Progression in Primary Languages: A longitudinal study of the route and rate of language learning in primary school in England

by Rowena Kasprowicz & Heike Krüsemann (University of Reading, UK)

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In September 2014, foreign languages became a compulsory part of the primary school curriculum in England, with the clearexpectation that learners should make “substantial progress in one language” (DfE, 2013) throughout the four years of language learning at primary school (age 7-11). However, schools face considerable difficulties (e.g., limited time, low teacher confidence and expertise, limited guidance), in particular due to lack of clarity regarding core content and learning outcomes for language learning at this level. Existing research exploring young learners’ linguistic progression in instructed settings demonstratesprogress in vocabulary size and grammatical knowledge development (Courtney et al., 2017) and in listening, reading and speaking skills (Cable et al., 2012). However, progress tends to be slow, variable and influenced by the amount and quality of language input available (Graham et al., 2017). Further research is needed to examine in depth the route and rate of language learning, in contexts where teaching time is limited and out-of-school exposure is minimal.

We present a 4-year longitudinal study, which will examine young learners’ linguistic development in French, German and Spanish over four years of learning at primary school in England. Learners (aged 7-11) from twelve primary schools (four per language), whose language provision is ‘optimal but realistic’ for this context (offering 45-60 minutes of teaching per week, from a teacher with expertise in the target language, following a defined scheme of work) will participate in the study. A battery of language tests completed twice per year (commencing Autumn 2022) will enable longitudinal and cross-sectional analyses oflanguage development, including understanding and use of target language vocabulary, grammar, and phoneme-grapheme correspondences, receptive (listening, reading) and productive (writing, speaking) skills. Individual difference measures (including working memory, analytic ability, English literacy level, attitudes, motivation) will be administered yearly, alongside questionnaires and interviews to explore perceptions of key stakeholders (parents, teachers, school leadership). The findings of the study will build a full and detailed picture of how foreign language knowledge develops in young learners in a primary school setting and shed light on the individual, instructional and contextual factors that affect language learning in this context. 

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References:

Cable, C. Driscoll, P., Mitchell, R., Sing, S., Cremin, T., Earl, J., Eyres, I., Holmes, B., Martin, C., & Heins, B. (2010). Languages learning at Key Stage 2: A longitudinal study (Final report). Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Courtney, L., Graham, S., Tonkyn, A., & Marinis, T. (2017). Individual differences in early language learning: A study of English learners of French. Applied Linguistics, 38(6), 824-847.

Department for Education (DfE) (2013). Languages programmes of study: Key stage 2. Crown Copyright. 

Graham, S. Courtney, L., Marinis, T. & Tonkyn, A. (2017). Early language learning: The impact of teaching and teacher factors. Language Learning, 67(4), 922-958.