Luxembourg: A multiplurilingual space for language education. How can teacher education respond to the linguistic and cultural diversity of a given place?

Scientific Conference (2017)

The aim of the present communication is to share the main findings of a collaborative research project developed in 2013-2014 between a high school and the University in Luxembourg. Collective ... [more ▼]

The aim of the present communication is to share the main findings of a collaborative research project developed in 2013-2014 between a high school and the University in Luxembourg. Collective multilingualism and individual plurilingualism, defined as multiplurilingualism by Ehrhart (2010: 221), form the linguistic environment of Luxembourg. Luxembourg, a small country in Europe with a high rate of immigration (46, 7%, STATEC, 2016), has three languages (Luxembourgish, French and German) and a trilingual education system. Fluency in the three languages is considered to be essential to facilitate social cohesion and professional success (OECD, 2006: 1010), and language teaching occupies a central position in the education system. Nevertheless, language learning programmes are quite inflexible and very compartmentalized (García, 2009; Gretsch, 2014). The multiplurilingual situation of the country challenges the traditional view of language and requests teachers to adapt their practices to the new circumstances. One option for secondary schools to address this linguistic diversity are the classes d’insertion, an innovative setting developed by the Ministry of Education, where recently arrived adolescent students are ofered an educational track by means of a full-immersion program in a second language (French, German or English).. Considering the teacher as a mediator and grounded in sociocultural theory combined with an ecolinguistic approach, the present study observes and describes the way that two teachers of these classes d’ insertion were teaching classes in French to newcomer students (aged 11-12);. By means of classroom-observation, audio-recording, field notes and photos we tried to understand what was happening in class during one academic year. Through three semi-structured interviews conducted with the teachers, we gathered information about their thoughts concerning their practices. The research data show the impact of the teachers’ beliefs on their classroom practices and pedagogical decisions. However, their representations do not fully correspond with the real practices observed in class. In order to make those two ends meet, are planning to extend the reflection on an international level, in an action-research-project with teachers developing their talent as researchers and reflecting about their practices in order to propose new pedagogies and approaches to teacher education in multicultural contexts. [less ▲]

BRIDGING THE GAP: CHILDHOOD LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AND CREOLE GENESIS

in Journal of the Linguistic Society of Papua New Guinea (2017)

This article presents two cases of specific language ecologies that emerged in the South Pacific at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century: Palmerston English, spoken on a ... [more ▼]

This article presents two cases of specific language ecologies that emerged in the South Pacific at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century: Palmerston English, spoken on a remote atoll in the Cook Islands, and Tayo, a school creole from the Catholic mission of Saint-Louis in New Caledonia. Both are still spoken and even expanding at present. Findings from these creoles with English and French lexifiers may be of interest to studies of German-based contact languages with similar initial ecologies. Based on the description of the environment where those two contact languages emerged, we would like to start a discussion about the parameters that influence the creation of new languages in specific contexts, such as these languages and Unserdeutsch. [less ▲]

Romania diversa: für eine VIelfalt der Zugänge zur französischen Sprache

Presentation (2016, May 27)

Entre français calédonien et langue kanak : quelle place pour le tayo ? Une approche écolinguistique

in Langages (2016), 203

Tayo is a contact language spoken in and around Saint-Louis tribe in Southern New Caledonia. It shows at the same time common features with standard French or other regional varieties of French and French ... [more ▼]

Tayo is a contact language spoken in and around Saint-Louis tribe in Southern New Caledonia. It shows at the same time common features with standard French or other regional varieties of French and French Creoles in other parts of the globe and also syntactical and semantic elements close to some Melanesian languages. This article tries to give a clearer definition of its position as a go-between, mediator or facilitator in the contact between groups of very diverse origins. This creole experience could well serve as an example for the management of linguistic and cultural diversity in other contexts. [less ▲]

FRONTIÈRES LINGUISTIQUES ET COMMUNAUTÉS DE TRAVAIL UN BILINGUISME À L’ÉPREUVE DU CHANGEMENT INDUSTRIEL

in Questions de Communication (2016), 29

L’analyse concerne différents types de limites et frontières au sein d’une grande entreprise automobile située près de la frontière franco-allemande en Moselle (France). Filiale d’un grand groupe allemand ... [more ▼]

L’analyse concerne différents types de limites et frontières au sein d’une grande entreprise automobile située près de la frontière franco-allemande en Moselle (France). Filiale d’un grand groupe allemand, dirigée par un Allemand, mais employant une majorité de Français et une minorité d’Allemands, cette entreprise est un lieu original de brouillage des frontières. Les distinctions liées aux groupes sociaux, à l’organisation du travail et à des cultures d’entreprises, tendent à se superposer de manière subtile et à moduler les effets de frontières nationales et linguistiques. Toutefois, les évolutions de la production, du recrutement des salariés et la mise en place de nouveaux partenariats industriels sont susceptibles d’activer ces frontières apparemment routinisées et fonctionnelles. L’article présente les questionnements théoriques, la méthodologie et les premiers enseignements de la pré-enquête. [less ▲]

Les aspects interdisciplinaires dans la coopération scientifique internationale

Speeches/Talks (2015)

Continua of language contact

in Yakpo, Kofi (Ed.) Code-Switching between structural and sociolinguistic perspectives (2015)

Le translanguaging en pratique: des salles de classe aux équipes projet du constructeur automobile smart

Presentation (2015)

L'écologie des langues et l'éducation

Presentation (2014, November 03)

Workshop on Language Ecology for Medical Students

Presentation (2014, September 29)

The workshop was conducted with the aim of the improvement of cultural awareness and diversity management in Southern Siberia.