In Carinthia, language knowledge and perspective towards it are closely linked to socio-political development. The German and Slavic language groups have been for several centuries creating a promising learning environment for bilingualism. Bilingual education is regulated by the law for minority schooling in some of the municipalities in Carinthia. Even though the number of Enrolments in bilingual schools is increasing, the level of Slovenian language knowledge decreases. Teachers have autonomy to individualize and differentiate teaching contents and to determine the number of teaching periods intended for Slovene or German. By enrolling students to bilingual schools, parents want them to get general education, better employment opportunities, and the possibility to maintain contact with elders. Slovene is nowadays spoken almost only by older population.
The theoretical part of the master's thesis presents an overview of bilingual education history in Carinthia with the emphasis on the position of Slovene language in bilingual primary schools in Carinthia. Additionally, the two most commonly used types of teaching methods are presented. Furthermore, the statistics of bilingual primary schools, statistics of bilingual teachers and upward trend of enrolment to bilingual primary schools over the past decades are examined.
Empirical part of the thesis involves results of the quantitative research conducted among bilingual teachers of primary schools in Carinthia. An anonymous questionnaire was made for the express purpose of our research. The research showed how lessons take place at most bilingual primary schools in Carinthia and which teaching methods bilingual teachers consider to be the most successful. The research also explored key features of students enrolled in bilingual schools. The usage and care for the development of the Slovene language by bilingual teachers were studied as well.
Results showed that the team-teaching method is the most commonly performed in bilingual primary schools. Although, bilingual teachers believe it is more effective to change language on a weekly basis. Groups of students, enrolled for bilingual school, are quite homogeneous regarding their knowledge of Slovene. Majority of bilingual teachers estimate that students are (much) more fluent in German than in Slovenian. The most problematic communication activity for students is speaking. Nearly one tenth of students enrolled to bilingual schools come from abroad. Bilingual teachers frequently use Slovene language in their private time and German for public appearances.
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