Gerard Westhoff

An Observation Tool for Effective L2 Pedagogy in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL)

In Europe, Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is becoming a popular and widespread practice of immersion education. In the Netherlands, for example, over 90 secondary schools offer a CLIL strand. Most CLIL teachers, however, are nonnative speakers of the target language, and do not have a professional background in language pedagogy. How, then, can these teachers effectively contribute to the target language development and proficiency of their students? In this paper we will discuss the findings of a study carried out in three secondary schools offering CLIL. The purpose of the study was to observe and analyse effective CLIL teaching performance facilitating language development and proficiency. The analysis was carried out by means of an observation tool for effective CLIL teaching, based on the following principles from second language pedagogy: (1) exposure to input; (2) content-oriented processing; (3) form-oriented processing; (4) (pushed) output; and (5) strategic language use. We will discuss how the CLIL pedagogy observed is related to content-based teaching and task-based language teaching, and provide recommendations for effective language pedagogy in CLIL. We will argue that not only CLIL teachers can profit from effective language-pedagogical approaches, but that language teachers can profit from effective CLIL approaches and experiences as well.

A qualitative analysis of language learning tasks: the design of a tool

This study outlines the construction of a tool to enhance the competence of foreign language teachers in estimating the effectiveness of language‐learning tasks. Five assumptions basic to second‐language acquisition are crucial to the design of the tool. Subsequently, drawing on insights from cognitive psychology about information‐processing, a category system of learning activities is developed. This description holds clues to the nature of the mental actions carried out in the working memory. After presenting two tasks to demonstrate the tool, its contribution to the enhancement of the teacher’s competence in estimating the learning impact of language‐learning tasks is discussed.

The multi-feature hypothesis: Connectionist guidelines for L2 task design:

This study focuses on the effects of task type on the retention and ease of activation of second language (L2) vocabulary, based on the multi-feature hypothesis (Moonen, De Graaff, & Westhoff, 2006). Two tasks were compared: a writing task and a list-learning task. It was hypothesized that performing the writing task would yield higher retention and ease of activation of the target words than performing the list task. Translation tests and picture description tests were used to measure acquisition of the target vocabulary. Think-aloud protocols were used to study task performance. Results show that the writing group significantly outperformed the list group on both test types and on both direct and delayed tests. These findings are discussed in the light of task design characteristics and the issue of time on task.

STRATEGIES IN LEARNING AND USING A SECOND LANGUAGE. Andrew D. Cohen. London: Longman, 1998. Pp. xi + 295.

Most of the contents of this book were published separately but have been substantially revised and updated for this volume. Although the book is primarily intended for language teachers and researchers, the publisher recommends it also to undergraduate and postgraduate students. For that purpose, attractive and probably effective discussion questions and activities have been added to each chapter.