001

Becoming a Plurilingual Child

Roberto Gómez Fernández

© Bubok Publishing S.L., 2013

© Roberto Gómez Fernández

Ia edición

ISBN ebook: 978-84-686-3649-8

Impreso en España / Printed in Spain

Impreso por Bubok

Página web: https://sites.google.com/site/robertogomezfernandez

Contacto: robertogomezfernandez@gmail.com

A mi Pradi por estar siempre ahí, por apoyarme, quererme

y por ser como sólo tú eres

A mis gemelitas, que han sido y son mi mayor motivación

en esta vida

A Celia, por todos los momentos y el cariño que no te

podré dar, siempre estarás en mi corazón

Last but not least, Clarita, por ser mi ‘Mausi’ y mi

chiquitina, siempre tan buena y tan graciosa. Sé que vas a ser

una luchadora y una buena persona, pese a los duros

momentos que te ha tocado vivir nada más venir a este mundo

ABSTRACT

The present research aims at understanding the process of becoming a member in a diverse and multilingual primary school in Luxembourg. It is a case study about one child belonging to one of the ethnic and linguistic communities most affected by school failure. ‘Romanophones’ or romance-language speaking students in Luxembourg are touched by low achievement rates of school success. Also newcomers find themselves in challenging situations and are also affected by this problem. Some scholars (e.g., Horner & Weber, 2005, p. 246) propose “parallel systems” or “two-track” literacy system where romance-language speakers (either newcomers or children born in Luxembourg with a romance language family background) could follow a literacy program in French instead of German. They state that this system could eventually give these children a better chance of school success as well as improve their social mobility in the Luxembourgish society.

By following this child during one academic year an epistemological conflict between ‘agentivity’ and ‘structure’ is proposed. The seven-year old child, Nuno, had to follow lessons in German and Luxembourgish when he had no knowledge of these languages at all at his arrival in November from another primary school in Brazil. A close look at his interactions and identity processes with his peers and teachers revealed a re-evaluation of Nuno’s capital and resources which affected his academic progress as well as his identity during the year. This re-evaluation resulted in a “decapitalization” (Martín Rojo, 2008; 2010) of some of Nuno’s pre-existing resources (e.g., Portuguese language), which could otherwise be used as a positive resource in his progression towards “full membership”, and the eventual formation of a “community of practice”.

Nuno’s initial agentivity resisted categorizations and also what could be classified as gatekeeping practices towards him. Along the academic year some major changes took place (a change of teacher and teaching philosophies, the arrival of another Brazilian newcomer) which affected Nuno’s behaviour, learning and identity. The interview data and the audio-visual recordings provide insights into the difficulties a ‘romanophone’ newcomer must confront as well as the fact that a community of practice is in constant construction. Some of the implications of the present study involve the raise of awareness concerning these children and the difficulties they must face in this new environment.

CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES
TRANSCRIPTION CONVENTIONS
INTRODUCTION
PART I. LOOKING FOR A PLACE IN A COMPLEX COMMUNITY
1. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
1.1. Luxembourg and its language profile
1.2. An overview of the Luxembourgish educational system
1.2.1. Key subjects (and languages) in the Luxembourgish primary school
1.2.2. The so-called model of “separation”?
1.2.3. A parallel “track” for romanophone children?
1.3. Another challenge: The newcomers
1.3.1. The main challenges for non-Luxembourgish children in the Luxembourgish primary school
1.3.2. Integration guidelines for newcomers to Luxemburgish primary school
1.4. The research questions
1.5. Justification, rationale and analytical framework for the study
1.6. The unit of analysis
1.7. Summary
2. AN INTEGRATED APPROACH
2.1. Introduction
2.2. Towards a critical approach
2.3. A social view on learning: The broad frame
2.4. An interactional and ethnographic perspective: The specific frame
2.5. Childhood development theories
2.6. Engaging socially in a new “community of practice”
2.7. Access and Legitimate Peripherality
2.8. Membership, socialization and learning
2.9. Continuity and change in communities of practice
2.10. Relevant previous case studies
2.11. Summary
3. AN ETHNOGRAPHIC CASE STUDY EXPERIENCE: NUNO
3.1. Introduction
3.2. Objectives of the present case study
3.3. Selection of subject or case
3.4. Research design
3.4.1. Gathering data from an integrated perspective
3.4.2. Planning the research
3.4.3. Consent forms and access issues
3.4.4. Data collection design and procedures
3.5. Types and methods of data collection
3.5.1. Participant observation
3.5.2. Audiovisual recordings
3.5.3. Semi-structured interviews
3.5.4. Materials and artefacts created by Nuno
3.5.5. Photographs
3.5.6. Field notes and summaries
3.6. The main characters
3.6.1. The children
3.6.2. The teachers
3.6.3. The family
3.6.4. The researcher
3.6.5. The gatekeepers
3.7. Data organization procedures
3.8. Data treatment and analysis with Transana software
3.9. Why look at longitudinal data with Transana?
3.10. The processes
3.10.1. The transcription process
3.10.2. The codification process
3.10.3. The analytical process
3.11. Organizing the study
3.12. Summary
PART II. THE RITUALS OF ACCESS TO RESOURCES
4. ACCESSING A NEW “COMMUNITY”
4.1. Introduction
4.2. Welcoming the new “member”
4.3. The first “conflicts” on the periphery
4.3.1. Defining “periphery”
4.3.2. Nuno’s first positioning in the new “community”
4.3.3. The teacher as the mediator between newcomer and community members
4.3.4. The reaction of the different members to the newcomer’s “movement”
4.4. The first resources for the newcomer
4.4.1. Linguistic resources
4.4.2. Interaction resources
4.5. The first gatekeeping
4.5.1. Old-timers’ gatekeeping
4.5.2. Teacher gatekeeping?
4.6. Summary
5. CONTINUITY AND CHANGE
5.1. The middle of the academic year
5.2. The arrival of Tiago: The quiet newcomer
5.3. Mocking the “new” newcomer Tiago
5.3.1. Nuno mocking Tiago openly in the community
5.3.2. Gatekeeping Tiago in exchange for full membership?
5.3.3. Tiago’s reaction to Nuno’s behaviour
5.4. The “conflicts” continue
5.4.1. New teacher, new rules
5.4.1.1. New access to resources
5.4.1.2. New limitations to resources
5.4.2. Nuno’s re-positioning in the “community”
5.4.3. The teacher dealing with diversity as homogeneity
5.5. The re-organization of resources for the newcomer
5.5.1. Linguistic resources
5.5.2. A progressive categorization
5.6. More gatekeeping?
5.6.1. Oldtimers’ gatekeeping viewed by the day care centre teacher
5.6.2. Teacher gatekeeping?
5.7. Summary
6. MEMBERSHIP
6.1. Approaching the end of the academic year
6.2. The re-organization of resources for the newcomer
6.2.1. Linguistic resources
6.3. Categorization
6.3.1. The “naughty” one
6.3.1.1. New access and limitations to resources
6.3.2. The teacher dealing with diversity as homogeneity
6.4. Recognizing “full” access to some “community” resources
6.4.1. Linguistic resources
6.5. The end of gatekeeping?
6.5.1. Oldtimers’ gatekeeping
6.5.2. Teacher gatekeeping?
6.6. Summary
7. CONCLUSION
8. REFERENCES
9. APPENDICES
Appendix A: Consent Form for the study

LIST OF TABLES

0.1. EXPLANATION OF THE DIFFERENT CONTENTS OF THE PRESENT STUDY
1.1. THE MAIN NATIONALITIES REGARDING INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION TO LUXEMBOURG IN 2009
1.2. RESIDENT POPULATION IN LUXEMBOURG FROM 1981-2010 BY NATIONALITY
1.3. NUMBER AND PERCENTAGES OF FOREIGN STUDENTS AT DIFFERENT EDUCATIONAL LEVELS FOR THE LAST 10 YEARS
1.4. STUDENTS BY NATIONALITY
1.5. THE LUXEMBOURGISH SCHOOL SYSTEM FROM PRE-SCHOOL TO SECONDAIRE CLASSIQUE
1.6. EDUCATIONAL IDEOLOGIES
1.7. THE MAIN NATIONALITIES OF NEWCOMERS IN LUXEMBOURGISH SCHOOLS
1.8. STUDENTS LEAVING SCHOOL CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO NATIONALITY
3.1. TYPES OF CASE STUDIES
3.2. SAMPLE TABLE OF AUDIOVISUAL RECORDINGS IN NOVEMBER, 2008

LIST OF FIGURES

1.1. FOREIGN RESIDENTS IN LUXEMBOURG IN THE LAST 100 YEARS
1.2. MULTILINGUALIM IN LUXEMBOURG AND BEYOND
1.3. LUXEMBOURGISH SCHOOL SYSTEM
2.1. VISUALISATION OF THE SOCIALIZATION PROCESS OF CHILDREN
3.1. MAIN TYPES OF DATA COLLECTED
3.2. MAP OF THE CLASSROOM IN NOVEMBER 2009
3.3. NUNO’S WEEKLY TIMETABLE
3.4. SEVERAL PICTURES OF THE CLASSROOM
3.5. A SCHEMA OF THE MOCHILU DATABASE ORGANIZATION
3.6. THE TRANSANA ANALYTIC MODEL
3.7. THE TRANSANA INTERFACE IN MOCHILU
3.8. SAMPLE OF TRANSCRIPTION, CODIFICATION AND PRE-ANALYSIS PROCESS WITH TRANSANA

TRANSCRIPTION CONVENTIONS

The transcription symbols used in this study have their origin in different transcription conventions (i.e., GAT). I use an eclectic and simplified version, which is also partially explained in Chapter Three (3.10.1). The following symbols apply for the audiovisual transcriptions for one part (more detailed due to the visual factor), and the interviews for the other.

- Audiovisual recordings

/

Short pause (0,5 seconds)

//

Longer pause (between 0,5 and 1,5 seconds)

[

Overlapping in the beginning

]

Overlapping in the end

[…]

Previous interaction not relevant

(inaudible)

Inaudible segment

(between brackets)

Approximate transcription of inaudible segment

CAPITAL LETTERS

Emphasis

((gestures))

Description of physical movements (i.e., gaze)

<<low tone>>

Description of mode of speaking

<<language>>

Description of language use

:

Lengthening of vowel or syllable

translation

Translation in italics

?

Rising intonation

ALL

All children intervene

OTH

Other children intervene, not identified

TEA

Any teacher (Claire, Simone, Izabel, Julie). See corresponding background information

- Interviews (pseudonyms excluding the researcher)

italics

Interview transcription

bold and italics

Translation

(approximate transcrip.)

Approximate transcription of segment

((laughs))

Relevant mode of talking

(inaudible)

Inaudible segment

[context]

Context information

[e]

Missing vowel or consonant (in translation)

[…]

Previous interaction not relevant

TE

Any ‘main’ teacher (Claire, Simone). See corresponding background information

TF

Teacher Foyer (Julie)

TP

Teacher Portuguese (Izabel)

FA

Father (Nuno’s stepfather: Rui)

RE

Researcher (Roberto Gómez)

The interviews were conducted in several languages, depending on the speaker and the context: English, French, Spanish, and a mixture of Spanish and Portuguese. In most cases, one of these languages was used as a ‘lingua franca’ for the interviewer and the interviewee. This being so, the interviews contain numerous grammatical mistakes which I have decided to leave uncorrected. My intention, here, is to offer the reader the original form of the interviews without any further intervention on my part.

- List of pseudomyns used

Claire

First main teacher (November & December)

Simone

Second main teacher (January onwards)

Izabel

Portuguese teacher (Introduction to Sciences in Portuguese)

Julie

Teacher at the day-care centre

Rui

Nuno’s stepfather

Nuno

Newcomer and child ‘case’

Tiago

Child and new ‘newcomer’

Maria, Afonso, Sergio, Sunita, Stephan, Fabio, Max, Cathy, Jose, Sara, Miguel, Celia

Other children in the classroom

INTRODUCTION

The experience of a newcomer from one of the most unsuccessful groups in multilingual schools in Luxembourg

The main topic of this research, the experience of being a newcomer in a multilingual school, originates from research that took place during the years 2008 and 2009 in a Luxembourgish primary school. In the initial stages of this research one of the main objectives was to document the process through which a random newcomer (of Portuguese or Brazilian origin1) became just one more pupil in the classroom community. Taking into account that this research focused on a conventional classroom (as opposed to a bridge or special needs classroom) and that one of the main issues in this process of becoming just another pupil involves the different languages taught and spoken (Luxembourgish, German, Continental Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese), the reader may begin to appreciate the difficulty of such a process for a seven-year-old child.

However, as soon as the research was narrowed down, it seemed logical to focus on the resources and the capital brought and used by this newcomer on his way to membership. Along this path to membership there were many conflicts regarding capital and resources. Some agents also treated the newcomer differently. This study focuses on a process, on key moments during the academic year, either during interviews or in classroom interaction, and it analyses this data according to the research questions and the selected theoretical framework. This study claims to address a lacuna regarding current understanding of newcomers, especially within the context of primary schooling in Luxembourg. At the same time, it puts forward ways of understanding these newcomers. Once the scientific community acknowledges the relevance of the matter, more measures can be taken into consideration and hence these newcomers will have “an extra hand” on their difficult path in their new school and country.

Study overview

The present study is divided into three main parts. The first part consists of three chapters and deals with:

i)

the contextual information and the motivation which drives the research (chapter one)

ii)

the theoretical framework selected to respond to the research questions (chapter two)

iii)

the methodological tools employed (chapter three)

In the first chapter I take a look at the challenging situation regarding the Luxembourgish educational system. I explore some of the main concerns regarding migration and languages in addition to raising possible solutions for educational failure. I then take a look at an increasingly common situation in this context: the newcomers. I try to understand their context and the way they are received in classrooms. Finally, taking all these points into consideration, I turn to the research questions, before introducing the justification, rationale and analytical framework for the current study.

In the second chapter I explain the integrated approach to the questions and the data. I then describe the broad frame of a social view on learning and supplement it with both an interactional approach and an ethnographic perspective. I then take a look at some child development theories, as the current research takes place in a primary school, thus focuses, either directly or indirectly, on identity formation and learning processes. Later, I introduce the ideas of “communities of practice”, together with legitimate peripherality and access, which are of particular relevance for the first moments of the newcomer at school. I then continue to explore the concepts pertinent to the correlation between membership, socialization and learning, which is significant for the middle phase of the newcomer at school. Finally, the concepts of continuity and change are introduced as both relate to the newcomer, community identity and evolution. This chapter concludes with a summary (or review) of other major related case studies and an appraisal of their relevance, strengths and potential weaknesses.

In the third chapter I deal with all the relevant methodological aspects. The main points in this chapter are:

i)

the research objectives

ii)

the selection of the case

iii)

the research design

iv)

the types and methods of data collection

v)

the main characters or agents surrounding the child case

vi)

data organization, treatment (e.g., transcription issues) and analytical processes (e.g., clip selection)

The second main part of the study comprises three chapters of analysis, each of which covers a different period of the academic year of the newcomer. Hence the first chapter on analysis (Chapter Four), which involves the initiation of the newcomer into his new school, focuses on the first weeks of the child case. Throughout this chapter I explore the main moments regarding the welcoming of the new “member”, but also the first so-called conflicts. Other points of focus are the newcomer’s different potential resources at that stage and the possible gatekeeping practices on the part of a number of agents in the classroom.

Chapter Five comprises the middle period in the newcomer’s academic year. The main issues addressed here are:

i)

the arrival of another newcomer and the relationship between the two newcomers

ii)

the arrival of another teacher with concomitant changes to classroom rules and routines

iii)

the inevitable reorganization of resources for the newcomer

iv)

the potential gatekeeping practices of some agents in the classroom

The final analytical chapter (Chapter Six) addresses the last period in the academic year. In this chapter the devices employed in order to “categorize” others play an important role in understanding other issues such as membership and learning processes. This work explores once again the different configuration of resources for the child case as well as their interconnection with the categorizations displayed in the classroom. To these categorizations may be included the positioning displayed by the child case as well as the way the teacher behaves regarding issues such as diversity. A further concern is also the potential end of the gatekeeping practices.

Finally, the last and third part of the study, Chapter Seven, summarizes the different previous sections and challenges their validity with the aim of proposing future studies in the field. This chapter also covers the possible implications of the current study with regard to theory, practice and research itself. The chapter ends with a summary, followed by bibliographic references and appendices.

Table 0.1. Explanation of the different contents of the present study.

Section Chapter Main contents Data Main theory
  Introduction Motivation behind the research and structure of the study    
I Ch. 1. Educational and legislative context regarding romanophone children in primary schools with special attention to newcomers. Research questions and unit of analysis Legislative and administrative documents Research studies Davis (1994), García (2006), Horner & Weber (2005; 2008), Martín Rojo (2004; 2007; 2008), Noesen et al. (2008), Skilbeck (1982), Weber (2008)
I Ch. 2. Social, interactional and ethnographic approaches. Previous case studies Research studies Barnard (2009), Berger & Luckmann (1966), Corona et al. (2008), Corsaro (1993; 1997), Goffman (1959, 1974, 1981, 1982), Heller & Martin-Jones (2001), Heller (2004), Hellermann (2006), Lave (1990; 1996), Lave & Wenger (1991), Maurer-Hetto (2009), Wenger (1998), Young (2004)
I Ch. 3. Methodological approach. Description of the different steps of the research Pictures and tables Duranti (1997), Mason (2002), Merriam (1998), Pallotti (1996), Yin (2009)
II Ch. 4. First period of the newcomer in the school. Welcoming stage Transcriptions of classroom interaction and interviews Bourdieu (1977, 1982, 1984), Bourdieu & Passeron (1977), Erickson (1987, 2001), Goffman (1959, 1974, 1981, 1982), Heller (2001a; 2001b), Heller & Martin-Jones (2001), Lave & Wenger (1991), Martín Rojo (2008, 2009, 2010), Mehan (1998)
II Ch. 5. Second period of the newcomer in the school. Stage of changes regarding the teacher and the arrival of another Brazilian newcomer Transcriptions of classroom interaction and interviews Fuller et al. (2005), Heller & Martin-Jones (2001), Lave & Wenger (1991), Martín Rojo (2003, 2008, 2009, 2010), Wenger (1998)Wortham (2004a, 2004b)
II Ch. 6. Third period of the newcomer in the school. Final categorization stage Transcriptions of classroom interaction and interviews Erickson (1987, 2001), Heller (2001a; 2001b), Heller & Martin-Jones (2001), Holland & Lave (2001), Martín Rojo (2007, 2008, 2010), Wenger (1998), Wortham (2004a, 2004b)
III Ch. 7. Conclusions and implications of this study in the current state of the art    
  Appendices   Pictures, transcriptions, legislative documents  

PART I. Looking for a place in a complex community