The Mercator Research Centre,

Research and Activities

Cor van der Meer Mercator European Research Centre on Multilingualism and Language Learning

Fryske Akademy

Overview

• Fryslân

• Language & education

• Mercator European Research Centre on Multilingualism and Language Learning

• Research

Early

Middle ages

Late

Middle ages

Today

Fryslân in history

Well-known outside Fryslân

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

1870 1890 1910 1930 1950 1970 1990 2000

Fries Nederlands

Frisian as First Language

Frisian Language Command

• 54 % Mother tongue

• 94 % Understanding

• 74 % Speaking

• 65 % Reading

• 26 % Writing

Trilingual education in Fryslân (1)

• Model used:

- Group 1-6: 50 % Frisian, 50 % Dutch

- Group 7-8: 40 % Frisian, 40 % Dutch, 20% English

• Systematic use of Frisian, Dutch and English as a medium of instruction.

• Interactive language education

Trilingual education in Fryslân (2)

• Results:

- Good quality of Frisian

- Results of Dutch at the same level at the end of grade 8 as all other pupils in the Netherlands

- Results for English slightly better, but not significantly

- Self consciousness in English better, but not significantly

Mercator Research Centre

1987-2006:

• Documentation and Information Centre.

• Funded by the European Union.

2007-2008: transition into:

• Information and Research Centre.

• Funded by the Province of Fryslân and the municipality of Ljouwert/Leeuwarden.

Fryske Akademy

Mercator Research CentreObjectives

• Scientific research

• Information centre

• Platform function

• Goals: creation, dissemination and application of knowledge

• Education

Mercator’s activities

• Research

• Publications & databases

• Network of Schools

• Network of Teacher Trainings Institutes

• Conferences & seminars

• Q&A service

• Research reports

• Articles

• Newsletters

• Regional dossiers series

- 40 language descriptions

- Update every 5-7 years

- Online available

Publications

Structured content

• 1 Introduction• 2 Pre-school education• 3 Primary education• 4 Secondary education• 5 Vocational education• 6 Higher education• 7 Adult education• 8 Educational research• 9 Prospects• 10 Summary of statistics• Education System in ….• References and further reading• Useful addresses

Publications

• Development of Minimum Standards for language education

• Use of the CEFR and ELP in education

• Comparative studies

• Study on the devolvement of legislative power to regional authorities

• Trilingual Education in Europe (due 2010)

www.networkofschools.eu

Network of Schools

• > 90 members

• > 30 language communities

• 15 EU member states

• News bulletins

• Website:

- teaching materials

- projects

• Mercator Research Centre - “lead partner” 4 Partner institutes:

• Aberystwyth – University of Wales• Barcelona – Ciemen• Budapest – Hungarian Academy of Sciences• Eskilstuna (Zweden) – Mälardalen University

• 18-20 May: Mercator Network conference: “Media Convergence and Linguistic Diversity: How can the creative industries contribute to language vitality in a multiplatform environment?”, Aberystwyth

• 3-4 June: “Added Value of Multilingualism and Multilingual Education”, Ljouwert, organised in cooperation with the Basque Ministry of Education.

• 18-19 November: conference of European Universities Network on Multilingualism (EUNoM), Ljouwert.

Conferences in 2010

Fields of research

• Added value of multilingualism and multilingual education

• Informal learning and promotion of reading in families & households.

• Effectiveness of educational policy in Fryslân (‘Boppeslach’)

• Language acquisition

Added Value of Multilingualism and multilingual education

A comparative study of the Basque

Autonomous Community and Fryslân

University of the Basque Country / Ikerbasque, Donostia

Mercator Research Centre / Fryske Akademy, Ljouwert

Aims:• Analyse bilingualism and multilingualism as a

resource for the individual and societý • Analyse bilingualism and multilingualism as a

resource at school

(Planned) steps: 1) in-depth comparison of the Basque Country and

Fryslân2) Try to apply a model of use and non-use values.3) Investigate interaction between different languages

in the curriculum and language learning strategies.

Objectives

2008-2010 (1)

Data collection secondary school pupils (3rd/4th year):

• Reports on school-visits• Questionnaires• Written essays in three languages• Classroom observations• Interviews with teachers • Photographs of the linguistic landscape in the schools

2008-2010 (2)

Step 1: monograph: ‘Languages and language education in Fryslân’ + comparative report on ‘Frisian and Basque multilingual education: A comparison of the province of Fryslân and the Basque Autonomous Community’

Step 2: short report about advantages / disadvantages of multilingualism

Step 3: (in progress) report with outcomes of questionnaires, cross linguistic influences in written essays, classroom observations and linguistic landscape

2010-2011

Verify hypothesis with focus on English (dual approach):

1) Qualitative part: ´Ethnography of language in education´ by means of classroom observations, focus group discussions with students, in-depth interviews with English teachers and directors, out-of-school use and experience with English, (digital) literacy practices

2) Quantitative part: testing and language use questionnaires. Dependent variables related to competence in and use of English

Informal learning and promotion of reading in families & households

More languages, more opportunities

A Papiamentu – Dutch language development project

Nienke Boomstra

PhD study of Nienke Boomstra

Implementation

• Training language coaches

• Recruitment of participants by language coaches- target group: Antillean children between 20 and 30 months at the start of the project, and their primary caretakers (mostly mothers)

• Duration of two years- Every two weeks home visits, every two weeks group gatherings

Tomke in ‘More languages, more opportunities’

• In co-operation with Afûk

- 12 books (in Papiamentu and Dutch)

- Web page

- Finger puppets, games

Language coaches teach

parents how to use the

materials during home visits.

Research questions

• Will the infliction of this project promote the bilingual development in Papiamentu and Dutch?

• Will it promote a better socio-emotional development in Antillean toddlers?

• Will it promote a more positive interaction between mother and child?

Child language acquisition and code-switching - 1

• Topic: childhood acquisition of two languages and organisation of two languages in the brain

• Languages: Frisian as L1 and Dutch as L2, possibly English as L3

• Approach: psycholinguistic/neurolinguistic• Subjects: Frisian primary school pupils • Goal: to gain insight in the language acquisition

process of Frisian primary school pupils

PhD study of Mirjam van der Meij

Child language acquisition and code-switching - 2

• Main question: how are Frisian and Dutch organised in the brain of a Frisian bilingual?

• Sub-questions: - How is this expressed in the speech production?- How is the mental lexicon organised?- Which forms of interference do arise?- Are some words code-switched faster than

others?

Effectiveness of Language Policy

Study in 2004:

– Pupils behind in maths and language

– Didactic skills

– Care for pupils

– Amount of time available

– Frisian no factor

Project co-ordinator Dr. E. Klinkenberg, Department of Social Sciences

Policy of Provincial Government

– Improvement quality education

– Language and quality schools

– Yearly tests

– Monitoring by the Fryske Akademy

Research

• Aspects:– Longitudinal (yearly test moments)– Multiple levels

• Pupils (test results)

• Class (teacher information)

• School (school leader information)– 86 participating schools

Communicative skills

• Results Trilingual school:– Dutch: same results– Frisian: better– English: better results (ability and confidence to hold a

short story) Influence of a bilingual school system on speaking

ability• Link with personality (confidence)• Expectation:

– Students at a Trilingual school speak more in English and with more confidence

PhD. study of M. Jansma MSc, Department of Social Sciences

Bilingual language development of the young Frisian child

• Language dominance – language input

• Cross-linguistic interference

PhD-study of Jelske Dijkstra, Department of Social Sciences

Research

• 70-100 toddlers (2,5-4 yrs)• 22 preschools in Friesland, of which 50%

Frisian-medium or bilingual preschools• Home language: only Frisian or only Dutch

(parents to child)• Language outside home/family situation:

mainly Frisian, bilingual, mainly Dutch (questionnaires)

Research

• Language development Dutch & Frisian– Vocabulary: passive & active– Samples of spontaneous speech– One person – one language

• 3 measuring periods – each period Dutch and Frisian (6 measurements)– 2,5 - 3 yrs– 3 - 3,5 yrs– 3,5 - 4 yrs

Expectations

• Language input determines language dominance and language skills– Input L1 > L2 → L1 dominant

• Cross-linguistic interference from dominant language to weaker language

www.mercator-research.euwww.mercator-research.eumercator@fryske-akademy.nl

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