Pedagogical and political encounters in linguistically and culturally diverse primary classrooms

Examples from Quebec, Canada, and Gauteng, South Africa

Bibliographic Data

ID5801459
AuthorsGabrielle Breton-Carbonneau (Concordia University), Ailie Cleghorn (0000-0001-7458-8802, Concordia University), Rinelle Evans (0000-0003-3892-3479, University of Pretoria), Diane Pesco (0000-0002-5982-048X, Concordia University)
Year2012
Volume42
Issue3
Pages373-391
Publication date2012-04-19
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueCompare A Journal of Comparative and International Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0305-7925 • E-ISSN: 1469-3623
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03057925.2011.650870
OpenAlexW2023473166
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited37

Comparative research in multilingual urban primary schools indicates that the pedagogical and political goals of schooling may operate at cross-purposes. Classroom observations and teacher interview-discussions were conducted in classes for immigrant children in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the language of instruction is French, and in classes in Pretoria, Gauteng Province, South Africa, where children from many different language backgrounds are taught in English. Two main themes emerged: (1) pedagogically, effective teacher-learner communication can break down when teachers are unaware of the roles that language and culture play in second language classrooms; (2) politically, efforts to assimilate learners into new socio-cultural/political contexts sometimes take precedence over sound pedagogical practice, such as drawing on the linguistic and cultural repertoire that learners bring to the classroom. This ongoing qualitative research underlines the importance of preparing pre-service and in-service teachers for the linguistic and cultural diversity they are bound to encounter in their classrooms, and of deepening their understanding of the influence of such diversity on the teaching-learning process. Keywords: multilingualcultural diversityprimary classroomsinstructional languageteacher education Notes 1. The systems of education in Quebec and Canada may be well known to many readers, but these details are important for those who are not fully familiar with these settings. 2. This means that English-speaking immigrants to Quebec must also attend French-medium schools. 3. A few immigrant parents have challenged the law through the courts and thus gained access to English schools for their children. In most cases this has been out of consideration of severe learning or other disabilities. 4. Quebec's policy statement on intercultural education is to be distinguished from Canada's policy of multiculturalism. Multiculturalism is premised on the idea that in Canada there are two official languages, French and English, but there is no official culture. In Quebec, French is the official language, tied closely to the widely held belief that there is an associated and distinct, if not official, Quebec culture. For discussion of shifts in the concepts of multiculturalism, interculturalism and their links to issues of diversity and assimilation, see Gallagher and Pritchard (2007 Gallagher, T. and Pritchard, R. 2007. Assimilation and multiculturalism: Evolving conceptual frameworks. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 37(5): 567-576. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]). 5. South Africa's recent history and its impact on the education system is also well known to most readers. We review its essentials here for the less informed reader. 6. Schools for black learners in the townships were impoverished because the government-mandated funding formula provided the least for them. 7. Other themes related to matters of ethnicity, race and students' identity formation. These will be discussed in a forthcoming article. 8. This vignette was reported earlier in Evans and Cleghorn (2010 Evans, R. and Cleghorn, A. 2010. 'Look at the balloon blow up!': Student teacher-talk in linguistically diverse South African foundation phase classrooms. Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies, 28(2): 123-133. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science (R)] , [Google Scholar

EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Multilingual Education and Policy · Second Language Learning and Teaching

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