic concept and as a means of the legitimisation of particular qualification and the role of foreign language teachers in preschool institutions.

The effects of foreign language programmes in early childhood education and care: a systematic review

“…Another programme design topic for foreign language ECEC is teacher competence. In several studies, teachers had not received specific training for teaching foreign languages to young children, or had little experience with foreign language teaching (Andúgar & Cortina-Pérez, 2018;Kaščák et al, 2012;Lugossy, 2018). Based on interviews with 32 English teachers in an English-Spanish preschool in Spain, Andúgar and Cortina-Pérez (2018) noted that there appeared to be a shortage of teachers who were specialised in the ECEC age group and were able to provide high-quality input and keep children engaged.…”

“…Routines might not only be a useful tool for developing language competence in the second language, but also aid understanding and predictability. This became apparent when teachers did not stick to their routines (Björk-Willén, 2008;Kaščák et al, 2012), for example in a study in a multilingual preschool in Sweden, where Swedish was the main language, and English and Spanish language groups met four times a week (Björk-Willén, 2008). The children who participated (n=24) were aged 3-5 years and came from diverse different home language backgrounds.…”

“…foreign language only, or strict forms of one-teacher-one-language) on language development, motivation, wellbeing, and social relations (Alstad & Tkachenko, 2018;Caporal-Ebersold & Young, 2016;Sun et al, 2015). Moreover, various studies reported that teachers in foreign language ECEC programmes were not necessarily experienced or educated for this goal and age group, which sometimes decreased input quality and programme outcomes (Andúgar & Cortina-Pérez, 2018;Kaščák et al, 2012;Lugossy, 2018). In terms of teacher strategies and practices, the studies identified the following factors as conducive to foreign language development: employing scaffolding techniques and the home language when they can aid learning and wellbeing, and using meaningful, enjoyable, context-based activities such as games, stories, and routines (Albaladejo Albaladejo et al, 2018;Alstad & Tkachenko, 2018;Andúgar & Cortina-Pérez, 2018;Björk-Willén, 2008;Elvin et al, 2007;Fleta Guillén, 2018;Lin, 2012;Lugossy, 2018;Sun et al, 2015).…”