Introduction: Early childhood is the time when children are most sensitive and receptive, and this is also true for foreign languages. The age at which children begin to learn a foreign language (English or German) has gradually decreased in Slovenia. Currently, it is optional in the first grade, but taught in about 97% of primary schools; in the second grade, learning a foreign language becomes compulsory. However, the question arises why children should not start learning foreign languages (FL) in preschool as part of the regular curriculum, because at this time children's brains are particularly plastic and their linguistic abilities develop rapidly. Between 3 and 7 months, the child already recognises different languages. By the age of two, most children are able to speak fluently. Younger children are more motivated to learn a foreign language because they do not feel pressurised, and they are also free of prejudice. In addition, they learn spontaneously through everyday activities. Children are curious and eager to learn new things. Multilingual children and later adults are more successful in solving problems, which has a positive impact on literacy. There are also positive effects on cognitive development and divergent thinking. Multilingualism has a positive impact on the development of self-esteem. Contact with a foreign language is also reflected in openness and respect for other cultures and people who are different from oneself. Purpose: The purpose of this systematic literature review was to identify the current state of foreign language learning in Europe and worldwide based on the relevant sources available. The aim was to investigate what methods are appropriate for teaching foreign languages at this level, what competences a person teaching foreign languages at pre-school age should have, what goals the children should or can achieve and what they depend on. We wanted to find out how immigrant children are involved in foreign language teaching in preschool. Methods used: The following data bases were used: COBISS+, dLib.si, Google Scholar, WorldCat and Dikul. Keywords: preschool (education), second language acquisition, bilingual, foreign language teachers, teaching methods, teaching approaches, pedagogical approaches, linguistic competences, pedagogical competences, learning outcomes, immigrant children, foreign language learning. We searched for academic and professional texts from 2015 to 2023 that were available in full text. We included articles that met the inclusion criteria. Results. Discussion and conclusion: In this paper, we present a model that is suitable for teaching foreign languages in the pre-school period and can also be applied in Slovenian public kindergartens.
|
