Effects of focus on form on primary CLIL students’ foreign language performance in task-based oral interaction

In content and language integrated learning (CLIL) programmes, attention to language can be easily overlooked behind the assumption that language learning will take place incidentally. This study aimed at analysing the effects of a balanced integration of content and language on fifth graders’ foreign language (FL) oral performance. Two groups of participants had been doing CLIL in the form of an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) subject as of first grade, and yet observations revealed an important lack of focus on form in these lessons. CLIL materials and lessons that provided enough attention to language were designed and implemented for three months only in one of the groups. Students were assessed on their FL fluency and complexity before and after the treatment. Results revealed higher gains in speech rate and number of minimal contributions and a significantly lower L1 reliance in the case of the treatment group.