Mother tongue - a solid base for learning and more

Here in Sweden, I work as a mother tongue teacher. In the Netherlands, we don't have this type of education, but in Sweden it's a vital part of the educational system. And that goes way back, in the not-so-pretty history of this country. But before we dig deeper into that, I'll explain a little more about my work as a mother tongue teacher.

Why? Well, while working on my research project 'Tailored to all unique needs' - about which I wrote in my first blog post - I discovered something great about the Swedish approach to the value of mother tongue for language development, cultural awareness and a sense of belonging for all kids. Something that has everything to do with inclusion and that makes me proud being a part of it.

What is mother tongue education?

Mother tongue instruction is a fundamental right for all children residing in Sweden whose primary language is not Swedish. These students may be immigrants from various countries, have parents with a different mother tongue, or belong to a linguistic minority in Sweden.

I primarily teach children who were born in the Netherlands but have migrated to Sweden with their parents (due to employment at IKEA). Some of them have prior schooling in the Netherlands, while others were preschool age when they moved abroad. My class also includes students who have never lived in the Netherlands, though both their parents are Dutch. This diversity in background is reflected in the range of Dutch language proficiency among my students. Moreover, the ages of my students vary significantly. Mother tongue instruction is available to children between the ages of 7 and 16.

The goals for the lessons

Skolverket, the Swedish National Agency for Education, has established national learning objectives for mother tongue education. Here are some examples. Mother tongue teaching should provide students with the conditions to develop:

• the ability to formulate and communicate in speech and writing, distinguish linguistic structures and follow linguistic norms,
• the ability to adapt the language to different purposes, receivers and contexts,
• the ability to read and analyze fiction and other texts for different purposes,
• the ability to use their mother tongue as a means for their language development and learning, and
• knowledge of traditions, cultural phenomena and social issues in areas where the mother tongue is spoken in comparison with the conditions in Sweden (Kursplan Grundskolan, Skolverket).

Starting in grade 6 (when children are about 12 years old), their development is evaluated with a grade. This does not happen before that time, something that applies to all school subjects in the lower and middle school (L?gstadiet and Mellanstadiet).

My class consists of children in grades 2 to 5, so I am currently not assigning grades. However, I am following their progress, reflecting on it (with the children), and sharing those reflections with their parents.When the time comes to assign grades, Skolverket provides a rubric as a standard for reflecting on the progress of the kids language proficiency. Depending on their learning goals and development, you score the language proficiency of the kids based on a number of established criteria in categories A to E.

The importance of mother tongue education

A child's mother tongue plays a crucial role in their language, identity, personality, and cognitive development. The Swedish government provides various avenues for students to enhance their mother tongue proficiency. After-school groups, such as mine, are one option. Another option is mother tongue study guidance throughout the school day. For children who have recently arrived in Sweden, study guidance is provided in their strongest school language, even if it differs from their mother tongue (for example, for children who have been refugees for a long time). It's crucial to note how this mother tongue guidance impacts children's motivation. They receive instruction at a level that suits them rather than being pushed to the level of their Swedish language proficiency.

Initially, they only have to label things they already know with their Swedish names, rather than attempting to fully grasp new topics in Swedish. Feeling confident in their mother tongue aids them in developing knowledge in school subjects and in the Swedish language.

The historical background of mother tongue education

Maaike Hajer is emeritus lector Education and Multilngualism at Hogeschool Utrecht and professor at the University of Malm?. She has conducted research on the question how teachers, through their education and professional development, learn to integrate subject-specific language skills into their didactics, to promote inclusive education in multilingual contexts.

In an interview in Didactief (a Dutch magazine about didactics), Hajer (2019) outlined Sweden's inclusive vision for educating immigrant children:

"They do not belong to an extra category that needs a temporary, special approach," she said, "but they belong with their peers in mainstream education."

Newcomers therefore always attend a regular school, with mother tongue guidance and the opportunity to learn Swedish as a second language. Swedish as a second language is an approach to language acquisition that prioritizes students' ability to develop the language for thinking, communicating, and learning. The goal is to make children feel confident in using the language. This teaching method provides students with opportunities to communicate in Swedish at their current language level, without the need for precise grammar (Skolverket).

The care and expertise the Swedes have for multilingualism goes way back. It was a response to the lessons that Sweden learned from language education for Swedish minority children, Hajer clarifies.

The Sami, a small population group from Scandinavian Lapland with their own language, were forced to assimilate by the Swedish government.

Here we come to the not-so-pretty side of Swedish history, I referred to in the opening sentences of this blog: Sami children who attended Swedish schools in the 20th century were forced to give up their own language and culture at school. As a result, they achieved poor school results.?Partly due to a kind of national shame about this period big changes where made in the 1980s.

There now is recognition of the own identity of the Sami, the right to mother tongue education and adequate support in learning with the help of Swedish as a second language. And those lessons apply equally to children of migrant workers and refugees nowadays (Hajer, 2019).

How does all this connect to my research project?

Over the past few months, I have been analyzing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2007). One of the things I find most interesting about conducting research in a context that differs from my familiar one in the Netherlands is that I suddenly notice different things. While conducting a Critical Discourse Analysis on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, I was struck by how the same convention can lead to multiple outcomes, in multiple countries. As a mother tongue teacher, I was particularly amazed by the following:

Article 29 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) states that the purpose of education, to which every child has a right, is directed to the development of the child's personality, talents, and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential.

It should also foster a sense of respect for his or her own cultural identity, language, and values, for the national values of the country in which the child lives, the country in which the child was born, and for other civilizations.

Article 30 of the UNCRC states that in States where ethnic, religious, or linguistic minorities or persons of indigenous origin exist, the child belonging to such a minority or group:

... shall not be denied the right, in community with other members of his or her group, to enjoy his or her own culture, to profess and practice his or her own religion, or to use his or her own language.

So, focus on language and cultural identity. In the Netherlands, both schools and parents are free to pay attention to this. But here in Sweden it is embedded in education, as a right that is accessible to every child. I find that very powerful. In my opinion, we should not underestimate the impact that this type of government choices has. What you make important and accessible to everyone has a broad impact on both individuals and society as a whole. And how nice is it to feel at home in the language and culture of home, as part of your new home country? For the Dutch children in ?lmhult, I am allowed to contribute to this, even if it is small. And it makes me proud to be a part of that.