ICELANDIC AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

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ICELANDIC AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

• Icelandic for foreigners at the upper-secondary
  level
• Fjölnir Ásbjörnsson Director of Special Studies
  fa_at_ir.is Reykjavik Technical College
  Iðnskólinn í Reykjavík

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Icelandic for foreigners at IR

• Started at IR spring term 1993 with 5 students /
  4 lessons a week
• An experiment at the beginning
• Great interest but too few lessons
• Lessons increased to 6 a week but still too few
  lessons
• All students in one group beginners and advanced

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Objective

• To build systematically up a vocabulary and to
  increase reading comprehension and thereby
  strengthening understanding and expressing
  Icelandic orally and in writing
• To encourage further studies in Icelandic
  upper-secondary schools

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Two year studies for foreign students at IR-
summary -

• Term 1
• ÍSA1924 / 1026 Icelandic reading and writing
  beginners
• ÍST1924 / 1024 Icelandic conversation
  beginners
• TÖN1014 Computing for foreign students
  working with text
• ÍÞR3012 Sports
• Total 24 lessons/week

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Two year studies for foreign students at IR-
summary -

• Term 2
• ÍSA2026 / 2926 Icelandic - reading and writing
  
• ÍST2024 Icelandic conversation
• ENN1924 English for foreign students
  beginners
• LKN1924 Life skills for foreign students
• STN1924 Maths for foreign students
• TÖN2014 Computing for foreign students MS
  Excel
• ÍÞR4012 Sports Total 34 lessons/week
• Courses from other subject areas (max) 8
  lessons/week

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Two year studies for foreign students at IR-
summary -

• Term 3
• ÍSA3026 Icelandic - reading and writing
• ÍST3024 Icelandic conversation
• ENN1024 English for foreign students
• STN1024 Maths for foreign students
• ÍÞR5012 Sports
• Total 20 lessons/week
• Courses form other subject areas (max) 14
  lessons/week

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Two year studies for foreign students at IR-
summary -

• Term 4
• ÍSA1012 Support course
• ÍSA2124 Icelandic literature
• ÍSA3926 Icelandic grammar
• ÍSA4026 Icelandic reading and writing
• ÍST4024 Icelandic conversation
• ÍÞR6012 Sports
• ENN2924 English for foreign students
• Total 26 lessons/week
• Courses from other subject areas max 22
  lessons/week
• http//bella.mrn.stjr.is/utgafur/AFislenska.pdf

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Curriculum (Icelandic 1999, p. 49)...

• When teaching Icelandic as a second language, one
  must remember that the students have dissimilar
  conditions for studying Icelandic and consider
  the fact that their experience of language and
  culture, as well as their knowledge, is different
  from those students who have been brought up
  within the Icelandic culture.
• Icelandic as a second language involves a
  training in Icelandic and an active participation
  within the Icelandic culture, the maintenance of
  reading and knowledge within all subjects.

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More than 70 Different Nationalities

• Many foreign students already have acquired an
  Icelandic citizenship
• In the beginning most of the foreign students
  were from Viet-Nam and Yugoslavia
• Many students from other Scandinavian countries
  are studying at the school and receive some
  support from the immigrant department
• From the beginning we have had students from more
  than 70 different countries

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Different students

• The students are ranging from 16 to 60, although
  most of them belong to the typical secondary
  school age. The average age is 24 years
• The students have a dissimilar background
• some have attended Icelandic primary schools,
• others come directly from their native country
  after having attended school there for a long or
  short period of time
• from only a limited number of years of elementary
  school up to several years of university studies
• their native language is often very different to
  Icelandic
• some of them speak several languages others only
  their own native language

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The Future

• More subjects
• An increased support for students
• Better relations with vocational studies
• native language teaching

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The students / teachers

• What the teacher experiences
• - apart from the process of teaching -
• Gudlaug Kjartansdottir

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Group size

• Important to have small groups, max. 15 students
• Very exhausting to teach 28 students from 15
  countries
• Individual tutoring
• Two or more kinds of teaching material and levels
  at the same time

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The teacher's many roles

• Often no break between lessons
• Translate letters
• Fill out applications
• Make phone calls
• Write letters of recommendation
• Read essays and papers
• Assist with homework

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Other roles

• The language teachers act as study consultants
• The foreign students are not familiar with our
  comprehensive school structure
• The foreign students dont know the school
  hierarchy
• Language teachers important links to the rest of
  school (society?)

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Subject/study selection

• New subjects each term
• A special selection day in mid term
• Easy in first 2 terms Only specific foreign
  students subjects
• Last 2 terms More and more subjects with
  Icelandic students
• What can they manage?

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We lose a lot of our foreign students -What
happens?

• Many only intend to learn Icelandic
• Many already have a job/education
• Many of them switch to another school
• Some lack the motivation to continue
• Some cannot renew their permit to stay
• Are we offering them the right form of education?

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Special vs. traditional education

• We offer them 2 years of Icelandic and then
  studies for Icelandic students
• We are planning a graduation
• A need for a specific kind of secondary education
  for foreign students?
• Vocational studies/academic studies?
• Teach a trade/prepare for university?

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The students culture shock

• Misunderstand the freedom here
• Some of them show up much too late
• Some talk aloud during class
• Play hooky
• No books
• Discipline/lack of discipline
• Good manners (yes, I understand)

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The students how they feel

• The young students are often unhappy to be here
• They have not chosen to be here themselves
• Homesick/miss their family and friends
• This can sometimes be seen in their behaviour,
  attendance and grades
• They have little contact with the Icelandic
  students for the first 3 to 4 terms

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Foreign students / Icelandic students

• Very little contact, inside school as well as
• outside, for the first few terms
• Therefore the foreigners learn very limited
  Icelandic from them
• Do not have classes together for the first few
  terms
• Often live different lives (parties,
  entertainment)

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Racism / Prejudice

• We teachers feel that there is less racial
  prejudice than in the first years
• The faculty has grown and is now acknowledged by
  all
• Other teachers show more understanding when
  receiving foreign students in their class (become
  accustomed?)
• Different days Café International (food,
  costumes, dancing)

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Respect for the parentsattitude

• Respect whether the students can stay out in the
  evening or not (when planning trips and parties)
• Be careful not to make the parents look
  suspicious
• Be careful not to criticize the parents values
  unintentionally
• Family solidarity often different from ours
• Respect their views

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The students - Topics of discussion -

• Let them tell about their country and people, IF
  they want to
• Religion? be careful
• Housing? be careful
• Family size, siblings? be careful
• A good choice Food, nature and clothing
  (costumes)

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Communicating culture and information on the
Icelandic society

• Field trips (ice skating, city centre, museums)
  only during school hours
• Texts in class should communicate information on
  culture and society
• Photos in class which describe the society, if
  possible
• Films/TV programs in class

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Rewarding work! Appreciated work!

• Wonderful students who we get to know very well
  and who see the purpose of learning Icelandic
• A challenge to learn about other attitudes and
  traditions/norms
• Provides us with an insight into the lives of
  other people but the Icelandic