Exploring the meaning of bilingual provision in the Further Education sector in Wales

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the definition of ‘bilingual provision’ in vocational subjects in the Further Education sector in Wales, according to practitioners. The research is situated in the political context of the Welsh Government’s policy of increasing the number of Welsh speakers to one million by 2050. The research is based on a sample of four different areas across Wales and draws on semi-structured interviews with staff in schools and Further Education colleges. The study explores to what extent there is a consistent definition of bilingual provision. In the context of the debate regarding flexible and separate bilingualism, the article analyses the following components: teaching materials, delivery, assessment and bilingual teaching methods. It finds that there is an inconsistency in the definition of bilingual provision in the FE sector, driven by an emphasis on learner choice of language medium. The paper argues that there is a need to move away from this emphasis on ad hoc learner choice and offering provision, towards conscious language planning which will increase the number of learners following provision.

KEYWORDS:

• Bilingualism
• bilingual education
• Further Education
• language choice
• Wales
• Welsh

Acknowledgments

This manuscript derives from the author’s thesis. The author would like to thank her doctoral supervisors, Dr Dylan Foster Evans and Dr Jeremy Evas, and the anonymous referees who reviewed this paper and provided constructive comments. Thanks also to Dr Andrew James Davies for his guidance and support.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. The Further Education sector in Wales refers to the two years following statutory education, post-16. Depending on the options available, learners can choose to study in sixth forms or at an FE college. In this article, the term ‘FE’ is used to encompass both sixth forms and FE colleges, but does not include apprenticeships or work-based learning.

2. The Coleg Cymraeg was founded in 2011, with the aim of increasing the opportunities for students to study through Welsh in Higher Education. The Coleg Cymraeg currently works through branches located in eight universities in Wales. In 2018, the remit of the Coleg Cymraeg was extended to the post-16 sector.

3. Fishman defines diglossia as a situation where two languages are used in a speech community, and different functions are assigned to each language. The two sets of functions overlap minimally (Fishman 1991, 85).

4. Since 2007, schools in Wales are categorised according to how much Welsh is used as part of teaching and learning (Welsh Assembly Government 2007). Secondary schools are divided into four categories, two of which are ‘Welsh-medium’ and ‘bilingual.’ The ‘bilingual’ category is subdivided into four subcategories, one of which is bilingual 2A, where at least 80% of subjects apart from Welsh and English are taught through the medium of Welsh.

5. The aims of the Bilingual Champion include enabling colleges to develop and implement a strategy to increase Welsh-medium and bilingual provision, and increasing the number of learners following such provision (Arad 2014, 13).

6. The study sought to ensure a range of staff who used different amounts of Welsh or bilingual provision as part of their course, although this was difficult to ascertain.

7. Participants were given the choice to be interviewed in English or Welsh. For the purpose of this article, Welsh quotes have been translated into English by the author.

8. The Welsh verb ‘to write’ in the imperative plural.

9. The aim of this article is not to criticise the teaching practices of individual lecturers, but to evaluate their institutions’ definitions of bilingual provision.

10. Davies (2021a) analyses the influence of the norm and the default option on learners’ linguistic choices.

11. This is explored further in Davies (2021a).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol: [Grant Number YSG 15/16].

Notes on contributors

Laura Beth Davies

Laura Beth Davies graduated from Oxford University in Modern and Medieval Languages. After completing an MA in Welsh at Cardiff University, she undertook her doctorate researching the linguistic choices of learners in the Further Education sector in Wales. Laura Beth now works as a social researcher in the public sector.