Researchers

• M.M. Lansing MA - PhD candidate
• Prof.dr. N.H. de Jong - supervisor
• Dr. T.L. Mearns - co-supervisor
• Dr. E.J. van Leeuwen - co-supervisor

The main goal of this research is to explore ways of approaching literature teaching in the TTO LLA context from a disciplinary literacies perspective, by integrating content, related disciplinary language, cognitive skills and cultural awareness.

Project description

The English A Language and Literature (LLA) programme from the International Baccalaureate (IB) is a L1 Language Arts programme which is taught in the senior forms of bilingual (TTO) havo and vwo schools in the Netherlands. TTO schools usually only offer this one IB subject. This is a unique situation, as the programme is taught to L2 learners in isolation from the rest of the IB curriculum.

Dutch TTO learners appear to struggle with the heavy linguistic and cognitive demands posed by the LLA curriculum and its approaches to learning and assessment and they consistently score below the world average. The lower grades for Dutch TTO learners might be attributed to the lack of attention to learner’s linguistic, cognitive and intercultural development, as teachers’ focus is more on the specific content. LLA literature lessons could therefore be improved by giving more attention to the integration of the 4Cs of content and language integrated learning (CLIL): content, communication, cognition and culture.

Previous research has suggested that language teachers find it difficult to integrate these 4Cs within a CLIL approach. Disciplinary literacies, which is the focus on how knowledge is constructed and the specialized way of reading, writing and reasoning within a discipline, offers a means of integrating the 4Cs in CLIL. This project aims to explore how that can be achieved within the field of literature studies in this specific L2 context.  

Research questions

• What beliefs do LLA teachers hold and what experiences do they have in teaching the literary component in senior TTO?
• What are LLA learners' attitudes to and experiences with the literary component in senior TTO? 
• Which existing good practices can be identified in terms of supporting LLA learners in developing disciplinary literacies in the field of literature studies in senior TTO?
• What is the rationale behind the choices LLA teachers make?
• Which factors shape the decisions of LLA teachers in designing materials to improve the teaching of the literature component in senior TTO?
• In what ways can a disciplinary literacies perspective support LLA teachers in strengthening their teaching of literature in senior TTO?
• How do LLA teachers perceive and experience the teaching of the developed lessons sequence in senior TTO?
• How do LLA learners perceive and experience the developed lesson sequence?

• content and language integrated learning (clil)
• english literature

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