Didactique de l’intercompréhension et école : Quelques réflexions

Abstract

Since some time, the so-called plural approach has become very popular in many European countries. According to its partisans, integrated language teaching should allow creating bridges between the pupils’ different languages and promote a functional multilingualism. This article concentrates on one of its aspects consisting in developing receptive skills in various tongues of the same language family : teaching intercomprehension. Discussing the benefits as well as the more negative aspects is based on the results of several empirical studies of the processes of intercomprehension, with special focus on a research project of the Scientific Center of Skills in Plurilingualism (Fribourg) that tested the applicability of a didactics of intercomprehension in history class.