Using and Researching Dual Language Books for Children

The Dual Language Action Research Project (2002-2004)

From the UEL Action Research Dual language books project

In June 2003 Angelika Baxter, a teacher experienced in working with bilingual pupils in both primary and secondary schools, reported several examples of very productive work.

For pupils new to English at KS2 and literate in their first language

1) A Tamil speaking pupil, literate in Tamil, new to English and very shy was having great difficulty engaging with classroom work in English. Her teacher introduced her to a Tamil folk tale published by the Refugee Council. The pupil was delighted to be able to participate in classroom work through reading the book, writing a review and then working on a summary of the story in English.

A list of bilingual folk tales published by the Refugee Council is available at http://www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/publications/pub006.htm#bilingual

The publications of the Refugee Council have the great advantage that they are not only available in the language of the pupils as well as English, but that they present material that is  culturally relevant and may be familiar to pupils.  Regrettably these publications may now be difficult to obtain as the Refugee Council’s education project had to cease due to lack of funding.

2) A pupil with very limited literacy skills in English can begin to engage with a text using a well illustrated dual text book. The teacher can work with a child to pick out salient points of the story, copy the picture, label it, write a caption or a sentence either in English or in the home language and gradually work towards a sequential summary. A book that has engaged pupils and been very successful in this role is the Swirling Hijab (Na ‘ima bint Robert, 200 Mantra). This book is available in 15 languages as well as English and on audio CD in 13 languages. http://www.mantralingua.com/jump.php?item=gid43

Until recently, Angelika worked in a primary school in which 44 languages were spoken by children originating from 48 countries. She was very pleased to find the Lima’s Red Hot Chilli game (originally developed by Linda) in the catalogue as she was using the text and was planning to make one, focusing on describing facial expressions. Angelika also worked with a Y5 class. She  bought 15 copies of Pandora’s Box in different languages and built up a resource bank of games and artefacts.

The aims of this project were twofold. In addition to improving access to the curriculum for bilingual learners, Angelika also aimed to use dual language books as tools to raise the profile of bilingual learners in school. Based on these books, displays of multilingual calligraphy were put up in key locations such as the assembly hall. To create these displays, children had been encouraged to write a short phrase using a language they knew, and to copy the same phrase in at least one language which was unfamiliar to them.  Whilst doing so, pupils were asked to follow the rules of each language, e.g. to write from right to left/left to right/top to bottom, as applicable.

The displays led to profitable discussions among children, as well as among staff, and further contributed to the school’s ethos of emphasising the enrichment which bilingual learners bring to the school environment. 

In her current secondary environment, which comprises 52 languages and 50 countries of heritage, Angelika is once again using Mantra’s ‘Myths’.

One student in Year 9, recently arrived from outside the UK, is literate in Persian but completely new to English. As a result of reading ‘Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves’ in an English-Farsi edition, he was able to answer comprehension questions in English without adult help. The student, who was in danger of becoming disaffected, began to regain motivation partly with the help of this dual-language edition.

Two Year 10 students, also Persian speaking, were feeling frustrated as their relative inexperience in English made it difficult for them to let their academic knowledge, ability and past achievements shine through. They were keen to read ‘Beowulf’, especially as they had not previously been able to demonstrate their familiarity with ‘epic’ as a literary genre during their schooling in the UK. The dual-language edition facilitated a quick grasp of the storyline, which in turn enabled a discussion-based approach during lessons. When answering questions, the students were able to improve their vocabulary as they cross-checked words and meanings against the Persian text. The illustrations proved an invaluable aid to information retrieval, and to reinforcing the sequence of events in the story.
As a result of reading ‘Beowulf’, these students were able also to share information about ‘Rustam’, the national epic of Iran which influenced early medieval epics across most of Eastern and Western Europe.

Angelika would like to see a greater variety of illustrated dual-language editions suitable for Key Stages 3 and 4. Ideally, she would like this to cover not only a range of folk tales/myths/epics, but also contemporary fiction, with a view to enabling access for students whilst also facilitating language awareness among peers, and adults, in school.

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© 2007