Abstract:

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is one of the major curricular trends of contemporary European education. CLIL is one of the possible strategies on the way to a multicultural society. Its application in school practice significantly contributes to the dismantling of pupils' communication barriers. The application of CLIL is closely related to the development of social, linguistic and functional literacy.

CLIL has recently been implemented more or less all over the world. It is mostly implemented slowly, as it is very demanding for teacher training. CLIL serves primarily to motivate pupils to learn a foreign language, but perhaps surprisingly, it can motivate pupils to become more interested in the subject being taught. CLIL is an educational approach that involves very different models. The actual teaching is done by various methods in a course, during which emphasis is placed upon the independent creative work of pupils. All this, together with the possibility to use actively a foreign language for studying a subject (mathematics), often affects pupils by increasing their interest in the subject (mathematics).

In this paper we will focus on the possibilities of integration of mathematics and foreign language at the elementary school level. Mathematics provides an appropriate learning environment for CLIL. We are interested in whether teachers are aware of the possibility of integrating the subject discipline and the foreign language, and if they use it. We want to know their attitude as they perceive the need for inter-subject integration from the point of view of a mathematics teacher, and whether they feel the need for further education in this area.

The contribution is based on the broader study Analysis of the Educational Needs of Mathematics Teachers of the Olomouc Region in the Central Moravia Region, which includes a survey focused on content and language integrated learning. The research was carried out by members of the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Education, Palacký University in Olomouc, Czech Republic, in the year 2015. The aim of this survey was to identify the educational needs of mathematics teachers in the Olomouc region. It focused on the possible development of pedagogical-psychological and diagnostic competencies of teachers, teachers' didactic competencies and the development of teachers' competencies in the area of information and communication technologies. The development of professional didactic competencies included the solution of non-standard tasks in mathematical competitions, independent mathematical work, project teaching, outdoor teaching and integration of content and language education.

The research was carried out in the form of a non-standardized questionnaire for teachers of elementary schools. In the identification section, it surveyed respondent data, and it also contained a set of items formulated as a claim where the respondent could indicate the extent of his/her assertion with a five-step scale. Respondents were also able to choose "I do not know, I cannot answer". The last optional item was conceived as a free answer, as a supplement to the questionnaire for an item of high importance for the respondent.

The results have become a valuable resource for further exploration. It serves as a basis for conceiving the next educational offer we are implementing.

Keywords:

Content and language integrated learning, mathematics teachers, educational needs.