English as a Second Language

Students at International and English Language Schools

What Challenges Arise for Students?
by Carola Keil

Mother Tongue vocabulary to acquire academic knowledge if they have

not had formal teaching at their age level. One goal in
Did you know that 21 February is the International
TCK education should be to facilitate the transition of our
Mother Language Day (proclaimed in 1999 by UNESCO)?
children into the educational institutions of their country
Our world is getting more and more international, but
of citizenship.
“mother tongue education and multilingualism are
increasingly accepted around the world, and speaking one’s Studies in a second language (at an international school).
own language is more and more a right” (UNESCO 2003). Research shows that “literacy in [the] mother tongue has
a ‘cross-over’ effect in improving literacy in English. And
Why is the mother tongue (MT) important not keeping up literacy in [one’s] mother tongue may lead
for TCKs? to slower progress in English, and poorer results” (Vienna
If children grow up outside the parents’ home International School ESL and MT Department 2006).
country and they are educated at an international school,
why not raise them to be global citizens (rather than
What challenges arise for international MK
Germans, for example)? Then the mother tongue is not so
schools and their teachers?
important, is it? The numbers of ESL students are growing in MK
Identity—knowing where they belong. Language is a vital schools around the world. While this is a positive develop-
part of culture, and culture is ment from one perspective,
a very important part of a per- teachers might face the chal-
son’s identity. Children need
to learn the rules of their cul-
Preserving their national identity, lenge of teaching a class in
which a number of students
ture and the language. In their language, and culture gives have a limited understanding
mother tongue, they can best
express feelings and emotions.
children a feeling of personal of English, and the school
might fear a lower academic
It is the parents’ responsibility worth and self-esteem. standard. What can the school
to help children preserve their do? It can either implement
national identity, language, admission tests and turn down
and culture. Preserving their national identity, language,
students who speak little English (a practice that might
and culture gives children a feeling of personal worth and
not be in line with the goal of serving the whole missions
self-esteem.
community) or implement, develop, and improve an ESL
Reentry. For many TCKs who go to their country of
and MT programme.
citizenship to stay either after graduation or during their
school years, their passport country is not really home;
they are “secret immigrants.” But most children do not
Why ESL and Mother Tongue?
want to stand out. They try hard to be like everyone else Why should children study ESL and their mother
(especially at school), and they need to at least be fluent tongue? The Vienna International School ESL and MT
in their mother tongue. The second language, English, Department, which is at the forefront of ESL and MT teach-
suddenly loses its significance. ing, explains, “In order to assure that students will enjoy
Further studies in their home country. Children might cognitive and academic success in their second language,
be fluent in their mother tongue in a social context (with English, a student’s first language system, oral and written,
family, friends, and so forth), but they might not have the must be developed to a high cognitive level” (2006).

28 2007–2008 | CSE Volume 11 Number 4 | English as a Second Language Students at International and English Language Schools
Aspects of Language Proficiency Meaningful communication. Academic knowledge must be
The diagram below shows in schematic form the aspects processed in thinking. Cognitive abilities must be developed.
of language proficiency. Low affective filter. An affective filter is a learning blockage
The model of the language acquisition process is based on that is due to a negative attitude such as anxiety, fear, frustra-
the social and cultural processes that occur through everyday life tion, or low self-esteem. For example, when we came to Ger-
many, Tamara (grade 6) had the biggest problems with maths.
She did not know the German terminology, the academic
maths language. She felt frustrated and fearful. This high
affective filter blocked her from understanding and learning
new maths concepts. So she failed her first test and thought,
“I’m bad at maths.” But it was rather a language problem. The
Engli same happens with ESL children at international schools:
sh Language Proficiency
Nativ
e Language Proficiency They sit in science class, and if they do not know the vocabu-
lary, they will just feel frustrated and not even make an effort
Cognitive Development

to actively take part. So this affective filter has to be lowered

ent

Academic
Developm

in order for a child to develop academically.

All these interrelated aspects promote one another. These
Developm
Language

aspects are the foundation for language proficiency, native

ent

and English. Clearly, we need ESL teachers at international

sive Co Mea
en
reh t
mm nin
un gfu
schools. The ESL teacher and the content area teacher must
o mp Inpu ica l
C tio
n cooperate as both plan their daily lessons. The content area
teacher must inform the ESL teacher about the vocabulary
Low Affective Filter that will be used during the content area lesson. With this vo-
cabulary information, the ESL teacher can plan a lesson that
provides opportunities for English language learners (ELLs) to
listen, understand, speak, practice, read, and master the new
words before they attend the content area lesson. If the ELLs
are prepared during the ESL lessons, then those students will
actively participate in the content area lessons because they
Social a will have the academic language to do so.
nd Cultural Processes
Students studying at international schools need to read
and learn in their MT as well. At Murree Christian School
in all contexts—home, school, community, and the broader in Pakistan, the teacher used ordinary German schoolbooks
society—and how these feed into the student’s language. The from the respective grade levels in her German classes. She of-
following social and cultural processes provide a base for the fered German club as an afternoon fun activity once a week.
“legs,” which are important for language proficiency: German club included singing, stories, cooking, movies,
Language development. Language development is the discussions, games, youth culture, and German holidays.
acquisition of the oral and written systems of the student’s
What are the benefits of an ESL and MT
first and second languages in all the language domains—
programme for a school?
grammar, vocabulary, phonology, semantics, and so forth.
Cognitive development. Cognitive development is the • An ESL and MT programme enriches the cultural and
development of conceptual and analytic thought. linguistic diversity of a school.
Academic development. Academic development includes all • An ESL and MT programme provides a higher academic
schoolwork in the various subjects. In each succeeding grade, level for all students.
academic work dramatically expands the vocabulary and • The school can offer a wider variety of second languages.
language patterns to higher cognitive levels. This knowledge Most mother tongue teachers will be willing to teach their
transfers from the first language to the second language. language as a second or third language to English MT stu-
The “legs”are interrelated: dents. Bilingual students who have achieved high-level and
Comprehensible input. Without language, thinking is well-balanced skills in two or more languages are recognised
impossible. to be more effective thinkers and problem solvers than

English as a Second Language Students at International and English Language Schools | CSE Volume 11 Number 4 | 2007–2008 29
 monolinguals. MT teachers can also be very supportive as Mother Tongue Committee of ECIS also publishes a newsletter:
bilingual specialists interacting with the ESL teacher. www.ecis.org/esl.asp.
• T he school can be in line with other international • The Department of Education and Children’s Services, South
schools and requirements around the world. In 2001, Australia, offers Unlocking the World, a series of professional

the ESL committee of the European Council of Interna- development programmes for classroom teachers. Tutors go to

tional Schools (ECIS) officially changed its name to the host schools around the world and train teachers. Visit www.

ESL and Mother Tongue Committee to incorporate mother unlockingtheworld.com for more information.

tongue learning as part of its mandate.

In his book Bilingualism in International Schools, Resources
Maurice Carder says that “the second language programme • The book Bilingualism in International Schools: A Model for
Enriching Language Education, written by Maurice Carder and
should be at the centre of an International School curricu-
published by Multilingual Matters in 2007, is a very informative
lum, not on the periphery; all staff should be aware of the
read for ESL teachers, all school staff, parents, and administrators.
issues involved ... In this way,
To preview the book, visit www.
an International School will multilingual-matters.com and type
be truly international, and can One goal in TCK education the title in the Search box. Click on
avoid being seen as an English-
speaking school with an exotic
should be to facilitate the the appropriate link provided in the
results of the search. Various other
influx of non-English speakers” transition of our children into interesting books on the subject can
(2007, 32). be found on the Multilingual Matters
the educational institutions of site as well.
Recommendations to
Schools
their country of citizenship. • Krashen.com is a great website that
has current news and views on ESL
• Increase awareness more gener- and bilingual education: http://
ally in schools of the need for specialist personnel, train- sd.krashen.com.
• The website of the ESL and MT Department of Vienna
ing, programmes, and materials to support ESL learners.
International School, http://school.vis.ac.at/esl, has good general
• Implement, develop, and improve an English as a second
information as well as interesting pages for parents and teachers.
language and mother tongue programme (to see an exam-
ple, visit http://school.vis.ac.at/esl to learn about the ESL
References
and MT department at Vienna International School).
Carder, Maurice. 2007. Bilingualism in international schools: A model
• Include ESL and mother tongue study in the school and
for enriching language education. Clevedon, United Kingdom:
homework timetable.
Multilingual Matters.
• Raise awareness of the great importance and the benefits
Department of Education and Children’s Services, South Australia.
of mother tongue maintenance in teachers, school staff,
2007. Unlocking the world: Professional development for teach-
parents, and students.
ers. Adelaide, South Australia: DECS Publishing.
• Encourage families to take steps to keep the mother
UNESCO. 2003. The mother-tongue dilemma. Education
tongue and their home culture alive and well.
Today (July–September). http://portal.unesco.org/education/
• Teach families how to prepare their children for an en/ev.php-URL_ID=20280&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_
English medium school. SECTION=201.html.
• For all school staff, insist on TCK pre-field orientation (PFO). Vienna International School ESL and MT Department. 2006. VIS ESL
• Aim at recruiting MT teachers for MT lessons and cultural and MT department: Mission statement. http://school.vis.ac.at/esl.
activities and as bilingual support staff. If no teachers
are available, then allocate time to study in the mother
tongue using a correspondence course or an online course. Carola Keil specialized in language development during
• Take advantage of special courses for all school staff as part her training as a kindergarten teacher. In 1992, she moved
of PFO or continuing professional teacher development to Pakistan, where she homeschooled her children. Later,
(see the Professional Teacher Development section below). her children attended Murree Christian School, where Mrs.
Keil served on the board. Since returning to Germany in
Professional Teacher Development 2003, she has worked with MK Care Germany.
• The European Council of International Schools (ECIS), www.
ecis.org/aboutus.asp, is “a collaborative network promoting the
ideals and best practice of international education.” The ESL and

30 2007–2008 | CSE Volume 11 Number 4 | English as a Second Language Students at International and English Language Schools