Language Assistants’ Expectations Towards their Role and Main Functionsthe Case of Madrid’s Bilingual Schools
-
1
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
info
- 2 Universidad a Distancia de Madrid (UDIMA)
ISSN: 1697-7467
Año de publicación: 2020
Número: 33
Páginas: 95-109
Tipo: Artículo
Otras publicaciones en: Porta Linguarum: revista internacional de didáctica de las lenguas extranjeras
Resumen
Language Assistants (LAs) are nowadays part of the faculties of those schools oriented towards an improvement in foreign languages across the world. In Madrid, LAs have been part of the school staff since the implementation of bilingual programs in 2004 (Consejería de Educación e Investigación, 2017). Their role and main functions, however, have not always been clear (Tobin & Abelló-Contesse, 2013) and, as a result, LAs have been greatly underestimated. In this paper, their perceptions are analysed to provide recommendations on how to improve their participation in bilingual programs. The participants (n=106) responded to a questionnaire adapted from Buckingham (2016) about their role and main responsibilities at Madrid’s bilingual schools after some years of the program implementation. Responses show evidence of how LAs’ perceptions differ from the recommendations provided in the guide issued by Consejería de Educación especially on responsibilities, assessment and teachers’ support
Referencias bibliográficas
- Anghel, B., Cabrales, A. & Carro, J.M. (2016). Evaluating a bilingual education program in Spain: The impact beyond foreign language learning. Economic Inquiry, 54(2), 1202-1223.
- Banegas, D. L. (2012). Integrating content and language in English language teaching in secondary education: models, benefits, and challenges. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 2(1), 111-136.
- Buckingham, L. R. (2016). The role of language assistants in a bilingual primary school: theory, practice and recommendations (Unpublished Thesis). Universidad de Alcalá, Spain.
- Consejería de Educación e Investigación (2017). Madrid, Comunidad Bilingüe 2016-2017. Madrid: Consejería de Educación e Investigación. Available from: http://www.madrid.org/bvirtual/BVCM016362.pdf, accessed 18 February, 2018.
- Clegg, J. (2007). Analysing the language demands of lessons taught in a second language. Revista española de lingüística aplicada, extra vol. 1, 113-128.
- Dafouz, E. & Hibler, A. (2013). ‘Zip your lips’ or ‘Keep quiet’: Main teachers’ and language assistants’ classroom discourse in CLIL settings. The Modern Language Journal, 97(3), 655-669.
- Dirección General de Innovación, Becas y Ayudas a la Innovación (2017). Guía del auxiliar de conversación de la Comunidad de Madrid curso 2017-2018. Dirección General de Innovación, Becas y Ayudas a la Innovación. Available from https://comunidadbilingue.educa2.madrid.org/web/educamadrid/, accessed 18 February, 2018.
- Draemel, A. (2014). You and your ‘auxiliar’. Tips on co-teaching. Paper presented at the TESOLSpain 37th Annual Convention, Madrid, 7th-9th March 2014.
- Durán-Martínez, R. & Beltrán-Llavador, F. (2016). A regional assessment of bilingual programmes in primary and secondary schools: the Teachers’ Views. Porta Linguarum 25, 79-92.
- Gao, F. & Shum, M. S. K. (2010). Investigating the role of bilingual teaching assistants in Hong Kong: an exploratory study. Educational Research. 52(4) 445-456.
- Gerena, L. & Ramírez Verdugo, M. D. (2014). Analyzing bilingual teaching and learning in Madrid, Spain: A Fulbright scholar collaborative research project. Gist: Education and Learning Research Journal, 8, 118–136.
- Halbach, A. (2008). Una metodología para la enseñanza bilingüe en la etapa de primaria. Revista de educación, 346, 455-466.
- Lasagabaster, D. & Ruiz de Zarobe, Y. (2012). CLIL in Spain: Implementation, results and teacher training. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
- Lavery, C. (2003). English language assistant manual. British Council.
- Llaneza, J.A. (2016). El ayudante lingüístico en los primeros años de la implantación de un programa AICLE y su proyección en el aula de primaria. (Unpublished Thesis). Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain.
- Consejería de Educación, Juventud y Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid (2017). Guía del auxiliar de conversación. Retrieved from https://comunidadbilingue.educa2.madrid.org/ web/educamadrid/principal/files/8c5dec3a-4665-4b9d-a373-46ab12fbef6b/Documentos/GUIA_CENTROS_24SEPT.pdf
- ORDER 2670/2009, dated 5 June regulating the activities of the Language Assistants chosen by the Ministry of Education and the Commission for Cultural, Educational and Scientific Exchange between Spain and the United States of America at state educational centers in the Community of Madrid.
- ORDER 2126/2017, dated 15 June, Consejería de Educación, Juventud y Deporte, regulating the extension of the bilingual program to the second cycle of infant education in the state bilingual infant and primary schools in the CAM.
- Sutherland, S. (2014). Team teaching: Four barriers to native English speaking assistant teachers’ability to model native English in Japanese classrooms. Asian EFL Journal, 16(4) 156-180.
- Tobin, N. A. & Abelló-Contesse, C. (2013). The use of native assistants as language and cultural resources in Andalusia’s bilingual schools. In C. Abelló-Contesse et al., Bilingual and multilingual education in the 21st Century (p. 203-30). Multilingual Matters,
- Vescan, I. & Vitalaru, B. (2017). Evaluating teaching experience as language assistants: analysis of cultural factors and challenges/difficulties. Paper presented at the III International Colloquium Language, Culture, Identity. University of Soria, Spain.