Abstract:

What can the concept of the Trickster figure contribute to CLIL in a globalized world? – A world in transgression where cultural frames are constantly shattered. Due to globalization, major importance is ascribed to communication and thus to language programmes. Within these language programmes tribute is paid to bilingual or even multilingual speakers and school settings. Bilingual education is often used as an umbrella term which also encompasses CLIL. Although, in CLIL the focus is less on the language acquisition but rather on the hybridisation of languages and their respective cultures as well as content and its effects on learning. According to Ute Dierks, two categories of CLIL teachers can be found: `the keeper of culture´ and `the wanderer between worlds´. Whereas the `keeper of the culture´ has a rather monolithic understanding of culture, stating a strong connection between language and nation, the `wanderer between worlds´ crosses the borders between languages and cultures with a cosmopolitan attitude. These approaches are reflected in different ways of teaching CLIL. Teachers who tend to be categorized as `keeper of the culture´, refer to a monoglossic approach, not taking the differences of cultures and languages into consideration. For example and according to such a monoglossic approach, a topic for a CLIL History lesson is chosen within the national history of the target language. In contrast to this, the heteroglossic approach of the `wanderer between worlds´ emphasizes the differences between cultures and languages using transcultural teaching methods. This strongly coincides with Homi Bhabha´s notion of the Thirdspace emphasizing the possibilities of hybridization. The Trickster figure can be seen as the epitome of a transcultural principle. The Trickster is often depicted as a cultural boundary-crosser, leading a life on the edge of society. In myths, the Trickster is portrayed as a wanderer between the worlds translating between the gods and the humans. The idea of the Trickster and culture hero are merged in figures such as Prometheus. The Trickster is a translator between the sphere of language and the sphere of discourse, establishing the cultural concepts of the gods in the human world. Thus the Trickster possesses a high degree of translingual and transcultural competence. This negotiating of meaning in the process of translating the knowledge can be compared to the didactics of CLIL, with reference to the category of the `wanderer between worlds´. Here, the own concept of the learner is deconstructed while then being confronted with a different concept in the target language. While taking part in the discourse about these different concepts, the learners reflect on their own concepts and may reconstruct a new concept. In his study on bilingual learners, Beardsmore shows that these learners have a high flexibility and are better with problem-solving tasks than monolingual learners. By crossing boundaries not only cultures and languages are transgressed but also transferred, which prevents cultures from becoming stagnant and brings forth cultural renewal. Taking this into consideration, it would be an asset to develop CLIL programmes, not only referring to the school language and the target language but also integrating heritage languages. Who´s game to try?

Keywords:

CLIL, bilingual, heritage languges, trickster, transcultural.