The Link Between Multilingualism and Intercultural Competence in Language Learning : An Empirical Investigation in Norwegian Secondary Schools

Denne artikkelbaserte doktorgradsavhandlingen er en del av Ungspråk-prosjektet, en forskningsstudie som undersøker elevers flerspråklighet og flerspråklige identitet på ungdomsskoler i Norge. Doktorgradsprosjektet har som hovedmål å utforske sammenhengen mellom flerspråklighet og den interkulturelle dimensjonen i språkopplæringen. Følgende forskningsspørsmål ble formulert: I hvilken grad er flerspråklighet og interkulturell kompetanse sammenkoblet i språkopplæringen på ungdomstrinnet? og Hvordan kan denne sammenkoblingen utforskes i denne spesifikke konteksten? De tre første artiklene setter søkelys på teoretiske og metodologiske aspekter. Artikkel 1 introduserer Ungspråk-prosjektets flermetodiske tilnærming og drøfter blant annet ulike måter å studere koblingen mellom flerspråklighet og interkulturell kompetanse i språkfagene i norske ungdomsskoler. Publikasjonen foreslår en todelt tilnærming som inkluderer en kvantitativ utforskning blant skoleelever og en kvalitativ studie av lærernes syn på koblingen mellom flerspråklighet og interkulturell kompetanse i fremmedspråksfaget. I tillegg diskuterer artikkelen teoretiske spørsmål og fremhever behovet for å forstå flerspråklighetsom et komplekst og mangefasettert fenomen som kan være assosiert med forskjellige faktorer (f.eks. språklæring i skolen, migrasjonsbakgrunn, kunnskap om dialekter og språkvariasjoner og reseptiv flerspråklighet). Publikasjonen indikerer også behovet for å utvikle et forskningsinstrument som kan bidra til å utforske elevenes flerspråklighet i dets fulle kompleksitet og i forbindelse med forskjellige faktorer. Artikkel 2 diskuterer utviklings- og valideringsprosessen til et slikt instrument. Publikasjonen introduserer det elektroniske kvantitative spørreskjemaet Ungspråk som ble utviklet til Ungspråk-prosjektet. Med fokus på elevenes flerspråklighet, gir det nyutviklede verktøyet muligheter til å utforske faktorer som kan belyse nyansene i elevenes flerspråklighet. Blant disse faktorene undersøker spørreskjemaet elevenes åpenhet og toleranse for andre sine meninger, og muliggjør dermed utforskning av den potensielle koblingen mellom studentenes flerspråklige og interkulturelle kompetanse. Artikkel 3 analyserer Ungspråk-spørreundersøkelsen og fire andre kvantitative spørreundersøkelser som har blitt brukt i forskning for å studere elevers interkulturelle kompetanse. Artikkelen undersøker hvordan og i hvilken grad spørreundersøkelsene har håndtert kulturell differensialisme, som har blitt sterkt kritisert i teoretisk forskning. Artikkelen fastslår at dette perspektivet fremdeles finnes i flere forskningsinstrumenter og diskuterer noen negative implikasjoner av bruken av slike verktøy. For eksempel kan de fremme stereotyper blant deltakerne og gi upålitelige forskningsresultater. I tillegg foreslår artikkelen hvordan forskere kan unngå dette problematiske perspektivet i fremtidige empiriske studier. De to neste publikasjonene introduserer de empiriske funnene fra doktorgrad-prosjektet og gir innsikt i sammenhengen mellom flerspråklighet og den interkulturelle dimensjonen i språklæring på ungdomsskolen. Artikkel 4 utforsker hvordan elevenes flerspråklighet, spesielt assosiert med å lære flere (engelsk og fremmedspråk) språk på skolen, kan kobles til elevers åpenhet. Basert på de empiriske dataene som er samlet inn gjennom Ungspråk-spørreundersøkelsen fra 593 studenter, antyder artikkelen at det kan være en særlig kobling mellom studentenes åpenhet og følgende faktorer: læring av fremmedspråk i stedet for bare engelsk på skolen, elevenes selvidentifisering som flerspråklige og vennskap med jevnaldrende som har andre hjemmespråk enn norsk. Disse resultatene antyder at utviklingen av elevenes flerspråklighet og flerspråklige identitet gjennom å lære flere språk på skolen kan være viktig for å fremme elevenes interkulturelle kompetanse. Bokkapittel 5 undersøker lærernes syn på flerspråklighet, interkulturell kompetanse og forbindelsen mellom disse to i faget Fremmedspråk. Studien analyserer datamateriale fra semistrukturerte intervjuer med seks fremmedspråkslærere som jobber på norske ungdomsskoler. Analysen viser at lærere ser på fremmedspråksfaget som et perfekt rom for å fremme studentenes interkulturelle kompetanse og flerspråklighet i sammenheng. Forståelsen av denne sammenhengen er imidlertid avhengig av lærernes syn på elementene som separate fenomener. Studien understreker behovet for å tilby klare definisjoner av sentrale konsepter i utdanningsdokumenter og å gi lærere praktiske retningslinjer for hvordan elementene kan undervises “i tandem” i faget Fremmedspråk.This article-based PhD thesis is part of the Ungspråk project, a mixed methods research study exploring students’ multilingualism and multilingual identity in lower secondary schools in Norway. Investigating the intersection of multilingualism and the intercultural dimension in language education, the present study seeks to answer the following research questions: To what extent are multilingualism and intercultural competence interconnected in secondary school language learning? and How can this interconnection be explored in this specific context? The first three articles focus on the theoretical and methodological aspects of the study. In introducing the mixed methods design of the overall Ungspråk project, Article 1 explores, among other issues, ways of studying the link between multilingualism and intercultural competence in the context of language learning in Norwegian secondary schools. The publication suggests applying a two-fold approach that includes a quantitative exploration of this link in school students and a qualitative study of teachers’ views on the interconnection between the elements in the Foreign Language subject. Moreover, the article addresses theoretical issues regarding such an investigation and highlights the need to conceptualize multilingualism, especially in the Norwegian secondary school context, as a complex, multifaceted phenomenon that can be associated with various factors (e.g., learning additional languages at school, migration background, knowledge of dialects and language variations, and receptive multilingualism). The publication also indicates the need to develop a research instrument that can help explore students’ multilingualism in its complexity and relation to various factors. Article 2 discusses the development and process of validating such an instrument. This publication introduces the electronic quantitative questionnaire Ungspråk, which was developed specifically for the purposes of the Ungspråk project. Focusing on students’ multilingualism, this newly developed tool enables the exploration of many other factors that can potentially shed light on the nuances of students’ multilingualism. Among these factors, the questionnaire examines students’ open-mindedness, thus allowing for the investigation of the potential link between students’ multilingualism and intercultural competence. Article 3 provides a critical analysis of the Ungspråk questionnaire and four other quantitative questionnaires that have been used in language learning research to explore students’ intercultural competence. It examines how and to what extent these tools have addressed the problematic perspective of cultural differentialism, which has been broadly criticized in theoretical research. The publication discusses some negative implications of the use of methodological tools that can reproduce cultural differentialism, such as the fostering of stereotypes among participants and the provision of unreliable research results. In addition, it suggests how researchers can avoid replicating this problematic perspective in future empirical studies. The fourth and fifth publications introduce the empirical findings of the PhD project and provide insights into the link between multilingualism and the intercultural dimension in secondary school language learning. Article 4 explores how students’ multilingualism, especially associated with learning additional (L2 English and L3 Spanish/German/French) languages at school, can be connected to open-mindedness. Based on the empirical data collected through the Ungspråk questionnaire from 593 students, the article suggests that there can be a particular link between students’ open-mindedness and the following factors: learning an L3 (Spanish/German/French) rather than only L2 (English) at school, students’ self-identification as multilingual, and friendship with peers whose home languages include those other than Norwegian. These results suggest that the development of students’ multilingualism and multilingual identity through learning additional languages at school can potentially be important in promoting students’ intercultural competence. The fifth publication, a book chapter, examines teachers’ views on multilingualism, intercultural competence, and the interconnection between the two as elements of the Foreign Language subject. The study draws on data from semi-structured interviews with six foreign language teachers working in Norwegian schools. It reveals that educators consider a foreign language classroom to be a perfect space for promoting students’ intercultural competence and multilingualism in interconnection. However, the understanding of this interconnection depends entirely on teachers’ views of the elements as separate phenomena. The study underlines the need to offer clear definitions of key concepts in policy documents and to provide teachers with practical guidelines on how the elements can be implemented in tandem in a foreign language classroom.Doktorgradsavhandlin

Researching intercultural competence in language learners: Gaps between theory and methodology

Traditional approaches to intercultural competence (IC) in language learning have been criticised for reproducing cultural differentialism, a theoretical perspective which emphasises that people are different due to essential distinctions between their ethnic or national cultural background. While differentialist views have been recognised as problematic in the theory of IC, it remains to be examined whether and how cultural differentialism is reflected in the methodological tools used in empirical research in the field. To shed light on this issue, the article analyses five questionnaires studying IC or related concepts: the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire (van der Zee & van Oudenhoven, 2001), the Intercultural Development Inventory (Hammer et al., 2003), the Intercultural Communicative Competence Instrument (Arasaratnam, 2009), the Intercultural Effectiveness Scale (Portalla & Chen, 2010) and the UNGSPRÅK Questionnaire (Haukås et al., 2021b). The analysis reveals that cultural differentialism persists at the level of methodology. However, the extent to which questionnaires reproduce it varies according to how notions of culture, identity and differences are reflected in the questionnaire statements. The concluding section discusses the possible implications of using methodological tools that reproduce cultural differentialism. It also provides some recommendations that can help researchers avoid this problematic approach in an empirical study.publishedVersio

Guardando al futuro per non avere rimpianti: l’approccio educativo alla xenofobia proposto dal progetto ALLMEET

Since the collapse of Soviet Union, the socio-political and economic changes, the unbalanced relationships between the ethnic Russians and the many “visible minorities” and the increased migration flows have caused a growth of xenophobic attitudes in the Russian Federation. This article presents the findings of the Tempus IV financed project “Actions of Lifelong Learning addressing Multicultural Education and Tolerance in Russia” we conducted aiming at counteracting this xenophobic trend through education.The results of our project have confirmed that education is the first and most important step in tolerance development and struggle against xenophobia in Russia and that the HEIs can be the key actors in this process. Furthermore, in this article we support the idea that a healthy engagement between academics and policymakers is essential to the provision of informed, evidence-based policymaking aimed at solving or at least reduce conflicts in multicultural society.Dal collasso dell’Unione Sovietica ai giorni nostri, i cambiamenti socio-politici ed economici, i rapporti poco egualitari tra il gruppo etnico russo e le tante “minoranze visibili” e l’accresciuta portata dei flussi migratori hanno provocato un forte aumento delle attitudini xenofobiche nella Federazione Russa. Questo articolo riporta alcuni dei risultati conseguiti dal progetto “Actions of Lifelong Learning addressing Multicultural Education and Tolerance in Russia”, inserito nel programma Tempus IV e realizzato con l’intento di contrappore a questo trend xenofobico efficaci azioni educative.Dal progetto è emerso come l’educazione debba essere il primo importante gradino nella promozione della tolleranza e nella lotta alla xenofobia in Russia e che le istituzioni di educazione superiore possano assumersi il ruolo di attori principali. In questo articolo sosteniamo l’idea che una proficua collaborazione tra mondo accademico e policymakers sia essenziale per ridurre il tasso di conflittualità nelle società multiculturali, gestendo con sinergia di prospettive e intenti situazioni per loro natura complesse

Visualising the language practices of lower secondary students: outlines for practice-based models of multilingualism

The multilingual turn in applied linguistics has produced a number of models that approach multilingualism from a variety of disciplinary and theoretical perspectives. However, fully developed models of multilingualism that focus on the language practices of individuals and groups are still lacking. This paper contributes to address this gap by introducing visual models that represent the contexts of practice and attitudes to the languages in the repertoire of lower secondary pupils in Norway. The paper starts by introducing the rich linguistic scenario in Norway and the role of language learning in developing students’ multilingual abilities. After a brief discussion on the role of practice in language learning, we provide an outline of current models of multilingualism, situating our visual models, the Ungspråk Practice-Based Models of Multilingualism (UPMM), in the field. The paper then focuses on the properties of the UPMM, which represent data collected from an online questionnaire answered by 593 students in lower secondary school and allow for the exploration of data both from the perspective of the whole group of participants and from an individual perspective. Particular attention is paid to the interactive features of the models, which can be used by teachers and educators as pedagogical tools for exploring multilingualism and language learning. The paper concludes with a discussion of the contexts of practice for the languages in the participants’ repertoires based on the visual models.publishedVersio

The Ungspråk project: Researching multilingualism and multilingual identity in lower secondary schools

The main objective of this article is to discuss the theoretical background and rationale for developing Ungspråk, a longitudinal, mixed methods study set in Norwegian lower secondary schools. The paper starts with an overview of different scholarly approaches to the study of multilingualism and their implications for research on multilingualism in education. After a brief introduction to multilingualism in Norwegian society and educational contexts, we present our research areas of interest and the main research questions. Particular attention is paid to the relevance of the concept of multilingual identity to the study. In addition, we discuss how the project will contribute to furthering the understanding of the relationship between multilingualism and intercultural competence. The mixed methods design of the Ungspråk project innovatively explores how different research methods and instruments can be combined to investigate questions related to multilingualism and multilingual identity and to create opportunities for meaningful interactions between researchers and participants. When discussing the mixed methods design of the project, we focus on how quantitative and qualitative components are integrated to address the research questions, engage participants in the research process and strengthen the overall validity of the findings. Overall, we hope that the Ungspråk project will contribute new insights into how languages can be learned and cultures explored in the 21st century multilingual classroom. Furthermore, the project may impact how researchers and participants interact with and benefit from empirical studies on education

School students' beliefs about the benefits of multilingualism

School students' beliefs about the benefits of multilingualismMultilingualism is increasingly seen as a resource among researchers, educators and in society. Whereas positive beliefs about the benefits of multilingualism may foster increased motivation for language learning, little is known about students’ beliefs about potential multilingual benefits. This study examined the beliefs of Norwegian secondary school students concerning the benefits of multilingualism and the role of some individual differences in these beliefs. The data consisted of questionnaires completed by 593 secondary school students. The initial descriptive statistical analysis showed that students held diverging beliefs regarding the benefits of multilingualism being more positive about benefits related to the language learning process and less positive about general cognitive advantages. Further statistical analyses with independent T-tests revealed interesting relationships between students’ overall beliefs about multilingualism and the following variables: Students’ who reported having friends with other home languages than Norwegian, students who had lived abroad and students with migration backgrounds held significantly more positive beliefs about multilingualism than students’ without such experiences. No significant relationships were found between students’ beliefs about multilingualism and the number of languages learned in school or students’ multilingual identity. Pedagogical implications for students’ language learning in school contexts are discussed.publishedVersio

Developing and validating a questionnaire on young learners’ multilingualism and multilingual identity

Validation of data collection instruments is a necessary step in all research and should be regarded as an integral component in every stage of the research process; however, the validation process is often not accounted for in detail in published studies. The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and validation of the Ungspråk electronic questionnaire, which was designed to explore teenagers’ multilingualism and multilingual identity in the Norwegian school context. It aims to examine whether having a multilingual identity correlates with several variables such as language practices, languages studied in school, open-mindedness, and beliefs about multilingualism. To our knowledge, the Ungspråk questionnaire is one of the first validated tools for quantitatively investigating learners’ multilingual identity in school settings. Different qualitative and quantitative procedures were adopted for validating Ungspråk, including piloting sessions with students from two lower secondary schools. The results of the validation processes suggest that the Ungspråk questionnaire is a robust instrument for investigating young learners’ multilingual identity. It is easy to use, acceptable to learners, and fulfils stringent criteria of reliability and validity.publishedVersio

Researching intercultural competence in language learners: Gaps between theory and methodology

Traditional approaches to intercultural competence (IC) in language learning have been criticised for reproducing cultural differentialism, a theoretical perspective which emphasises that people are different due to essential distinctions between their ethnic or national cultural background. While differentialist views have been recognised as problematic in the theory of IC, it remains to be examined whether and how cultural differentialism is reflected in the methodological tools used in empirical research in the field. To shed light on this issue, the article analyses five questionnaires studying IC or related concepts: the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire (van der Zee & van Oudenhoven, 2001), the Intercultural Development Inventory (Hammer et al., 2003), the Intercultural Communicative Competence Instrument (Arasaratnam, 2009), the Intercultural Effectiveness Scale (Portalla & Chen, 2010) and the UNGSPRÅK Questionnaire (Haukås et al., 2021b). The analysis reveals that cultural differentialism persists at the level of methodology. However, the extent to which questionnaires reproduce it varies according to how notions of culture, identity and differences are reflected in the questionnaire statements. The concluding section discusses the possible implications of using methodological tools that reproduce cultural differentialism. It also provides some recommendations that can help researchers avoid this problematic approach in an empirical study