Achieving equitable opportunities to learn has been recognized as an important issue in multilingual content classrooms. However, partially because mathematics is conceptualized as a language-free subject, there is limited research examining linguistic minority students’ opportunities to learn in mathematics classrooms. The purpose of this research is to identify linguistic minority students’ opportunities to learn in mathematics classrooms in a Canadian multilingual urban elementary school, where English was the main instructional language. Drawing on cultural historical activity theory, this study focuses on two aspects of learning: externalization, which emphasizes learners’ creation of new cultural artifacts and new contexts to apply the given artifacts, and internalization, which emphasizes learners’ acquisition of preexisting cultural artifacts. In this ethnographic study, I examined the activity systems of participatory action research (PAR) with the activity system of regular mathematics lessons. Within these activity systems, I focused on newly-arrived English language learners’ (ELLs) participation. Specifically, I examined the range of opportunities to learn afforded to students in the two activity systems and identified how focal ELLs accessed these opportunities to learn. In the activity system of PAR, which emphasized externalization, students conducted research and presented their conclusions in order to implement changes in their school environment. All students, however, did not participate equally. Specifically, the focal ELLs were not able to access these opportunities to learn as a result of group dynamics, marginalized social identities, and other students’ perceptions of their linguistic ability. In the activity system of regular mathematics lessons, which emphasized internalization, the teacher organized lessons in ways that allowed focal ELLs to receive extra support and resources to reach the curriculum expectations. These mathematics lessons allowed focal ELLs to increase their participation through mathematical reasoning, problem solving, and explanations with a variety of resources including visual representations. A critical examination of the interactions revealed that focal ELLs’ opportunities to learn were expanded or limited depending upon classroom configurations. Furthermore, this research suggests that students’ social identities serve as both a medium and a product of learning. These results have valuable implications for developing inclusive classroom practices and curriculum in multilingual content classrooms.

Deutschlandweit nehmen die Schulen zahlenmäßig von Jahr zu Jahr zu, die ein bilinguales Angebot z.B. als Zweig oder als Modul in ihr Unterrichtsprogramm aufnehmen. Die meisten Angebote sind in englischer Sprache, aber auch andere – vor allem europäische Sprachen – spielen eine Rolle. Mittlerweile gibt es bilinguale Angebote in fast allen Fächern, wobei die gesellschaftswissenschaftlichen Fächer wie z.B. Geschichte und Geographie nach wie vor dominieren. Überraschenderweise spielt das Fach Darstellendes Spiel in der Diskussion um potenziell geeignete bilinguale Fächer weder in der Theorie noch in der Praxis eine nennenswerte Rolle. Mit der Wahl dieses Themas für die vorliegende Dissertationsschrift wird der bilinguale Sachfachunterricht Darstellendes Spiel erstmals in das Blickfeld der Forschung gerückt. Damit werden sowohl dem Sachfach als auch dem bilingualen Unterricht neue Perspektiven eröffnet. In der vorliegenden Dissertation wird folgenden übergeordneten Fragestellungen nachgegangen: Wie kann das bilinguale Sachfach Darstellendes Spiel für die Sekundarstufen I und II der allgemeinbildenden Schulen konzipiert werden? Worin liegt das besondere Potenzial des bilingualen Sachfachunterrichts Darstellendes Spiel? Welches sind seine spezifischen Merkmale? Dabei soll aufgezeigt werden, wo und in welchem Maße der Einsatz der Fremdsprache die sachfachliche Arbeit positiv oder negativ beeinflusst bzw. welche Auswirkungen der Unterricht im Sachfach auf den Fremdsprachenerwerb hat. Zur Beantwortung dieser Fragen wurde eine Auswahl existierender Ansätze zum szenischen Spiel im Fremdsprachunterricht unter Einbeziehung allgemeiner Überlegungen zur Funktion von Theaterspiel analysiert und zu den Besonderheiten des bilingualen Sachfachunterrichts in Beziehung gesetzt. Das auf dieser Basis erstellte Konzept wird in seinen vielfältigen Potenzialen analysiert und ausgelotet und mit Hilfe eines Praxisbeispiels in englischer Sprache veranschaulicht. / The number of schools in Germany which offer to teach one or more subjects in a foreign language (content and language integrated learning = CLIL) is still growing. The subjects often chosen for this type of instruction are Geography and History. Other subjects are less frequently taught in a foreign language. The courses vary in length (a number of school years or only some weeks). Drama is very rarely chosen as a CLIL-subject, and there are hardly any reports of successful teaching of or scientific literature about CLIL Drama. This thesis puts CLIL Drama for the first time in the centre of scientific research, thus opening new prospects for Drama and CLIL. The main questions this thesis attempts to answer are the following: What could a concept for CLIL Drama look like for pupils at state schools aged between 13 and 18? How can the potential value added of CLIL Drama be described? What are its key features? This thesis also points to the advantages and disadvantages of CLIL Drama. In the search for an answer to the above questions the author has analysed existing approaches to teaching a foreign language (mainly English, but also German and French) with the help of drama, including the current German discussion about bilingual teaching at state schools. Furthermore, the author presents an alternative look into what theatre is about in this context. On the basis of the results of her research the author draws up a broad concept for CLIL Drama at German secondary schools. The thesis concludes with an illustration of a CLIL Drama project (in English) launched among 14-year-olds at a German gymnasium.