Language Acquisition

The ability to communicate in more than one language is essential to the concept of an international education that promotes multilingualism and intercultural understanding, both of which are central to the IB’s mission. The study of additional languages in the MYP provides students with the opportunity to develop insights into the features, processes and craft of language and the concept of culture, and to realize that there are diverse ways of living, behaving and viewing the world. Language Acquisition in the MYP aims to develop a respect for, and understanding of, other languages and cultures, and is equally designed to equip the student with a skills base to facilitate further language learning. The MYP structures additional language learning in phases so that the complexity and range of language profiles that students bring to their MYP classroom is acknowledged and fostered. There are six phases in the Language Acquisition subject group, and teachers decide the most suitable phase in which to place individual students based on the students’ skills and knowledge. The phases do not correspond to particular age groups or MYP years. Teaching and learning concentrates on each of the macro-skills of language: listening, speaking, reading, writing and viewing. Students engage in various productive, receptive and interactive processes of oral, visual and written communication. These processes are often carried out as interactional and transactional processes, simultaneously rather than as discrete skills. In all phases students study a range of text types, writing styles and techniques. In the later phases both literary and non-literary texts are studied.

English

Language Acquisition As English is the school’s language of instruction, the primary aim of the English Language Acquisition is to encourage students whose mother tongue is not English to gain competence in this language, with the goal of balanced bilingualism. As language learning is a continuum, English Language Acquisition students at FIS are transitioned to the Language & Literature course as soon as they are deemed capable of profiting from this.

Japanese

Language Acquisition Language Acquisition in Japanese aims to encourage students to respect and understand the world around them through the learning of a second language; to provide a skills base to facilitate further study; and to contribute to the development of the student as a whole. Students beginning their MYP studies may have studied this language previously or may have no prior knowledge or experience of the language to be studied in the MYP. Nonetheless, by the end of the MYP Language Acquisition course, students should be empowered for success in further formal study of languages, as the MYP framework for the Language Acquisition subject group reflects the concepts and skills for these DP courses. The knowledge, skills and attitudes that students develop in Language Acquisition courses provide a meaningful foundation for these further studies. 

Aims 

The aims of the teaching and learning of MYP Language Acquisition are to: 

• Gain proficiency in an additional language while supporting maintenance of their mother tongue and cultural heritage.

• Develop a respect for, and understanding of, diverse linguistic and cultural heritages.

• Develop the student’s communication skills necessary for further language learning, and for study, work and leisure in a range of authentic contexts and for a variety of audiences and purposes.

• Enable the student to develop multi-literacy skills through the use of a range of learning tools, such as multimedia, in the various modes of communication.

• Enable the student to develop an appreciation of a variety of literary and non-literary texts and to develop critical and creative techniques for comprehension and construction of meaning.

• Enable the student to recognize and use language as a vehicle of thought, reflection, self-expression and learning in other subjects, and as a tool for enhancing literacy.

• Enable the student to understand the nature of language and the process of language learning, which comprises the integration of linguistic, cultural and social components.

• Offer insight into the cultural characteristics of the communities where the language is spoken.

• Encourage an awareness and understanding of the perspectives of people from own and other cultures, leading to involvement and action in own and other communities.

• Foster curiosity, inquiry and a lifelong interest in, and enjoyment of, language learning. 

Assessment Criteria 

• Criterion A: Comprehending spoken and visual text.

• Criterion B: Comprehending written and visual text.

• Criterion C: Communicating.

• Criterion D: Using language.