Intercultural determinants of bilingual education

Ivanković, Iva. (2017). Intercultural determinants of bilingual education. PhD Thesis. Filozofski fakultet u Zagrebu, Department of Pedagogy.
(Poslijediplomski doktorski studij pedagogije) [mentor Hrvatić, Neven and Kuvač Kraljević, Jelena].

Preview

PDF (Croatian) Download (3MB) | Preview

Abstract

There are many models of bilingual education in the world corroborated by pedagogical and didactic theories. Linguistic and communicative competence of bilingual speakers, besides greater opportunities for intercultural dialogue, provide faster cultural adaptability. In this study the difference in the knowledge of basic intercultural features as well as the level of intercultural sensitivity between bilingual and monolingual school students of different grammar schools were explored. Furthermore, the aim of this study was to determine the orientation of opinions of school students on competences which are developing by intercultural education and the differences in those opinions regarding to bilingual status, gender, age and intercultural contact of school students. In the theoretical part of this paper several terms are discussed within thematic blocks: bilingualism, types of bilingualism, bilingual education and typology of bilingual education according to Baker, interculturalism, intercultural communication, intercultural competence, intercultural sensitivity, intercultural identity and the direction of Croatian national educational policy regarding to plurilingual and intercultural competence. The analysis of the results of the difference between examined school students in the knowledge of basic intercultural features such as the concept of „interculturalism“, the aim of intercultural education and values which are pursued by such intercultural education, revealed statistically significant difference between school students who are attending bilingual grammar school programs, that is sequential bilinguals, and the students who are attending regular grammar schools, that is monolinguals, namely in two variables: the concept of „interculturalism“ and values which are pursued by such intercultural education. However, no statistically significant difference was found between bilingual and monolingual school students as well as between students of different type of bilingualism in the level of intercultural sensitivity. The positive orientation of opinions of school students on competences which are developing through intercultural education was concluded by further analysis and the statistically significant difference was found in those opinions regarding to gender of school students for all groups of participants. Although this study has a limited validity with school students of different ages, ethnic backgrounds and educational settings, mostly considering different level of linguistic and communicative competence in second language, the findings of this study provide empirical support for the development of models of bilingual education on the high school level in the context of intercultural pedagogy, as well as in the improvement of existing models of bilingual education in Croatia.

Actions (login required)

View Item