Do we all share the same goals for content and language integrated learning (CLIL)? Specialist and practitioner perceptions of ‘ideal’ CLIL pedagogies in the Netherlands

Abstract

In the past two decades, content and language integrated learning (CLIL) has seen a surge in uptake, especially in European schools offering forms of bilingual education. This article reports a study investigating practitioner and specialist perceptions about the goals and practices of CLIL in the Netherlands, one of few countries where CLIL provisions are highly institutionalized at the national level. To investigate these stakeholders’ perceptions about ideal CLIL pedagogies in an in-depth way, semi-structured interviews were held with seven CLIL practitioners and nine CLIL specialists. Inductive content analysis of the interview transcripts identified four themes relating to stakeholders’ perceptions of ideal CLIL pedagogies: (1) Meta-goals; (2) Teaching resources; (3) Student output; and, (4) Feedback and assessment. The most important themes and sub-themes for each group are discussed in detail. In addition to providing a rich picture of ‘ideal’ CLIL pedagogies by key stakeholders in the Netherlands, the results also showed that, despite the level of institutionalization of CLIL in the Netherlands, specialist and practitioner perceptions of ideal CLIL pedagogies seem not to be fully aligned. The implications for teacher-education and CLIL policy in the Netherlands and other contexts are discussed.