Multilingual Early Language Transmission (MELT) - Mercator ...

5.1.1. Quality of language input
The ELIAS (Early Language and Intercultural Acquisition Studies 99 ) project published two
volumes 100 including results of a longitudinal study on bilingualism in European (pre- and
primary 101 ) schools and best practices in bilingual pre-schools, where a foreign language is
taught from kindergarten to secondary school.
One of the ELIAS project’s aims was to investigate the nature of language input provided in
bilingual pre-schools by pre-school teachers. The assumption that quality of language input
matters to second language acquisition of children was made. As a result of an “Input
Quality Observation Scheme and Grammar Test Development over time” 102 the analyses
show that input quality significantly correlates with the amount of progress in receptive
second language grammar knowledge. For the quantitative side of language input there
were no significant differences found between the low and high input intensity groups as to
grammar development (Kersten, 2010).
The MELT partners had the same experience as regards providing a good language input by
pre-school teachers. Even though in the ELIAS project the focus was on learning a second
foreign language and the MELT project mainly focuses on pre-school in the minority
languages. In the MELT project practitioners concluded, that while working with young
children, it is necessary to repeat words and phrases over and over again and in different
contexts, before a child understands and later on uses the words and concepts by
themselves.
5.1.2 Guidelines for pre-school practitioners
The ELIAS project developed guidelines for language use in bilingual preschools for children
aged 3 to 6 years. These seven guidelines are a kind of theoretical strategies for language
input for bilingual pre-school teachers. The ELIAS guidelines are:
1) The teacher uses the L2 in a way that the children receive rich and varied L2 input;
2) The teacher needs to contextualise the L2;
3) The teacher adapts speech patterns for the benefit of the child's understanding;
4) The teacher creates an environment which promotes multi-sensory learning;
5) The teacher provides the children with ample opportunity to interact verbally and to
express themselves (verbally and non-verbally);
6) The teacher provides scaffolds to support the children's learning;
99
The ELIAS project (2008-2010) has been funded with support from the European Commission, Multilateral EU-Comenius Project. Project
partners include ten bilingual preschools in Germany, Belgium, England and Sweden, a monolingual English preschool in the UK, as well as
eight Universities and the Zoological Garden in Magdeburg, Germany, which carried out the scientific research. For further information on
the ELIAS project: www.elias.bilikita.org [Accessed May 2011].
100
Kersten, K. et.al (eds.) (2010). Bilingual Preschools Volume 1 Learning and Development. And Bilingual Preschools Volume 2 Best
Practices. Trier: WVT Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier.
101
They cover the age range of 3;0-18;00. In this project children aged 3 to 6 years are attending pre-school, primary school starts in this
project at age 6.
102
Weitz et al. (2010). In: Kersten, K. et.al (eds.) (2010). Bilingual Preschools Volume 1 Learning and Development. Trier: WVT
Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier.
69