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Entry 3<br />
Name Trainee: Alex Tufan<br />
Work Placement Institution: Christchurch Kindergarten Ascension<br />
1. Description of the situation:<br />
In my institution there were many immigrant children, most of them Romanians. I noticed<br />
that these children could not speak or understand English.<br />
2. Observed support:<br />
A nursery nurse was Romanian herself and could translate everything to the children.<br />
Since I speak Romanian myself, I also had to work as a translator. I did not like to translate<br />
everything, because the children could not learn to speak the English language. Of course,<br />
the nursery nurses often spoke in English, as well as the other children. But,<br />
unfortunately, most of the time the language was translated.<br />
In addition, special posters were put up for the Romanian children. The posters were<br />
meant to translate Romanian words into English with the help of pictures and words. The<br />
poster included everyday words, like “milk”. In my opinion, the children were not<br />
integrated enough. The nursery teachers have tried to make it easier for the children, but<br />
they did not teach the Romanian children the English language enough. Also, I think the<br />
posters were not very useful. The children can hardly read at the age and cannot<br />
remember any of those written words. The nursery nurses should have spoken more<br />
English with the children and should serve less as translators. They have made the daily<br />
life easier for the children, but the children have not been supported and integrated<br />
sufficiently.<br />
3. Hints for the practical implementation in German day care centres<br />
Personally, I cannot recommend the methods of this English kindergarten. An application<br />
of these methods would not make sense in my opinion. To use the nursery nurses only as<br />
a translator is not a suitable support of the language skills. There should be more<br />
language exercises with the children in a funny way, such as learning with a picture<br />
memory or learning nursery rhymes and children songs in English. You could try to tell the<br />
children stories in English and then in Romanian.
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