So, CLIL....did anybody ask the kids what they thought??

Coming from a secondary school teaching background, I'm well familiar with the  problems of teaching an Arts subject. It's not a core subject, it doesn't matter, it won't get you a job, it's boring, etc. etc. But, the schools have to offer it, so they fill the dead spaces in the timetable with these lessons. Last thing before lunch, last lesson on Friday afternoon, you get the idea. The few musical/artistic kids don't mind, they look forward to these lessons as much as they dread them. The rest of the class behave like zoo animals, all inhibitions thrown to the wind. They have behaved themselves all day, concentrating on their English, Maths, Science, Technology, because they grudgingly accept they need these subjects to succeed in life. They enjoy feeling smart, their schools value them and reward their good work (these are the grades that count, in the league tables!) But, put them in a Music class, or Art, or Drama, at the end of a busy day..? All you will hear is "Miss, why do we have to learn this? It's boring! It's stupid! It's pointless, I'm dropping it next year anyway!"
 And so on. Week after week. Grinds a person down.

So, the solution? Add yet another layer of opportunity to disengage! Not only is the subject boring, difficult, pointless, a bit lame, not even compulsory next year, but....

We're going to teach it in your second language! 

Pity the poor TEFL teacher who is faced with a non-core CLIL subject. In Spain, no school is forced to teach Music after Senior 3 year. So my school doesn't. If you want to study Music post-15, you have to go to another school. So, it's not that high on anybody's list of priorities. Madrid forces them to offer CLIL, to improve English. But, for whatever reason, my school has opted for the 'safe' option of attaching the CLIL to non-core subjects, where the final grade doesn't really matter to anybody. Perhaps I am being terribly unfair and this is not an accurate picture. But it seems that way to me. And I love my school, I really do. I love working there and I'm really going to miss it. But, just right now, I don't mind if I never see another Senior 3 Music class!! This is NOT what I moved into ELT for!!

It's been good for me to learn this. I will plan my job applications carefully.. So, looking on the bright side. But, OMG I'm very, very tired!