Literacy i språkfagene: kunnskaper, ferdigheter og vurdering

Abstract

This article discusses reading and writing in a foreign language (English, French, Spanish, German etc.) Foreign language learning carries an additional challenge compared to other school subjects. The foreign language is both the subject the students are learning and the language they are learning in. Therefore, the students must reach a certain language level before they can communicate in the foreign language. Likewise, their literacy skills in their mother language can only be transferred to their foreign language when they have reached a certain communicative level in the foreign language. Some students struggle to reach this level, referred to as the threshold level (B1), during the two to five years of tuition. Students also need help from the teacher in order to develop literacy strategies in the foreign language. In order to scaffold the students’ literacy development, the teachers need knowledge about the reading and writing processes.  How can teachers develop an instructional design that promotes literacy in their classroom? How can they give feedback that moves the students forward? How can this be done in a digital context? This article tries to answer these questions.