Inclusion: Focus Topics

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What is a home language?

A home language is the language(s) families use to speak at home. Students may have multiple home languages, as many families come from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds and children may learn to communicate with different family members in distinct languages.

 

Why is it important to maintain and develop home languages?

Culture and identity - Just as food, traditions, and landmarks tell us about the culture of a group of people, so does language. We can see many examples of this evident in the languages of our school community.

Cognitive benefits - The research shows that multilingual learners are more able to solve word and maths problems with ease (Zelasko and Antunez, 2000) and make decisions, focus their attention, and remember important information (Bialystok, 2001) - all key aspects of being an IB student!

Learning other languages - Having a strong foundation in one language has been shown to make the attainment of a second (or third, or fourth) much easier (Jessner, 2008).

Future opportunities - If a student maintains a working understanding of their home language, it allows them to be more marketable on a global and local scale! Multilingualism is already valued by many employers but is certain to become even more of an asset in the future.

 

How we support language development at school:

• Our EAL program is designed to provide our learners equitable access to the school curriculum.
• We support home language classes on campus. Currently, WAB has Dutch, Finnish, German, and Swedish programs. We are looking forward to starting Japanese, Danish, and French next year. Home language programs validate and celebrate our learners’ home cultures and languages.
• WAB offers Chinese language instruction across the curriculum from an early age through Grade 12. By celebrating cultural traditions, engaging with the local community, service study, China Studies trips, integrating technology into lessons, and benchmarking progress towards proficiency standards, WAB ensures students gain a meaningful Chinese language education that strengthens ties to the host country's culture and community.
• Chinese, French, and Spanish Acquisition are part of WAB’s curriculum and provide opportunities for students to graduate with a bilingual diploma.

How you can maintain and support language development in your home:

• Encourage children to speak to family and friends in your home language. With practice, it will become a routine.
• Watch TV shows, and movies or listen to music in your home language. This is a fun way to spend time together and connect to the culture.
• Encourage children to read 1 book in their home language for every 2-3 books they read in English outside lessons.
• Receiving letters/emails from loved ones is often a highlight. Encourage children to write to family/friends in their home language to develop skills and relationships.

 

Want to learn more? Here are some resources to get you started: 

Dutch

Finnish

Swedish

French

Chinese

Russian

Spanish

Hebrew

Korean

Save the Dates:

21 February 2024: International Home Language Day

11-15 March 2024: IDEAS and Multilingualism Week

28 March 2024: Multilingualism Think Tank 3:40 - 4:30 Lotus Red

8 April 2024: Multilingualism PD: Translanguaging

What is Translanguaging?

There has been growing interest in translanguaging in international schools. So what is translanguaging? Here is an interesting article that summarizes the main ideas. 

Our resources below offer more answers. Simply put, translanguaging means using all of students’ languages in class when it helps their learning. Languages other than English need not be silenced, if other languages can support learning.  

Translanguaging does not mean chaotic classrooms, but rather designing instruction to involve students’ languages, which are part of their identity.   

It can also be a way to give multilinguals more practice with their languages for academic purposes.  

Keen to learn more? Check out our Resource List.

 

Save the dates: 

• 18 January 2024: Discussion and Sharing Multilingualism Think Tank (ES Lotus Red)

•  February 2024:  Opt-In Session with Dr. Gini Rojas on Differentiation

•  21 February 2024: International Home Languages Day

• 8 April 2024: WS Translanguaging Session (Tentative)

What is CRT at a glance?   

The main idea behind culturally responsive teaching (CRT) is the belief that students' backgrounds help bridge new learning. Teachers should connect academics to students' daily lives, cultures, and concerns in ways that support engagement, achievement, and empowerment. This can be achieved by regularly using students' input to shape instruction, classwork, and assessments. In addition to providing mirrors that reflect learners' worlds, teachers provide windows into traditions, history, and experiences of other cultures and groups. 

Want to learn more? Check out this Culturally Responsive Teaching Resource List

 

Save the dates: 

• 16 November: Discussion and Sharing: Multilingualism Think Tank (ES Lotus Red) 
• 22 November PD: Cultural Profiles of Multilingual Learners (HS Wild Ginger)