In this lesson series students learn that cultural and linguistic variety are inherent to English. Every lesson helps students to explain, analyze, criticize and reflect on multilingual and multicultural phenomena within the English speaking world. The topics that were chosen for this lesson series are: multilingualism, stereotypes, code-switching, Mexican-American and Afro-American culture, Jamaican English, Irish English, immigration, citizenship, civil rights issues and Border Studies. To find out about these phenomena, learners are offered sources such as video clips, websites and poetry. Each lesson ends with a reflection and the application of the material to students’ own lives.

The proposed lesson series was part of my Master’s thesis. I studied the integration of English as a world language in EFL (English as a Foreign Language) education in upper-secondary school in the Netherlands as a means to develop adolescents’ identities in the context of citizenship education. The research was carried out in response to one of the building blocks for curricular reform proposed by curriculum.nu (EMVT5.1 –Multilingualism) and to a report from the KNAW (2018) on the multilingual Dutch context. Insights from developmental psychology, linguistics, educational theories and educational design research principles were combined to create assignments that address English linguistic and cultural diversity.

The result is a free website for students and teachers, where assignments on language and culture can be found. This is one of the first attempts to show the practical implementation of linguistic and cultural diversity in the English curriculum in the Netherlands. It not only strengthens student’s cultural awareness, but also their skills in the important topic of language awareness.

Meer info, zie scriptie en de bijbehorende website.

Lesdoelen zijn (onder andere) 

1. Leerlingen kunnen het thema meertaligheid beschrijven en toepassen op hun eigen context en de Engelstalige context.
2.   Leerlingen kunnen een identiteitsvraagstuk bespreken op basis van poëzie.
3. Leerlingen kunnen stereotype denkbeelden identificeren (bijvoorbeeld in poëzie, nieuwsvoorziening, Caribisch Engels, Iers Engels, regionale accenten) en plaatsen in een cultureel en historisch perspectief.
4. Leerlingen kunnen burgerschap en burgerschapsontwikkeling beschrijven binnen de Amerikaanse context waarin diversiteit en ongelijkheid een grote rol spelen.
5. Leerlingen kunnen binnen boven gestelde doelen van perspectief wisselen en reflecteren op hun eigen context en waardensysteem.

Zie ook de lesdoelen per les op de bijbehorende website