Do concept maps prompt long-term memory in CLIL schoolchildren?

Abstract

To address the learning disadvantages that students might face in a foreign language (L2) environment, this research explores the impact of concept mapping on enhancing long-term memory retention among Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) pupils. The research design is quasi-experimental and involves sixty Spanish primary education students non-randomly assigned from a Spanish-English semi-public bilingual school. The main hypothesis investigated is that concept maps serve as effective teaching instruments for enhancing long-term memory. During training, new information was systematically integrated with students’ prior knowledge to aid long-lasting retention of instructional content. The study examines the use of concept maps in a CLIL classroom as a complement to traditional teaching strategies and instructional design, focusing on improving the recall of previously learned information. Findings show that concept maps are reliable tools for assisting CLIL students whose mother tongue (L1) is not English, significantly reducing forgetfulness because of the precision of the transmitted information. The study shows the potential of concept mapping to improve learning outcomes in L2 settings by providing visual, accurate, and structured learning aids.

Keywords

• Bilingual education
• CLIL
• Concept mapping
• Instructional design
• Long-term memory