Pedagogical and political encounters in linguistically and culturally diverse primary classrooms: examples from Quebec, Canada, and Gauteng, South Africa

Abstract

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.

Migrations et médiations des langues et des hommes : quel rôle pour la didactique des langues ?

“…Dans l'ensemble, le défi politique est formidable et des recherches supplémentaires sont nécessaires pour fournir des recommandations fondées sur des données probantes qui puissent aider les décideurs de l'éducation à trouver des moyens pour relever les défis et opportunités que le plurilinguisme des apprenants apporte aux systèmes éducatifs en Europe et au-delà (Herzog-Punzenberger, Le Pichon-Vorstman & Siarova, 2017). Pourtant, même dans des contextes où le multilinguisme est la norme, les salles de classe avec des apprenants très diversifiés sont encore perçues comme un défi qui n'est pas toujours abordé de manière adéquate, comme le montrent à la fois la séparation encore trop stricte des langues dans l'institution scolaire et académique ou l'évaluation souvent exclusivement abordée dans la langue dominante (Breton-Carbonneau et al, 2012). Le profond changement sociétal provoqué par les nouveaux schémas migratoires a créé le besoin de repenser le cadre de compétences-clés pour l'apprentissage tout au long de la vie au XXIe siècle et les approches d'enseignement des langues dans les écoles.…”

Investigating the cultural understandings of International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme teachers from a transcultural perspective

“…Studies such as that of Gholami, Kuusisto and Tirri (2015) compared teacher ethical sensitivities based on culture. Arthur (2002) and Breton-Carbonneau, Cleghorn, Evans and Pesco (2012) looked at cultural capacity in relation to teacher multilingualism. But such studies are relatively rare.…”

Exploring graduate teachers' perceptions of their praxis after an AELS course

“…While this course presented students with theoretical knowledge on bilingual education models and multilingual practices, current research suggests that most in-service teachers require an improved theoretical framework and practical grounding in order to teach plurilingual students (Breton-Carbonneau, Cleghorn, Evans & Pesco 2012;Cajklera & Hall, 2012). Despite research on bilingual education models and multilingual practices worldwide, there is limited literature within South Africa on how in-service AELS courses influence teacher praxis.…”