Evaluation in a CLIL Experimental Programme. Language Assessment and Analysis of Teachers’s Code-Switching at Primary School Level

For years moving back and forth from the L2 (target language) to the L1 (native language) was not allowed in language classes, as it was considered an unnecessary interference. However, recently the validity of code-switching - the alternation of different languages within the same conversation - in the classroom has been acknowledged, in particular its use by bilingual speakers, as a natura1 strategy and as the norma1 outcome of social interaction. If code-switching is spontaneously applied by bilingual speakers then it should be a valuable tool even if performed in forma1 educational contexts such as bilingual schools. Given that today CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) is frequently viewed as a type of Second Language-Medium Instruction Gust like Bilingual Education), it follows that code-switching should also be adopted in CLIL contexts. Sapienza University of Rome and the University of Basilicata have been carrying out a longitudinal experimental study on CLIL. In the course of this research, a wide range of instruments have been developed. Since their choice depends on what we want to find out, also the language to be used is strictly linked to the instrument's aim. In fact, the issue concerning the alternation between English and Italian does not only refer to the classroom discourse, which may be characterized by the switching from one language to another by the teacher or by the students, but also to the choice of adopting one of the two languages or both of them when assessing students. Moreover, references to code-switching in the seven experimental classes can be found in some qualitative instruments. such os questionnaires and journals, which have been built ad hoc for this research.