On a journey with a multilingual student!
On a journey with a multilingual student is a website developed for pre-service and in-service teacher education. We aim to offer perspectives on multilingual students’ school lives and how teachers of various subjects and at all educational levels can facilitate all students’ agency and belonging in the school community while supporting their multilingual identities.
We provide tools for observing, following and supporting students’ skills (e.g. language skills and relationship skills, study skills and skills in everyday interactions). We also provide pedagogical models for deepening the learning of content knowledge through the support of students’ multilingual and
multimodal resources and an integrated approach to language and content learning.
Language-aware pedagogical practices support all students’ learning, not just those whose language of schooling is developing in its early stages. Regardless of the native language, all students are learning subject language and literacy skills in the classroom. Particularly those who have challenges in reading, writing or oral interaction benefit from timely support. Recognizing students’ needs for literacy support in learning various cognitively complex contents facilitates both their learning skills and motivation to engage in the classroom community.
On a journey with a multilingual student is a simplified version of its full version published in Finnish. In this English sister page, we provide you the following four video animations:
A multilingual student as an equal at school (length 23 min)
How should we support multilingual students in mainstream classrooms? A still-image of Hardi, a twelve-year-old multilingual student, serves as an example. As a teacher, you would do best to think of Hardi in a grander scheme of things: think of his background and experiences in school and in life in general. This way you’ll be able to coach him towards future education, working life, and active participation in the community he’s in.
Three key points for supporting multilingual students:
- Get to know your student!
- Identify your student’s skills!
- Support participation!
Collaborate with colleagues – don’t try to make it on your own!
Skills in participation and social interaction (length 8 min)
A fourfold matrix with skill descriptors is used to describe how teachers can observe and follow students’ different branches of skills in participation and social interaction. Hardi, a twelve-year-old multilingual student, serves again as an example.
The fourfold matrix describes Hardi according to:
- how independently he functions and to what extent he needs the guidance of teachers and classmates and
- what kinds of situations he can participate in. Concrete situations are often familiar and connected to everyday life, whereas abstract themes include for instance the contents of different subject matter.
Skills in oral comprehension (length 4 min)
A fourfold matrix with skill descriptors is used to describe how teachers can observe and follow students’ different branches of skills in oral comprehension.
Skills in reading comprehension (length 7 min)
A fourfold matrix with skill descriptors is used to describe how teachers can observe and follow students’ different branches of skills in reading comprehension.
Questions and comments are welcome to:
eija.aalto@jyu.fi & sanna.s.mustonen@jyu.fi
Cite the website in the following way:
Aalto, E., Mustonen, S., Järvenoja, M. & Saario, J. (2019). Monikielisen oppijan matkassa. Verkkosivusto opettajankoulutukseen. [On a journey with a multilingual student. Material for teacher education.] University of Jyväskylä, Department of Teacher Education. Retrieved from https://monikielisenoppijanmatkassa.fi
