Abstract
Some argue that, in order to assess students' language competences, a teacher should also consider the competences they have in all the languages they know, including thus not only the languages of instruction but also the family languages. The present paper draws on the data gained through a questionnaire for teachers in the multilingual region of South Tyrol to discuss the findings and reflect on the challenges teachers must face when it comes to recognize the value of learners’ plurilingual repertoires.
Since 2019 the project “One school, many languages 2.0” (SMS 2.0) investigates the new, diverse face of multilingualism in South Tyrol, aiming to promote the perception of diversity as an enrichment and to increase language awareness of pupils and teachers. As such, both its didactic activities and research initiatives are addressed to schools without distinguishing between language groups - a novelty for the regional educational landscape.
In spring 2021 an explorative cross-sectional study was carried out to describe the status quo regarding if and how teachers from South Tyrolian schools manage the linguistic diversity by promoting plurilingual activities in class, as well as to pinpoint areas that they need further support in. In order to do so, an online questionnaire was launched and administered to a selected sample of teachers of every subject, working at all levels – from primary to upper secondary school level – and of every language groups. A total of 614 teachers answered the questionnaire and I will present a quantitative analysis of the answers respondents’ gave concerning the assessment of language competencies.
Results from the analysis inform my conclusions about the importance of awareness of languages other than school language(s) for the further development and implementation of inclusive teaching practices and didactics in a multilingual environment.