Promoting Inclusive Practice: Video CVs as a Teaching & Learning Tool in the Language Classroom

Abstract

This paper considers the benefits and results of the introduction of a video CV assessment into an intermediate, mixed-ability undergraduate Spanish-language class. This task was designed both to modernize an existing written task and to provide students with dyslexia and other language-processing difficulties with the opportunity to best display their capabilities in the second language (L2). Dyslexia is a Specific Learning Difference (SpLD) whose characteristics can vary in form and severity, but which particularly affect language-processing. Dyslexic individuals often display a “paradoxical co-existence of special abilities and disabilities” (West, 1991, p.32): Abilities which include verbal acuity, visuospatial faculties, flexible problem-solving and creative skills which can all be used to advantage when designing activities to help students achieve success in learning a second language. A multisensory approach is now widely recognised as benefiting dyslexic individuals while other suggested adjustments include: oral recordings rather than written performance; multimedia presentations; and the incorporation of tasks that activate kinaesthetic-tactile components of learning, all elements mobilized within the video CV task. The video CVs produced by students were multisensory and creative while effectively mobilisiing the L2, showing the benefits of inclusive practice for all students, helping to create a diverse and engaging learning experience.