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Parents lay the language foundation, so lure them out of their shell

Less educated parents speak less to their children and use fewer words. Making up for a language delay is a hopeless task if a teacher does not understand that the language environment at home is the most important thing.

Tekst Tekst Michiel van Nieuwstadt Onderwijsblad - - 7 Minuten om te lezen

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Picture: Nina Maissouradze

Martine van der Pluijm sometimes got a stomach ache when she saw the dire situations in which parents got into when the teacher or master had invited them into class to do an 'activity' with their child. Crafting something together, for example. “It was a shock to see some parents just not talking to their child. They sat next to each other. ”

Van der Pluijm obtained his PhD at the Open University in December for research into the way in which parents and teachers work better together to promote the language development of young children. Ten years ago, as project leader for low literacy at the municipality of Rotterdam, she saw that teachers were having a hard time helping disadvantaged children. “I admire those teachers. At the same time, I saw that they were insufficiently aware of the language basis that is laid at a young age and of the crucial role that parents play in it. ”

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It is impossible, says Van der Pluijm, if a teacher at school stimulates the language development of children, but does not understand that the language environment at home is the most important thing. "Robust scientific research shows that the quality of language stimulation of many parents with a low education is lower," she says. “They talk less to each other and use fewer words. If you start paying attention you will see it happening everywhere. At school, but also when you walk on the street in the city, you see big differences in the conversations that parents and children have with each other. ”

For parents with a low education and a migration background, there is another problem on top. Van der Pluijm: “For a long time, we advised these parents to speak Dutch with their children, even if they do not master the language themselves. The consequences of this are sometimes severe. Sometimes children learn Dutch at school, so that parents and children no longer have any language to speak to each other. We are concerned about children coming to school and not speaking Dutch. Rightly so, but the worst thing is: in some families they don't speak at all. ”

Van der Pluijm wanted to tackle the problem from the ground up and find a way to help teachers connect with the language environment at home. Her approach 'At home in language' starts with teachers forming a picture of the way in which children work with language at home and the role of parents in this.

The language children speak is part of their identity

It does not mean that teachers have to visit them. "As a researcher I might have liked to map out the situation in children at home, but teachers didn't see it and if they don't like it, then I have no right to speak up."

Instead, she tried to help teachers get to know parents better. This was often a problem at the Rotterdam schools she attended. Have a parent's evening. “Shame or fear often hides behind an apparent lack of interest from these parents,” says Van der Pluijm. “Just think. You attend a parent's evening and the teacher writes something on the smartboard, but you cannot read it. You have no idea at all what school is all about. The choice not to show up or to run away is then quickly made. ”

If a plenary parents' evening does not work, there are other options. “It starts with teachers inviting parents to the classroom when they take their children to school. That sounds obvious, but when I started there were still teachers who kept parents out of school. That even happened in the kindergarten groups. And when a parent comes in, you as a teacher will of course not sit behind your desk. ”

Martine van der Pluijm: "It was a shock to see that some parents simply did not speak to their child." Photo: Rob Niemantsverdriet

Even if it seems that parents do not want to talk, you as a teacher seek contact, explains Van der Pluijm. With a friendly look, for example, or by telling something about what their child is doing in class: 'How happy he is when he can play with the blocks.' "Very simple and very small, but that's how it starts."

To prevent parents from crawling into their shells or running away, teachers need to make them feel safe. “The point is that we as professionals stand next to them. It is nice if you want parents to read aloud, but the parents we are talking about here are often insufficiently able to handle books. If you, as a teacher, invite parents to come and read a book with their child in class, there is a good chance that things will go wrong. ”

Starting point

Van der Pluijm knew from research that play and talking activities around recognizable themes are a good starting point for parents and children. She helped teachers make their walk-in activities more accessible so that they are feasible for all parents, such as a talking activity with a family photo that children bring and discuss with a parent in class. “It can get very busy in a group, with children and parents. A lot of teachers have to get used to this, but it is positive pressure and teachers were able to appreciate it in the end. ”
Once the parents and children were in class, Nicole Vinke, one of the teachers with whom Van der Pluijm worked from the beginning, began with an instruction. She explained to children and parents exactly what was intended and demonstrated how a conversation between parent and child could go: 'Tell me: who are all in the picture? And who all live at your house? '

Language is where your heart is

The demonstration gives parents starting points to enter into a conversation with their child themselves. It helps parents who speak Dutch who do not speak enough Dutch if they are encouraged to speak with their child in the mother tongue. “Speaking Dutch is still simply a requirement in many schools, based on the idea that children benefit from being immersed in that language. Speaking Dutch is certainly important, but in a correct structure. ”

Isn't that also the idea behind OALT education (Education in Immigrant Living Languages), for which funding was discontinued more than fifteen years ago? Van der Pluijm: “At Home in Language, the mother tongue is not as central as at OALT. Both are based on the theory that multilingual children acquire the Dutch language better if they first have a good command of their mother tongue. That starting point is based on robust empirical research, but unfortunately faded into the background for political reasons. ”

Language games

For her first research, Van der Pluijm worked at seven Rotterdam schools together with fourteen teachers and teachers in pre-schools and in groups 1 to 4. The schools with 50 to 70 percent low-educated parents, often with a migration background, are located in Crooswijk, Bloemhof , Hillesluis and the Afrikaanderwijk. With the help of students from the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, her approach has now been applied to more than a hundred schools in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Van der Pluijm investigated whether Thuis worked in language if it was applied for a year, using observations, questionnaires and interviews with parents and teachers. Teachers indicated that cooperation with parents improved. Afterwards, parents indicated that they played more language games with children at home and spoke more with each other. In follow-up research, Van der Pluijm wants to determine whether the program improves the language of the children themselves, for example their vocabulary.

Profit

The painful silence between parents and children with which this article begins, startled Van der Pluijm and teachers, but it also offered perspective. “You see as a researcher. Okay now there is no talking at all, so every word you add is profit. ”

When teacher Nicole Vinke saw the conversation between parent and child stop, she sat down and called back the child who wanted to run away. "Look around you," she said. 'Everyone is talking to each other, that's how we are going to do it too.'

To see that a good teacher can help parent and child to enter into a conversation together, Van der Pluijm calls it an unforgettable experience. “After Nicole walked away, I saw the mother repeating the teacher's facial expressions and gestures and her questions. We succeeded in bringing parent and child into conversation with a common focus, something they were not used to doing. ”

According to Van der Pluijm, the fact that these conversations may take place in the parents' home language is inevitable. “The language that children speak is part of their identity and that of their parents. That should be a strength rather than a weakness. Language is where your heart is. ”

This article appeared in the January issue of the Onderwijsblad. AObmembers receive the Education Magazine eleven times a year. Know more about the benefits of the AOb-membership? Look here.

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