Multilingual Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in the Social Sciences E-Book

Subin Nijhawan

• Herausgeber: ibidem
• Kategorie: Fremdsprachen
• Serie: Nota bene – Bilingualism and Intercultural Dialog
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Seitenzahl: 395

Beschreibung

This book is directed at both researchers and teachers with an interest to establish a multilingual and cosmopolitan culture within classrooms; it contributes to research in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) on multiple levels. The theoretical part sketches a conceptual framework with a competence model for the promotion of global discourse competence as the center of gravity for multilingual CLIL in the social sciences. Along the leitmotif of climate change, the construction of ‘cosmopolitan classroom glocalities’ for supporting learners’ 21st century skills is suggested. Besides defending design-based action research as a research method for bridging the gap between theory and practice, two empirical contributions from a German 10th grade CLIL classroom with English as target language make the preceding theoretical framework tangible. One chapter deals with more language-related issues, whereas the subsequent chapter takes a subject turn. At first, a comprehensive model for multilingual CLIL is presented. It builds on the novel concept of translanguaging, adapted to ‘trans-foreign-languaging’ for facilitating multilingualism as a daily norm. Thereafter, the model’s effect on political judgments is investigated. This chapter concludes in proposing the genesis of a ‘perfect equilibrium of emotional and rational learning’ for promoting empathy, solidarity, and justice within a democratic and transnational civil society.

Leseprobe

ibidem Press, Stuttgart

A Preliminary Remark about Text Conventions of the Single Chapters

This monograph was composed on the basis of a fully revised paper-based dissertation, consisting of a binding text, three journal articles and one book chapter. Chapters III-VI, each of them single articles, were reproduced in accordance with the conventions of the respective publisher. Thus, there are inconsistencies with e.g., title capitalization, because the publishers provided different style sheets. Furthermore, footnote numbering was started anew each chapter, to mirror the original source. In line with the monographic format, the book contains only one single bibliography, in accordance with the conventions of the American Psychological Association (“APA 6th“). The same style sheet was used within the binding text.

Abstract

This monograph contributes to research in content and language integrated learning (CLIL). Amidst the absence of any educational standards as well as other research deficits, Chapter II sketches a conceptual framework with a competence model for multilingual CLIL classes in the social sciences. It develops a line of argument for the promotion of global discourse competence for democratic participation within a transnational civil society. The subsequent four chapters, comprising one conceptual, one methodological and two empirical contributions, look at different aspects of the conceptual framework.

Chapter III defends the developed competence model and further specifies its idea of thought in proposing the construction of multilingual ‘cosmopolitan classroom glocalities’ for the genesis of 21st century skills. The example of #climonomics, a multilingual EU parliamentary debate about climate change, illustrates its practical realization within school education and exemplifies the contribution to education for sustainable development (ESD) and the value of democratic and participatory learning arrangements.

Chapter IV introduces design-based action research (DBAR), the method used in Chapters V & VI. DBAR is a hybrid of action and design-based research and is thereby ideally suited for bridging the gap of theory and practice in educational research. Chapter IV argues for closer cooperation between academics and practitioners, along with pragmatic stakeholder participation by involving students and teachers into research, in a quest for inductively making practical knowledge scientific.

Chapter V, more language-biased, draws on the notion of translanguaging and presents the concept of ‘trans-foreign-languaging’ as a multilingual approach to CLIL with first language (L1) use. During six weeks DBAR, a comprehensive CLIL teaching model with judicious and principled L1 use was designed together with the study group. The model offers affordance-based and differentiated methods for different learner types. Its genesis is reconstructed by a thick description of the natural classroom dynamics.

Chapter VI, rather subject-based, asks about the influence of such bilingual language use on emotions, in particular on the formation of political judgments. It suggests different ways to measure emotions during various natural classroom settings. The chapter concludes that CLIL with L1 use has the potential to engender a perfect equilibrium of emotional and rational learning, integrating emotions into learning and valuing its positive contribution towards appropriate and multilayered political judgments.

The concluding Chapter VII binds the previous chapters together and discusses the results. Criteria for the generalization of the results are assessed, and limits demarcated. It highlights the contribution to CLIL research and looks into the future, suggesting further direct classroom interventions, also with the goal to prepare the research field for larger undertakings.

Keywords: CLIL, content and language integrated learning, bilingualism, multilingualism, translanguaging, social sciences, emotions, DBR, design-based research, design-based action research, globalization, ESD, education for sustainable development, climate change, 21st century skills, sustainability

Zusammenfassung

Die vorliegende Monografie widmet sich dem Themenbereich des Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). Aufgrund nichtverfügbarer Bildungsstandards und weiterer Forschungsdefizite skizziert Chapter II einen Orientierungsrahmen mitsamt eines Kompetenzmodells für CLIL in den Sozialwissenschaften. In erster Linie wird die Förderung globaler Diskurskompetenz mit dem Ziel einer demokratischen Teilhabe innerhalb einer transnationalen Zivilgesellschaft geltend gemacht. Der folgenden vier Kapitel, in der Reihenfolge der Beiträge konzeptionell, methodisch und zweimal empirisch, behandeln verschiedene Aspekte des Orientierungsrahmens.

Chapter III gestaltet das Kompetenzmodell weiter aus. Die Erschaffung mehrsprachiger ‚kosmopolitischer classroom glocalities‘, so wird argumentiert, fördere die Genese von 21st century skills. Anhand des Beispiels von #climonomics, einer mehrsprachigen EU-Parlamentsdebatte zum Klimawandel, wird die praktische Umsetzung des Konzepts exemplifiziert und der Beitrag für eine Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung (BNE) im Sinne demokratischer und partizipativer Unterrichtskonzepte aufgezeigt.

Nachfolgendes Chapter IV führt in design-based action research (DBAR) als angewandte Forschungsmethode innerhalb Chapter V & VI ein. DBAR, ein Hybrid aus Aktions- und designbasierter Forschung, eignet sich besonders, um eine Brücke zwischen didaktischer Forschung und schulischer Praxis zu erschaffen. Eine stärkere Verzahnung durch eine pragmatische Inklusion aller Akteur*innen, d.h. Lernende und Lehrende, im Rahmen von Forschungsvorhaben wird vorgeschlagen, um praktisches Wissen induktiv zu verwissenschaftlichen.

Das eher sprachdidaktische Chapter V stellt auf Grundlage des Konzepts des Translanguagings einen Ansatz des trans-foreign-languagings zum mehrsprachigen Lernen innerhalb CLIL vor. Als Ergebnis einer sechswöchigen DBAR entstand ein umfassendes CLIL-Unterrichtsmodel mit systematischem und planvollem Einsatz der Erstsprache (L1), welches gemeinsam mit der Forschungsgruppe konzipiert wurde. Es beinhaltet affordanzbasierte und differenzierte Methoden für verschiedene Lerntypen. Dessen Entstehung wird durch eine dichte Beschreibung der natürlichen Unterrichtsprozesse rekonstruiert.

Chapter VI mit sachfachdidaktischem Schwerpunkt untersucht den Einfluss von bilingualem Unterricht auf Emotionen, und insbesondere auf die Fällung politischer Urteile. Verschiedene Verfahren, welche Emotionen während des regulären Unterrichtsgeschehens messen, werden präsentiert. Die Evidenz lässt vermuten, dass CLIL mit L1 möglicherweise ein perfektes Gleichgewicht von emotionalen und rationalen Lernprozessen fördert. Damit wird die herausragende Rolle von Emotionen während des Lehrens und Lernens und hinsichtlich der Genese eines angemessenen und mehrschichtigen politischen Urteils gewürdigt.

Die Schlussdiskussion in Chapter VII verbindet alle Ergebnisse der vorherigen Kapitel. Fragen der Generalisierung bzw. der Reichweite der Ergebnisse werden diskutiert. Der Beitrag zu CLIL-basierter Forschung wird herausgehoben sowie ein Blick in die Zukunft vorgenommen. Insbesondere wird ein Plädoyer für weitere direkte Interventionen in natürliche Lernumgebungen formuliert, auch mit dem Ziel das Feld für breitangelegtere Forschungsvorhaben vorzubereiten.

Schlagwörter: CLIL, bilingualer Unterricht, Mehrsprachigkeit, Translanguaging, Sozialwissenschaften, Emotionen, designbasierte Forschung, designbasierte Aktionsforschung, BNE, Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung, Globalisierung, Klimawandel, 21st Century Skills, Nachhaltigkeit

To my parents…

…for all their love, affection and support and everything else that cannot be expressed by simple words…

Contents

Abbreviations

Preliminary Remarks: Structure of this Monograph

Acknowledgements (...about saying THANK YOU!)

Chapter I

Introduction

Chapter II

…about global challenges and opportunities of the 21st century…

CLIL: a Door Opener to Globalization

Chapter III

…about the merits of cosmopolitanism…

The Construction of Cosmopolitan Glocalities in Secondary Classrooms through Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in the Social Sciences

Appendix A Selection of Tweets during the Main #climonomics Parliamentary Debate

Chapter IV

…about the science of practical knowledge…

Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice with Design-based Action Research

Chapter V

…about a potpourri of languages…

Translanguaging… or ‘trans-foreign-languaging’? A comprehensive CLIL teaching model with judicious and principled L1 use

Chapter VI

… about the virtue of emotions….

Finding the “perfect equilibrium of emotional and rational learning” in content and language integrated learning (CLIL) in the social sciences

Chapter VII

…about looking back in the future…

Discussion, Conclusion and Outlook

Bibliography

NB: The capitalization of chapter names reads inconsistent, because it was kept on purpose in accord with each of the journals’ conventions they were published in.

Abbreviations

AR

Action research

BICS

Basic interpersonal communication skills

CALP

Cognitive academic language skills

CLIL

Content and language integrated learning

DBAR

Design-based action research

DBR

Design-based research

DESI

Deutsch Englisch Schülerleistungen International (Assessment of Student Achievements in German and English as a Foreign Language)

DGFF

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Fremdsprachenforschung (German Association for Foreign Language Research)

EEC

European Economic Community

EMILE

Enseignement d ́une Matière par l’intégration d’une Langue Erangère (French counterpart of CLIL)

ESD

Education for sustainable development

EU

European Union

FFF

Fridays for Future

FL

Foreign language

GERM

Global Education Reform Movement

GND

Green New Deal

IQB

Institut zur Qualitätsentwicklung im Bildungswesen (Institute for Educational Quality Improvement)

KMK

Kultusministerkonferenz (The Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs in Germany)

L11

First language (the most dominant language of an individual)

L2

The target language in SL or FL teaching

LAC

Language across the curriculum

LIKE

Bedeutung der Erst- und Zweitsprache bei Lernern der Fremdsprache Englisch für die kooperative Bearbeitung textbasierter Lernaufgaben

Lx/LX

Any other language beyond L1 an individual possesses competences in

MBM

Mode-based model

MCALL

Multilingual computer assisted language learning

MuViT

Fosteringmultiliteracy through multilingual talking books

OECD

Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development

OPAC

University online public access catalog

OPOL

One parent one language

PBM

Phase-based model

PISA

Program for International Student Assessment

QDA

Qualitative data analysis

RBM

Role-based model

RD

Research desiderata

RQ

Research questions

S4F

Scientists for Future

SL

Second language

SOAS

School of Oriental and African Studies

TR

Teacher researcher

Trans-FL

Trans-foreign-languaging

UDHR

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

UK

United Kingdom

UN

United Nations

UNESCO

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

 

1 Within the single Chapters III-VI, L1 is at occasions used for German as official school language, in order to distinguish it from L2 English as the target language during bilingual teaching. I am fully aware that several students might have different L1. Remarks are made accordingly within the respective chapters.

Preliminary Remarks: Structure of this Monograph

This monograph is the result of a thoroughly revised paper-based dissertation that was compiled and written for fulfilling the requirements of the Regulations for obtaining the academic degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Dr. phil.) at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University Frankfurt am Main. It affiliates to my work within the PolECulE project of Goethe University Frankfurt, a joint undertaking of the Didactic Departments of English and Social Sciences (see the Introduction of Chapter I). I was deputed into that project with 50% of my regular teaching obligation as teacher at an ancient language grammar school in the State of Hesse for the subjects English and Politics & Economics. I mainly teach in the school‘s content and language integrated learning (CLIL) program in Politics & Economics (a detailed description of the program is available in Chapter V). As the spokesperson (Fachsprecher) of the program, I also hold responsibility for its evaluation and further development.

In total, this monograph consists of four separate papers (Chapters III-VI, in the following referred to by their respective chapter numbers), defining its very core. Furthermore, the binding text of the extended outline, comprising a more narrative introduction in Chapter I, a literature review (along with the delineation of research deficits) in Chapter II and a final discussion in Chapter VII, constitutes an integral part of the dissertation requirements. This overall structure mirrors the outline of a monographic dissertation.

The assembly of the paper-based part of Chapters III-VI, respectively, is as follows:

(1) a conceptual publication (Chapter III)

The Construction of Cosmopolitan Glocalities in Secondary Classrooms through Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in the Social Sciences

(2) a methodological article (Chapter IV)

Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice with Design-based Action Research

(3) and two empirical contributions (Chapters V & VI, respectively)

a) Translanguaging… or ‘trans-foreign-languaging’? A comprehensive CLIL teaching model with judicious and principled L1 use

b) Finding the ‘perfect equilibrium of emotional and rational learning’ in content and language integrated learning (CLIL) in the social sciences

Those contributions are all tied together by Chapter II, leading into the overall topic matter and delineating research deficits and desiderata, and by Chapter VII, discussing the results and providing an outlook.

To provide assistance to readers in constructing their expectations towards the submitted work at hand, going more into detail seems appropriate at this instance, in order to display the academic contribution and achievement of this monograph to the field of CLIL classes with a particular focus on the Social Sciences (specific subject name: Politics & Economics1). The introductory body of Chapter I delineates my very personal motivation of pursuing the overall project at first. It closely relates to me as a person and my work as a CLIL teacher in Politics & Economics, and the endeavor to bridge the gap between theory and school practice as a teacher researcher (TR). Chapter IV justifies the overall methodological approach, resulting in the empirical contributions of Chapters V and VI. Thus, to pinpoint beforehand, the writing style in Chapter I and parts of Chapter V, respectively, will be indeed very personal and narrative. At times it is very challenging, for involving the readers from the perspective of a TR, communicating that science can be made out of very personal contributions and thus should value the magnitude of practical knowledge.

Chapter II gives an overview about the research fields of this monograph. First, it approaches to review the CLIL experience of Europe and Germany, thereafter taking a subject focus on CLIL in Politics & Economics. This is followed by multilingual approaches to CLIL with mainly first language (L1) use. The chapter ends with research desiderata, addressed by the consecutive Chapters III-VI.

The conceptual account of Chapter III, the first published paper, presents the merits of CLIL in the subject Politics & Economics for promoting global discourse competence and engendering 21st century skills as panacea towards global challenges. Why does cosmopolitanism, synchronically rendering classrooms into glocalities, matter? What role does a bi- and multilingual approach with L1 use play for unfolding and evolving the full potential of CLIL in Politics & Economics? Chapter III already illustrates the established framework with a practical example for filling it with real meaning. #climonomics, a multilingual European Union parliamentary debate about climate change with about 200 students from all over Germany, intends to demonstrate that even highly idealized and romanticized theories can really work in practice.2

Chapter IV consists of a contribution to methods for school research, introducing design-based action research as my investigatory tool in a 10th grade CLIL classroom in Germany. Mainly, it adds to the mosaic of academic research and argues for stakeholder participation with the goal to construct a science of practical knowledge within pragmatic research designs. Here, one of the two reviewers had suggested to include an empirical example from past research. I followed that recommendation in including my lesson series from my teacher training thesis (2. Staatsexamensarbeit) about how The Simpsons can contribute to bilingual teaching in Politics & Economics (Nijhawan, 2013). It exemplifies the application of the method that has thereafter been used with the empirical research (Chapters V & VI).

The latter two chapters present the empirical research in line with the research aims and the research method of the preceding chapters. It is worth mentioning that climate change serves as exemplary leitmotif for global 21st century challenges, same as already with Chapter III. This approach underlines the conceptual argument of Chapter III about the transformative power of classroom glocalities. Chapter V has a clear language bias, challenging the notion of immersion within CLIL and seeking a multilingual approach with L1 use instead. It defines the very core of six weeks intense fieldwork in one of my CLIL classes in school. The ultimate goal was to develop a comprehensive CLIL teaching model with judicious and principled L1 use, amidst the repeatedly formulated need over the last decade to develop pedagogies how to integrate L1 into everyday teaching. In this context, the chapter explores the merits of translanguaging. Thereafter, looking beyond second language (SL) learning, it adapts the concept into a framework of trans-foreign-languaging (Trans-FL), enabling CLIL as multilingual approach for foreign language (FL) learning with L1 as an integral part. In the fashion of a thick description with mixed methods during the DRAR, the genesis of the comprehensive CLIL teaching model with judicious and principled L1 will be presented. A key characteristic is the stakeholder development of that model within the natural learning environment of the students, along with an affordance-based and differentiated approach.

Chapter VI, the second empirical contribution and final paper, looks at subject-based issues of CLIL. Till now, subject-based questions have only been marginally researched within CLIL, because it is mostly commissioned by language departments of universities, which logically focus more on a set of general as well as more language-specific issues. Here, from the side of Social Science didactics, the question in how far L1 integration into CLIL (as proposed in the preceding Chapter V) influences emotional and rational learning, ultimately causing different outcomes on political judgments, defines the center of gravity. In particular, the genesis of what I call a ‘perfect equilibrium of emotional and rational learning’, constitutes a focal point of the theoretical framework as a milestone towards more global justice and solidarity. This publication serves as an example of what could provocatively be called a ‘byproduct’, constructed from surplus data of the research. During the field research, I noted that students’ behavior in L1 appears different, more emotional, as compared to regular immersion we had used to practice before. Thus, the surveyed data was closely examined, in order to frame the argument accordingly, as the chapter elucidates. A developed coding scheme to analyze written texts whether arguments are either emotional or rational, and inflicted by rather self-interest or rather altruism, is applied on bilingual exams.

The discussion of Chapter VII, the last part of the binding-text, finally ties all results into one entity, showing the contribution to the field of research with the submitted scientific work, stating questions that deserve further investigation, and providing an outlook for potential further research in the field. Also, questions about the validity of the findings as well as generalization issues are asked on a more general level. The chapter ends with an outlook.

Every single paper of Chapters III-VI as such constitutes a closed entity, written as a single work product (mostly within the common structure introduction/problem—state of research/literature review—research question(s)—research method—data—discussion). Three papers (Chapters III, IV & VI) that have already been printed and published are an exact reproduction of the published version, also including journal-specific conventions. Only the figure and table numbering has been adapted to match the layout of this monograph, each chapter starting from new, also with the footnotes. Chapter V was published as the author submitted manuscript. It significantly differs from the author accepted manuscript that has been published recently. Each chapter’s title page is more detailed about the status of the respective paper.

Consequently, it is also but understood that there are inconsistencies in e.g., capitalization and a few other conventions, because the journals have their own policies. Moreover, certain theoretical and conceptual topics will be recurring throughout. The latter especially refers to the competence model that first appears in Chapter II already and has been introduced again in Chapters III & VI, respectively. Also, in a number of instances, papers had already been cross-referenced, again elucidating how they are interrelated to each other within my work of the PolECulE project, although they indeed cover a wide topic area. Topics not covered in the papers but requiring deeper attention will be dealt with in Chapter II. Reference to the single chapters will be taken whenever needed, to point towards the most salient results of the research and prepare the ground for the final discussion.

The monograph will now start with the acknowledgements, and thereafter lead into the topic, mainly from my perspective. Both parts explain why a more narrative style was adopted there.

1 The binding text speaks of Politics & Economics, for directly establishing the link to my research location. Within the following chapters, Social Sciences has been mostly used, in order to create a link towards the global debate.

2 Information about #climonomics, including a promotional video, the comprehensive media portfolio and the digital conference reader, can be accessed here: http://polecule.com/2019/11/05/climonomics-so-lief-unsere-mehrsprachige-eu-klimakonferenz-fuer-schuelerinnen-25-10-2019/. The digital reader was published in 2021 in a revised version (Nijhawan, Elsner, & Engartner, 2021a).

Acknowledgements (...about saying THANK YOU!)

“I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”—Albert Einstein

The motivation to remain engaged in this long-term project could have never been sustained without the intellectual exchanges, inspiration, help, support, friendship, love and affection from those many people who accompanied me for almost five years—people simply giving me a good time. How can one, for such a long time, endure the workload, stress, if not only for curiosity and passion for the topic? Everything here is about passion. And, inferring from Einstein, to be passionately curious, I would say, is a talent itself, because passion and the attached emotions transform to positive energy in motivation—if not dedication and humility—in the end, I would argue. To break it into one formula: it’s all about passion.

A doctorate—a strong character test, very much clear to anyone who has been through this process—is mainly the result not only of individual research, but of myriad debates and discussions, serving as a source of inspiration. This includes people from within the field with an emic perspective (ideally ‘better than you’), and people with other perspectives, offering the etic point of view. This multifaceted interpersonal contact was decisive for the heartbeat within this period, outspokenly enriching for my academic and personal development. Hence, many have become an integral part of this project, fully deserving to be eternized there.

Writing these acknowledgements, typically at the end of a project, helps to time travel back to the beginning of the project, once a singular idea, and retaking the emotional journey from this retrospective with an inner and outer smile. The order I name everyone here does not indicate any ranking, except the very first and the last ones. Obviously, let me start with Goethe University and my supervisor. Throughout, I have had a professional and very passionate relationship with Daniela Elsner. Not only did Daniela lead me the way back to academia, but also became a close friend within the long and intense time, a period we planned and carried out many projects pragmatically. I learned that not being better necessarily matters but being different, ultimately making the difference you want to see in this world! I could continue with the laudation forever here...! The relationship to my second supervisor has become very affectionate as well. Tim Engartner throughout was a person who offered me a special place in the Institute of Political Science. Our relationship can be characterized as that of two close friends, with similar philosophies, ideas, dreams and visions.

Back to university, I had deep intellectual exchanges with many interesting personalities. These include Judith Bündgens-Kosten, Matthias Eichhorn, Michael Gehrig, Mona Hasenzahl, Annika Janßen, Christine Junghans, Yvonne Karacic, Alexandra Kemmerer, Almut Küppers, Carina and Jan-Erik Leonardt, Viviane Lohe, Marc Meller, Helena McKenzie, Matthias Munsch, Heike Niesen, Lotte Schmerbach, Frank Schulze-Engler, Maria Skejic, Simon Spengler, Mariella Veneziano-Osterrath and Britta Viebrock. And, of course, I made countless contacts beyond Goethe University Frankfurt during the academic journey who inspired and influenced my work. Thanks to Miriam de Boer, Tilman Grammes, Celeste Neelen, Lorraine Nencel and Anke Wegner. The Scientists for Future Regional Group Frankfurt offered me a safe space for mutually deliberating on my climate-related projects with relevance to this monograph. I am particularly grateful to Norbert Dichter, Jürgen Eiselt, Angela Helbling, Bettina Knülle, Julia Krohmer, Thomas Seifert, Brigitte Suchanek and Georg Sebastian Völker.

My school was very supportive throughout, making the doctorate possible at all. Special thanks to Thomas Mausbach, Gerhard Köhler, Uwe Paulsen, Birgit Vollrath fromtheschool management.Many colleaguesdemonstrated their support, namely Beatrix Blell, Jan Czudai, Fatma Karaca, Anja Klobetanz, Heinz-Georg Ortmanns, Tomek Pawletko, Hendrik Raab, Jessica Rother and Aljoscha Schütte. From the students’ side, my special gratitude belongs to Jonas Singer,Vincent Börsch-Supan and Charlotte Wittich. My teacher trainers Christian Doiwa and Waltraud Kallenbach, of course, deserve special mention. Furthermore, I am grateful to the Ministry for Education in Hesse (Hessisches Kultusministerium) for issuing the permit without bureaucratic hassle, allowing me to proceed with the dissertation project. Special thanks to Ulrike Naumann for the important input I received from her side.

The following friends each have a special role within in this work—be it ‘old friends’ from childhood, SOAS or anywhere else… be it my daily life within my Frankfurt ’hood’… or from any other occasion, yet always very personal. Describing each individual’s role would indeed fill the volume of another book, and everyone individually knows, so I just keep it short and alphabetically: Procolino Antacido, Vivek Boray, Jochen Brähmig, Julian Culp, Franziska Dübgen, Enrico Dunkel, Vijay Eagala, Georgios Evangelou, Detlev von Graeve, Stefan Hantel aka Shantel, Michael Hauer, Anna Henrichs, Binu Joseph, Petra Klaus, Pedo Knopp, Marie Lall, Markus Lücker, Projit and Monjita Mukharji, Andy Nelson, Karin Rahts, Ezra Rashkow, Kristina Roepstorff, Itesh Sachdev, Katja Schmela, Kathrin Schmitt, Gunnar Schneider, Tim Schuster, Anne & Jan Schwarz, Nitin Sinha, Christoph & Ayesha Sprung, Alexander Theiss, Karim Touati, Jean and Sylvia Trouillet, Antje Witte and Marcel Zeitinger.

And now, last but definitely not the least, I will turn to the smallest unit, namely my family. Thanks to the support and motivating words throughout from my sister, Shobna Nijhawan, my brother-in-law, Michael Nijhawan, and Mayur, all living in Toronto, Canada, where I also completed parts of my work. But ‘back to Germany’: Sharmila and Shashank, or Chhammo and Bola, first living with me, now in Kronberg, have made our existence much livelier. Everyday some very strange, new and exciting story! They have wonderful company with my parents Veena & Subash Nijhawan. And the world wonderful says everything, this affection, and love. No wonder the PhD is dedicated to them, keeping in mind how we all had to struggle to become what we are in a ‘foreign country‘...

Chapter I

…about the teacher researcher and his motivation….

Introduction

“Non, rien de rien, Non, je ne regrette rien, Ni le bien qu’on m’a fait, Ni le mal, Tout ça m’est bien égal“ (Édith Piaf, 1956)

The ‘warning’ that this introductory part with the motivation for this monograph will be written very narratively and emotionally, indeed very challenging in its genuine writing style, has already been expressed. This includes a swift transition to the first person I, meaning to amplify the deliberately personal notch of the overall work. The motivation is strongly related to me having acted as teacher researcher (TR). Thus, the following part will contain elements of my curriculum vitae, for elucidating the project’s approach and idea, and my personal role within. It should help to partly enter my perspective as TR, also for the interpretation of the results along with their caveat. Balancing emic and etic points of views will become instrumental, as both constitute important parts of the mixed methods mosaic, here biased towards qualitative inquiry (Richards, 2003). To already announce at this point, there will be a sudden back transition of the writing style to a more academic and rational version, in parts with a persuasive language use when presenting this project’s significance for content and language integrated learning (CLIL) research as well as the research desiderata (RD) in Chapter II.

I am using the word ‘warning’ once again, already in this second paragraph—yet for another reason. What I will present in the following is science, based on research and facts. As one will univocally discover, I love science! On the one side, my work deals with multilingual education. But on the other side, in a twist of a subject turn, the selected leitmotif going through all chapters of this monograph is climate change. Ever since I grew up, I have been very concerned about the state of the environment and wanted to pursue a sustainable lifestyle, promoting the transition towards a society with an economy fostering active degrowth. Establishing the nexus of multilingualism with sustainably is among the core of this work, as climate change is real, and the human footprint immane. This is what science tells us, and immediate climate action is required. For that reason, I joined the Scientists for Future (S4F), supporting the cause of Fridays for Future (FFF), a glocal network of engaged young people with the quest for a sustainable society.

I am fully aware that this might be an unusual way for delineating the motivation for a monograph, but similarly believe that choosing this more personal notch highlights the overall project aptly and underscores the importance of TRs’ initiatives in the field of didactics overall, attempting to consolidate theory and practice, ultimately increasing the impact of the research. In a field like teaching, with emotions defining one of the cornerstones of teacher-student interaction (see also Chapter VI on CLIL and emotions), there is no harm in defying the odds and taking a higher risk at challenge. As a matter of fact, I felt very encouraged to proceed as suggested after a conversation with a leading Professor of Didactics of Romance Studies during my visit to the 28th Congress of the German Association for Foreign Language Research (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Fremdsprachenforschung—DGFF). The acclaimed researcher, personally rather disappointed with recent doctoral research in the designated area, strongly delivered his expectations towards coming PhD students to not desperately abide “to the rules of the game” but rather take risks and challenges as border walkers and rejuvenate the field, especially referring to freshly new and innovative methodological pathways. Only rebels, he literally (!) and firmly argued, lead to desired and needed progress and change.

About the Teacher-Researcher: Relevance of Previous Experience for the Research Project

The motivation for this research project is closely related to my professional experience as a teacher at a public secondary school with a focus on ancient and new languages, whereby I mainly teach in the school’s CLIL program in Politics & Economics. The research presented was planned organically, pragmatically and stakeholder-centered during the curricular section of environmental economics. This underlines the quest to inductively develop subjective views and beliefs as well as to make practical knowledge scientific in using rigorous methods. Such grassroots contribution to theory generation in the field of CLIL was also meant to deconstruct any rather elite notion of didactics that might be inherent within this field. As a matter of fact, Chapter IV adds fuel towards deeper theory-practice ventures in general with design-based action research (DBAR).

The overall vision I pursue at school, after a life journey rather off the common trail, amplifies the motivation for this project. Let us look at what, from the very beginning, brought me to the desk in the end writing these introductory lines. As gooey it may sound… but I have always been closely attached and attracted to all kind of sciences. Being more a generalist, with no specialized talent apart from being passionately curious, as the Acknowledgements hopefully revealed, my options for university after school ranged, broadly speaking, from Physics or Engineering to Sociology or Languages. Ultimately, I decided—influenced by my life as a so-called Third Culture kid with an Indo-US-American-German identity (look at all those hyphens!)—to pursue studies in the area of Social Sciences, with the endeavor to be engaged in an international working atmosphere. Maybe, this is the dream of many ‘naïve adolescents’, within the international organizational structure of the United Nations (UN)—hoping somewhere to find a bubble for my personal cosmopolitan comfort zone, a place and safe harbor for myself—for escaping parochialism, strangely as much as globalization visible at every corner. Chapter III will delineate the cosmopolitan approach this monograph takes.

So, it ‘just happened’ that my studies, having commenced at Free University Berlin, in the end brought me to the School or Oriental and African Studies (SOAS University of London). SOAS launched an episode of life I have been reminiscing about daily ever since. There, within a true microcosm, I was able to discover that ‘cosmopolitan unity in diversity’ is not only a utopian ideal followed by dystopian nightmares—but something that actually works! My goal to unite the world, recognizing diversity as positive driving force, became my personal vision, determining my endless idealism. This, of course, may sound maudlin, but science in the end is run by humans, and can be very personally and intrinsically driven as well, as opposed to the contrary ideal case yet very outdated models of homo economicus. Emotions matter, and they can be positive and productive, Chapter VI will show!

Before becoming a teacher, writing a PhD in the broad field of globalization and development studies had been an option. The idea actually matched with my endeavor to contribute to my personal cosmopolitan vision and provide my share for a better world. But, after tedious deliberation and being torn back and forth, I accepted an offer for a decent job in international development and project management at a big bank. This significant decision came along with seamlessly finding out that I want to try my hands on instead, within the ‘real world’. But everything that sounds decent comes with a heavy price tag attached, as part of the full package. My naïveté became visible for me latest now: I never expected that my ‘personal mission’ would in the end actually be restricted by the power of the global financial sector with de facto borderless movement of capital (and only capital, whereby human movement is still heavily confined by belonging and passports). In the retrospect, very fallacious thoughts that prompted me to take that decision, I was completely wrong here!

Full of disappointment, coming from a posh working atmosphere within a choir of fallacious beliefs about saving the world with business class trips in black suits, I thought it should be my personal vocation to enter education and become a teacher, there to foster ambitions for a peaceful and sustainable world, together with coming generations. Everything I learned in academia and practice should be subject to dissemination to the coming generation, I thought, to establish a juncture of classrooms with the real world, something I had outspokenly missed myself during my own schooling. Thus, I took a few more credits, to qualify for a teaching degree in the subjects English and Politics & Economics, at the same time accepting a part-time teaching job at a local school. Already, after my final oral exam, one examiner persuaded me not to exclude the option of a PhD, especially in the field of didactics, arguing that the body of knowledge and experience could prove very valuable for both academia and its transfer to practice. Moreover, he was optimistic about my prospects within the academic world, having a holistic view of me as a person.

Although I liked the idea—and even felt extremely flattered—I first decided to do my 21-month teacher training, to secure the teaching degree (security and freedom, or both?). Thereafter, I immediately received an offer from another school with a compulsory one-year CLIL program in Politics & Economics. Again, delaying the option of a PhD, I did not wish to surrender the opportunity, because the principal eagerly convinced me of the professional vision I could pursue, which was closely juxtaposed with my personal vision. And as a matter of fact, I quickly developed admiration and passion for teaching CLIL classes in Politics & Economics, because they deal with global challenges and opportunities of the 21st century, among that global climate education defining the center of gravity. Amidst the absence of any formal training for CLIL, not to speak about the non-availability of material or a long list of rules in an otherwise overregulated field, my classes mainly had an ‘experimental trial-and-error’ outline. This as a matter of fact matches my personal philosophy, as someone who rather likes to make own rules instead of obeying the same, thus perpetually challenging existing boundaries. In my CLIL classes at school, I was my own researcher in a liberal and hardly regulated space, with a curriculum only defining keywords as topic areas. Therefore, I had almost all the freedom to proceed as I believed it was correct. On the positive side, I also witnessed students’ behavior to be completely different as compared to ‘classical classes’ in either English or Politics & Economics. It was nice to deviate from regular, more formal arrangements—often in a ‘teaching-to-the-test-fashion’—and pursue rather experimental and thus creative teaching, with problem-oriented and cooperative settings. Furthermore, my reputation of a person acting in ‘English-only’ with all the students, also out of class time and during any other communication, causing spectacular reactions and a lot of applause also by parents feeling privileged, needed to be preserved, I concluded.

The first two years of bilingual teaching in the school’s CLIL program were driven by overt passion and happiness, resulting in a new form of intrinsic motivation, because I believed I had finally found what I had been looking for. During this time, many questions from my nature or talent of being ‘passionately curious’ had developed, keeping me busy throughout during reflection and replanning, and honestly for long nights. These questions were both on the language and subject side. In a more colloquial tone, not yet in the fashion of formal academic research questions (RQs), the most seminal questions I had were:

Language:

Why is it actually called bilingualer Sachfachunterricht at all, although immersion is a common practice? So, what role should the official school language German play, and how can it be incorporated systematically into lessons? Or, on a more banal level: how do you actually teach bilingually?

Why, as I could note at certain instances, do students all of a sudden struggle to even have informal conversations in German about topics taught during immersion? Often, they would refer to the terminology in English, the target language (L2) and in most cases also a foreign language (FL), almost rendering anglicisms ‘cool’ during a naturally-feeling language mesh-up. How can real bilingual education possibly be an answer to this problem, without compromising on FL learning?

As the CLIL program was meant for all students, and not solely designed for a comparatively homogeneous elite easier to teach: how can weaker students as well as students having different resources, be promoted and enjoy the benefits of the unique pedagogy? How to include them on eye level into regular classroom processes?

Subject:

What potential do CLIL lessons in Politics & Economics, with its globalization-related curriculum, have to prepare students for their future in a transnational civil society, realizing the role of English in our globalized world?

Why is a CLIL approach for subject education in Politics & Economics with English as L2 so important, realizing our 21st century challenges?

Can CLIL promote cosmopolitanism from below, along with empathy, global justice and solidarity within such a framework?

Does the FL use influence students’ decisions, owing to the merits of FL didactics with its potential for perspective changes, empathy, etc.?

Can a CLIL approach, as it appeared to me, actually be a precursor for education for sustainable development (ESD), first and foremost for combatting climate change?

Mainly, the how within the questions dominates, and amplifies the personal and rather explorative and action research (AR)-based approach with its focus on practical pedagogies. This is quite diametrically opposed to the recent growth of large-scale quantitative undertakings (Aljets, 2014). In general, I took the time to address such questions and to perpetually set small research aims during planning the lessons. My ambition consisted of developing subjective theories, but solely for improving my own classes in the fashion of a reflective practitioner (Schön, 1983)—so just for me and myself. Often, this included student surveys (using e.g., Moodle) and classroom feedback. The degree of reflectivity evident from students’ responses deeply impressed me. I was stunned what input students were able to give on such meta- and on subject questions, in their own language, insinuating original and reflective ideas. I learned that students were able to participate in all of such debates, without prejudice, often very emotional and ardent yet reflective and passionate, hence more genuine than adults in most instances.

But I missed the space of discourse to systematize and disseminate my impressions and create theoretical approaches from my knowledge and the small empiricism, something ‘grander’, also recognizing that every learning group and every context is distinct in the end. It happened, that after two years, finally, a professor I had remained in touch with after university in Frankfurt (thereafter becoming the supervisor of my dissertation) called me a late Friday afternoon. We met outside for a wine, and I learned about her plan to establish the PolECulE project. She formulated the need for experienced personnel with practical teaching and management experience—and the skills to systematize and theorize such experience for making them scientific, and in turn back-transfer didactic research to school. I talked to my principal who himself was enthusiastic about the overall idea and the positive prospects for the school of being part of such a novel initiative. I applied for the 50% deputed position and was later successful during the competitive job interview. Indeed, I could not wait to start to bring in my experience from school for the success of the ambitious and important project, and, inter alia, to look at the aforementioned questions also from an academic point of view (see Chapter II), with relevant departmental support. As a matter of fact, it was just the spirit and passion I have described here that constituted my motivation and interest for this research project.

From now on, my job was defined to inductively contribute to theory development in academia, in close conjunction with my remaining 50% teaching obligation at school. In other words, a part of the terms defined to use my classroom as research field and thus contribute to theory-generation of CLIL didactics in Politics & Economics. Quid pro quo, the school at first would receive innovative teaching concepts and material for the further development of its CLIL program. For me, it was important that, during my work with PolECulE, I would continue teaching at school and yet again occupy an in-between space, in order to consolidate academic didactic research with school practice, embodied within me as future TR. I wanted to contribute to real change with theories that work in practice yet stay down to earth—all in line with the philosophy of the PolECulE project.

PolECulE: Consolidating Theory with School Practice

The PolECule project of Goethe University Frankfurt, a joint undertaking of the didactic departments of English and Social Sciences, was founded as an initiative for contributing to research and development in CLIL in the Social Sciences. The hitherto absence of educational standards for CLIL—neither general nor subject specific for Politics & Economics—defined the starting point for developing a conceptual framework with an integrated competence model. This includes the capturing any of its language and subject-specific bilingual surplus. The ending of Chapter II presents the competence model and its conceptual idea of thought.

In a nutshell, the philosophy of the project can be described to raise awareness for a cosmopolitan outlook on our global 21st century challenges, inter alia, climate change and poverty & inequality. Such 21st century challenges are always political, economic and cultural (e.g., climate change, the leitmotif of three of the four chapters). In line with the philosophy of problem-based learning (Barrows, 1996) and its close nexus to 21st century skills (Trilling & Fadel, 2009), PoleCulE designed concepts and material for the promotion of students’ skills for the analysis of facts and their later participation in a global culture of debates in English and beyond. This approach means to make everyone recognize that there are many different points of views and pathways to work towards abating 21st century challenges. In the end, this is constitutional for agency within a democratic and transnational civil society, supporting approaches towards ESD within the framework of global justice and solidarity. The need to rejuvenate democracy in the 21st century has become apparent especially within the last years, mainly in a quest to counter recent trends in populism, renationalization and chauvinism, threatening global peace and sustainability as a whole.

For this first phase of PolECulE, not only theoretical thoughts in general, but in particular the experience from practice was highly relevant for the development of the full-fledged conceptual framework (published in Elsner et al., 2019, along with methodological advice and a teaching example). The second phase of the project was scheduled to directly intervene into classrooms, using material and teaching methods that had been developed in line with the conceptual framework. After developing an agenda—parallel at university and in school—the research was carried out. I fused AR and design-based research (DBR) into design-based action research (DBAR), amplifying the need for collaborative research between theory and practice, in the end personified in me as TR (see above and Chapter IV). Figure 1 sketches the proceedings of the PolECulE project.

Figure 1 illustrates the proceeding of the PolECulE project.

Thanks to PolECulE, I had the opportunity to address the aforementioned questions, inter alia, also from an academic point of view, in context of international CLIL research. The stakeholder research, led by me as TR together with my students, meant to contribute to the further development of CLIL teaching. I collected data and generated new theories. In a nutshell, the work can be called ‘making a science of practical knowledge from teaching at school’. Not only was I able to present my work at conferences and other occasions, but also I could fruitfully exchange with other scholars. I was able to make my research, coming from my regular teaching obligation, available to a wider audience through publications (both academic as well as for school practice) and through teacher training workshops. In other words, I presented scientific findings from teaching practice in a consolidation effort of these two de facto two often very distinct fields. The main results will be presented in Chapters III-VI, and discussed in Chapter VII, where I will unambiguously expound the contribution to science and CLIL research.

Looking back, I cannot be more grateful for this opportunity to have been part of the PolECulE team. To sum up the journey: it was a very personal and maybe also in parts unusual journey, which I believe has strongly influenced my working ethics during researching and writing, so my overall intrinsic motivation. I want to clearly state that the research project was a very emotional endeavor, driven by passion, as this introduction hopefully elucidated. This is, at least in my case, equally relevant for teaching, researching, and at every other instance, in the end to make science a human endeavor as well. This journey, with the temporary halt to submit this research project, has made me what I am now, while I tend to chant the famous words of Edith Piaff: “je ne regrette rien”. So everything made sense in the end, maybe it was Karma. And I can already say: more will come…

Now, the next chapter has the announced back swift to a more rational writing style. My motivation, mainly coming from personal interests during the practice of teaching, was meant to not only solve ‘my problems’, but, since joining PolECulE, was now embedded within a larger context in CLIL theory and research. Hence I was motivated to follow the rules of the game of science, although I must admit it was not always easy for me as not only a pragmatic border walker but rather the typical border crosser. The next chapter, after presenting the genesis of CLIL in Europe and its practice in Germany, mainly looks at two different fields of research, namely CLIL in Politics & Economics and CLIL and multilingualism. I will thereafter conclude the chapter with academic RD, ultimately leading to the paper-based section. It will not be difficult to realize that the RDs and the formal RQs of the single papers have a close proximity to the questions addressed at the beginning of the chapter, again showing that teaching and research may define two sides of a coin, nevertheless on the same coin.