CLIL and Its Potential Application in Primary English Classes in an Islamic School

Rabbania Zaikalina, Muhammad Amin

Abstract


This study explored the emergence of soft Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) practices in English classrooms at an Islamic primary school in Indonesia. While CLIL is widely implemented in an international context, its application in local schools remains limited and often unintentional. This research aimed to examine how English teachers integrate the principles of content, language, and cultural values into their classroom practices, through a qualitative study involving classroom observations, interviews and document analysis. The findings reveal that teachers frequently used daily-life themes and Islamic cultural values for content and cultural aspects and employed communicative strategies for cognition and language ones in their instruction. However, cognitive engagement and cross-curricular integration were minimal, as lessons focused primarily on vocabulary recall and simple dialogues. Despite these limitations, the presence of culturally embedded English instruction shows potential for further CLIL development in Islamic school settings. The study suggests that a more intense professional development among teachers, flexible curriculum design, and institutional support are crucial to strengthening CLIL practices in Indonesian primary education.

Keywords


CLIL; Islamic School; English for Young Learner; English teaching

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.30659/e.11.2.523-540

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