CLIL with heritage languages

Ostensibly, CLIL approaches, combining opportunities to develop competence in an additional language with the learning of relevant subject content, have much to offer heritage language learners. These students have typically acquired a certain level of competence in a language of family or community significance in informal contexts, and have a variety of reasons for seeking to develop that language more formally. However, historical and geopolitical factors mean that provision for heritage language learning generally, and, more specifically, the extent to which CLIL approaches can be deployed within such provision, varies considerably around the world.

This chapter briefly defines the concept of heritage languages and summarises issues arising when seeking to make provision for learners whose needs and aspirations do not neatly fit those associated with either ‘first’ or ‘second’ language learning. It considers the potential of CLIL and similar approaches to respond positively to those issues and presents two contrasting contexts and solutions, in the US, where two-way immersion has emerged as a significant approach, and in the UK, where project-based learning initiatives have been trialed. It discusses the different kinds of benefits sought and achieved, and concludes by proposing a future research agenda.