Develop your understanding of learning and teaching languages to explore the transformative role of languages in education. Create great teaching opportunities in your culturally diverse classroom. Today’s cultural diversity means there can be several languages in a single primary school classroom. That can pose a teaching challenge, but it also offers some great learning opportunities. On this four-week course from the University of Glasgow, you’ll learn how to maximise the advantages these situations offer whilst celebrating and supporting the languages within your classroom.
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Witness the transformative power of plurilingualism and pluriliteracies
Plurilingualism and pluriliteracies refer to the ability to switch between languages to communicate via speech or text. Even if primary school children are not fluent in every language in their classrooms, they can usually manage some degree of this switching.
On this course, you’ll gain important insights into how plurilingualism and pluriliteracies enhance both cognitive functions and classroom inclusivity.
Harness the learning power of language and cultural diversity
You’ll also learn how to use different language exchanges as scaffolds for more linguistic teaching, evaluating the aims of 21st-century language learning and developing your knowledge of language learning strategies.
By the end of the course, you’ll have a firm grasp on current language pedagogy and will feel confident in delivering effective, engaging lessons.
Develop shared resources along with language pedagogy
Throughout the course, you’ll also get to collaborate on resources and develop your own ideas.
You’ll be actively engaged from the moment you start, creating a better learning experience for you and ensuring you are able to create better language learning strategies and experiences for your students in turn.
Syllabus
Week 1: Plurilingualism and pluriliteracies
Week 2: Diversity
Week 3: Policy and Legislation
Week 4: Transformative Pedagogies
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Investigate the dynamic concept of plurilingualism
- Investigate how the role of pluriliteracies impacts on classroom learning
- Explore how to celebrate and support different languages within the classroom
- Reflect on the linguistically and culturally diverse society we live in today
- Evaluate the aims and approaches to language learning in Scotland, Europe and beyond
- Engage with current educational policy and model how to ensure progression in language learning
- Assess the transformative power of plurilingualism and pluriliteracies for all learners
- Develop an awareness of the transformative power of plurilingualism and pluriliteracies for all learners
- Evaluate classroom resources and develop an understanding of how to put policy into practice
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for students training to be primary school teachers, and for qualified teachers who want to develop their knowledge and understanding of language learning.
