Language Philosophy
Mirzo Ulugbek Specialized School (MUSS) is committed to multilingualism as a means to build understanding and inspire the sharing of diverse perspectives. Language development in the mother tongue deepens cultural bonds, while the acquisition of additional languages extends the ability to communicate across linguistic boundaries (Standard A4). The school’s language development and acquisition approach aims to:
- Foster a love for language and literature;
- Develop skills in reading, writing, speaking and listening;
- Develop analytical, critical thinking and communication skills;
- Support a productive membership in the global community.
All teachers are language teachers at MUSS, showing commitment to language development in planning and practice (Standard C3-8). Language learning happens inside the classroom and outside, through structured lessons and casual communication.
This policy outlines the school’s philosophy of language, its approach to learning and teaching, and the support for students and staff in language development. The policy aligns with the law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On education,” “On the state language,” and other related legislation of RUz and applies to students, parents, faculty and staff. The policy aligns with the IB MYP Standards guiding language and language acquisition (International Baccalaureate: Programme Standards and Practices, 2014).
Relevant IB MYP Standards
- A4: The school develops and promotes international-mindedness and all attributes of the IB
learner profile across the school community.
- A7: The school places importance on language learning, including mother tongue, host country language and other languages.
- A9/9a: The school supports access for students to the IB programme(s) and philosophy. / The school strongly encourages participation for all students.
- B1-5a: The school has developed and implements a language policy that is consistent with IB expectations.
- B2-8: The school provides support for its students with learning and/or special educational needs and support for their teachers.
B2-11: The school utilizes the resources and expertise of the community to enhance learning
within the programme(s).
- C1-8: Collaborative planning and reflection recognizes that all teachers are responsible for language development of students.
- C3-7: Teaching and learning addresses the diversity of student language needs, including those for students learning in a language(s) other than mother tongue.
- C3-8: Teaching and learning demonstrates that all teachers are responsible for language
development of students.
- C4-1 Assessment at the school aligns with the requirements of the programme(s)
Language profile of the school
The language policy recognizes Uzbek as the official language of Uzbekistan and promotes Uzbek language development for all members of the community. All students attending MUSS are fluent in Uzbek or Russian as an admissions requirement, with many students showing fluency in Russian or Uzbek as well. All staff are fluent in Uzbek, with many staff multilingual in Russian and English. Social communication uses the language of preference; official communication is produced in Uzbek and Russian.
Language learning at the school
Languages are studied as both the exploration of the primary language, and the gaining of additional languages. Language and literature courses aim to develop critical thinking and analytical skills, deepen cultural understandings, and promote creativity and self-expression in the mother tongue either Uzbek or Russian.
Language acquisition courses broaden the students’ ability to communicate beyond the borders of the mother tongue. All students are expected to communicate competently in languages of acquisition (Russian or Uzbek and English) by the time completion of the MYP 5 year. Language acquisition is approached as leveled instruction with student placement based on demonstrated ability.
Language of instruction
The languages of instruction at MUSS are Uzbek or Russian. MUSS has a dual language program, offering the full curriculum in either the Uzbek or Russian stream. Students in the Uzbek stream learn Uzbek as mother tongue, and Russian as one of the acquisition languages. Russian stream students learn Russian as mother tongue with Uzbek as the acquisition language. Students are expected to demonstrate fluency in Uzbek or Russian as part of the admissions process. English is the mandatory third language. Learning focus for mother tongue and additional languages includes reading, listening, speaking and writing domains. Cross-language opportunities are encouraged to promote critical thinking (Standard A7).
Language of communication
The languages of official communication at the school are Uzbek and Russian. These include the production of documents, notices and verbal exchanges. Unofficially, community members speak in their language of preference, which may be Uzbek, Russian or English. Multilingualism is valued in the community, and opportunities to express ideas in languages of choice are encouraged.
Range of languages
The prevalent languages present at the school are Uzbek, Russian and English. There is a small population of Uzbek nationals who speak Tajik, Kazak, Karakalpak in the home, but consider Uzbek or Russian as the mother tongue. The school provides reading resources in these languages to support mother tongue development at home.
Admissions and assessment
The selective admissions policy requires that all students demonstrate fluency in Uzbek, the state language, or Russian. Students who demonstrate fluency in one of these languages but require additional support in academic language acquisition are identified at admissions and provided language tutorial sessions. All students entering the school’s grades 7-9 (MYP Years 3-5) are considered IB MYP students (Standard 9/9a). All assessments are produced in Uzbek or Russian, with the exception of language acquisition assessments. Assessments follow the criteria set forth in the relevant Language and Literature or Language Acquisition publications (Standard C4-1).
Language and literature
The study of language and literature is taught in Uzbek or Russian as the mother tongue. Language and literature are taught using the key concepts of communication, connections, creativity and perspective. Related concepts include audience, imperatives, character, context, genre, intertextuality, point-of-view, purpose, self-expression, setting, structure, style and theme. Global contexts are used to promote transdisciplinary connections and learning opportunities. Assessments are criteria-based, and cover the four assessment domains for language and literature: analysis, organization, production and language use (Standard B1-5a).
Beliefs and practices
Teachers of language and literature use the MYP aims and objectives, and consider these articulations as representative of best practice:
- Engagement in reading and writing workshops
- Facilitation of reading in all subject areas
- Providing cross-curricular opportunities
- Using a variety of texts and media, including global works and perspectives
- Promoting collaborative student experiences
- Using formative assessments to drive instruction
- Provide opportunities to increase intercultural awareness through language instruction
Language acquisition
The study of additional languages provides students the opportunity to understand the connections between language and culture, to extend their ability to communicate to a broader population, and to develop the ability to view issues and ideas from different perspectives. Uzbek or Russian and English are the languages of acquisition at the school. Language acquisition is taught using the key concepts of communicate on, connections, creativity and culture. Related concepts are included based on the phase of the class. Global contexts are used to promote transdisciplinary connections and learning opportunities. Assessments are criteria-based, and cover the four assessment domains of reading, speaking, listening and writing (Standard B1-5a). Students are assigned to language acquisition classes through internal placement testing. Language acquisition classes progress from Phase 1 to Phase 6, with the expectation that students will demonstrate Phase 6 competency in both Russian and English at the end of the MYP 5 year (Standard C3-7).
Beliefs and practices
Teachers of language acquisition use the MYP aims and objectives, and consider these articulations as representative of best practice:
- Set goals based on an outcome of proficient communication, regardless of a student’s starting
point or background in the language
- Include aspects of culture as part of the curriculum
- Employ an interactive approach to language learning
- Integrate the skill areas of listening, speaking, reading, writing, and viewing
- Embed grammatical structures and vocabulary development within instruction
- Use formative assessments to drive instruction
Strategies to support teachers and students
All members of the school community are expected to implement the language policy. All students are expected to master their primary language and show progress in their acquisition languages. All teachers are expected to fulfill their role as language teachers, and as models of a multilingual society. The school will ensure that structure and staffing are in place to support the development and acquisition of language. Parents should support the multilingual nature of the school and encourage their children to develop language skills.
Support for students
The school offers regularly scheduled language support and language acquisition classes as part of its extracurricular programming. Students requiring additional support are identified by their language teachers and class teachers, and entered into these sessions (Standard B2-8)
Support for teachers
The school hosts frequent in-house professional development opportunities to support teachers in
developing language teaching skills in the primary or acquisition languages. In addition, the school’s relationship with the Center for Pedagogical Excellence provides opportunities for teachers to seek expert guidance in subject teaching and pedagogy (Standard B2-11). Lead teachers are enrolled in IB subject workshops to support colleagues in implementing the program requirements. Teachers who do not speak one of the three official IB languages for publications will be provided with internal translations of the subject guides and relevant policy documents.
Support for planning
Collaborative planning time for the development of conceptual learning and transdisciplinary units is built into the school schedule. All teachers are language teachers at the school, and are encouraged to find opportunities in their planning to infuse the development and acquisition of language as an extension of their own subjects (Standard C1-8),
Policy communication and revision
This policy is communicated to parents and students at admission, and to staff during on-boarding. The policy will be published on the school’s website. The Director of the school and the IB Coordinator are responsible for ensuring that all community members are aware of the policy and understand their roles toward developing the multilingual character of the school.
Policy Review
The development of the language policy is driven by the stakeholders: students, staff and MYP
coordinators. Review of the policy is held at the end of each academic year by a diverse ad hoc language committee using a variety of data collected from classroom observations, assessment results, and program requirements to ensure the policy continues to support the language goals of the school and continues to align with the requirements of the MYP.
References:
International Baccalaureate: MYP Principles to Practice (2014)
International Baccalaureate: Programme Standards and Practices (2014)
International Baccalaureate: MYP Language and literature guide (2020)
International Baccalaureate: MYP Language acquisition guide (2014)
Updated December