For students in English-language instruction, Finnish may be either the strongest language, i.e. their native language, or proficiency in it may still be developing. Using English and Finnish in parallel and working in multiple languages increase student participation and equality. Parallel language use also enables better content comprehension and language proficiency development by actively using it in teaching.

How to use English and Finnish in parallel

Course preparations and the beginning of the course

• Inform students about and discuss the language choices as well as the parallel language and multilingualism being used in the course.
• Plan for the use of language technology (e.g. direct captioning in Teams or PowerPoint) in instruction.
• Plan communications and tell students which languages (English, Finnish, multilingual) you will use to maintain contact during the course. Encourage them to also use Finnish in their communication.
• Collect information from students (e.g. in a preliminary assignment) on their Finnish language skills and their wishes regarding the languages to be used in group work. Plan the teaching and group assignments so that they support students in their work and linguistically.
• Create a safe atmosphere for using and learning different languages. Make language agreements: how and in what situations is Finnish to be used in the course.
• Select multilingual course literature. Give students the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the content in English, Finnish or other languages. The literature selection increases student autonomy/freedom of choice and enhances learning. Encourage students to also search for information in Finnish.
• Give students a list or map of the main course concepts in English and Finnish. If necessary, you can ask Finnish-speaking colleagues or students for help.

English-language instruction situations and teaching materials

• Give students the opportunity to hear different languages and read, speak and communicate in both English and Finnish.
• You can use routine Finnish-language phrases in lectures: saying hello and goodbye, giving assignments, phrases related to taking breaks, asking for things. If necessary, the same things can also be repeated in English. Regularly repeated phrases are easy to remember and lower the threshold for international students to work on their own language proficiency.
• Make an intro and final summary of the lecture (also) in Finnish. You can also show the body, headers and objectives of the class in Finnish. Using English and Finnish in parallel when teaching promotes learning both content and different languages.
• Use bilingual slides. Make a theme box, or present words of the day in English and Finnish. Use the same words on slides/in materials. This allows international students to build their Finnish vocabulary in their own field during instruction.
• Encourage students to ask questions and make comments in Finnish. They can then be translated into English. This enables you to promote student participation and equality in the course.
• Encourage students to take notes in the languages they choose: in their strongest language, in the language of instruction or to develop their language proficiency.
• When working in pairs or groups, instruct students to agree on language choices. Also encourage the parallel use of languages and participation by means of developing language proficiency.
• Group students flexibly according to their chosen language. In groups, discussions can be held in Finnish, for example, and written answers or work can be done in the language of instruction. This helps to promote inclusion in instruction.
• Use glossaries made by students for review or at the end of the course.

Evaluation and feedback

• Mutually agree on the language for student feedback. You can also give feedback in Finnish. If agreed, self-evaluation or peer feedback may also be in Finnish.
• Give exam questions in English and Finnish. You can use translation tools or get help from colleagues.
• Provide multilingual feedback on the course. For example, feedback can be given entirely or partly in Finnish according to language proficiency.