Many thousands of people with varying degrees of preparation teach English as a second or foreign language to many millions of people around the world. Some of these teachers are novice, volunteer teachers, who have not received any professional-level training. These novice teachers help to meet the demand for English teachers by often teaching for little remuneration or in non-ideal teaching conditions. These teachers can benefit from receiving training in how to teach English as a foreign language. Basic Training and Resources for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (BTRTESOL) is a program that is being created to provide training to these novice teachers on a wide variety of topics, including teaching various age groups. Research has shown that children learn language differently from adults. It is therefore important that teachers be aware of the cognitive, social, and emotional development of children and the teaching techniques that help children acquire language. Additionally, important differences exist between very young children (aged 3-7) and children (aged 7-11) that affect how they learn and how they should be taught. In addition to novice, untrained teachers, people who have been trained to teach English to adults may work abroad teaching English to children. They can benefit from additional training in educating children. In sum, training in the distinctive language learning needs of children will help all these teachers and their students to be more successful.

The study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of the educational games as a technique in the preschool-level English vocabulary learning of four year-olds. A true-experimental study design, specifically randomized pre-test, post-test control group design, was adopted. The sample was 33 private preschool children who were four years old. There were 17 females and 16 males in total. Data collection instrument was the 24-item English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Vocabulary Performance checklist prepared in accordance with the Total Physical Response (TPR) lessons&rsquo / content by the researcher. A pilot study, reliability and validity checks were done. In a four-week period, totally 24 vocabulary items were presented with picture cards by using Total Physical Response Method to both groups. In the experimental group, picture vocabulary games were used additionally while the control group did not receive picture vocabulary games. At the end, independent-samples t-test was conducted and the results indicated a significant difference in English Vocabulary achievement in favor of the experimental group which was taught by the educational picture vocabulary games with a large effect size. In addition, whether or not there was a gender effect on learning vocabularies of English as a foreign language with picture vocabulary games in the experimental group and without picture vocabulary games in the control group was investigated by means of t-tests. As a result, non-significant gender effect was found for both experimental and control group in learning English vocabulary. Upon understanding the remarkable effectiveness of the picture vocabulary games on English language learning for four year-olds, it can be implied that more picture vocabulary games should be devised for very young learners by the experts for the classroom use and the number of the books about educational vocabulary games should be increased. Furthermore, policy makers ought to prepare English as a foreign language curriculum including games for early childhood education programs, and integrate a new course about teaching English to very young learners into foreign language teacher training and education programs of the universities for pre-service teachers in the scope of a national foreign language policy.

The thesis deals with problems of teaching foreign languages to children of an early age. In the theoretical part, opinions of specialists in this subject are compared. It tries to provide an evidence for a succees of an early start of education. It is based on present requirements for language skills which are important for us to succeed as inhabitants of the European Union and to be able to win our recognition and acknowledgement in the world. In the practical part, there are examples of projects organized by international educational programmes. It refers to their contribution and emphasizes the possibility of using modern information technologies. The thesis highlights successful models of bilingual education in borderlands which could also become an inspiration for other regions.

Ao longo das últimas décadas, foi crescente e notório o aumento de escolas de educação infantil em nosso país. Expandiu-se, em igual proporção, o número de turmas da educação infantil em escolas regulares, já que a própria LDB considera esse âmbito de ensino como parte integrante da educação básica. A fim de agregar um diferencial em sua grade curricular, aulas de língua inglesa como língua adicional são inseridas no currículo de um sem número de instituições nas mais variadas modalidades: aulas de 30 minutos ou 1 hora uma vez por semana, às vezes duas vezes por semana e, até mesmo, em propostas bilíngues, com aulas todos os dias da semana, em cargas horárias das mais diversas. Assim, este estudo propõe-se a uma análise crítica do ensino de língua inglesa como língua adicional para crianças de educação infantil. Foram selecionados como foco de pesquisa o uso da linguagem, a promoção do letramento na língua alvo e as crenças de professores, pais de alunos e coordenadores das instituições de ensino. Para a geração dos dados, duas escolas exclusivamente de educação infantil, duas escolas de educação básica e três escolas de idiomas foram visitadas. Procederam-se observações de aulas, entrevistas com os professores de língua inglesa, com pais de alunos e com as coordenadoras das escolas. Verificou-se que, independentemente da carga-horária oferecida pela escola, usar mais ou menos inglês em sala de aula era uma opção do professor, em acordo com as coordenações das escolas. Observou-se, também, que quanto mais comunicativa a abordagem de ensino, mais havia espaço para a promoção do letramento. E constatou-se que as crenças de pais, professoras e coordenadoras de escolas são pertinentes mas precisam ser ouvidas no contexto escolar de forma a produzir um ensino efetivo e prazeroso para os alunos. / Throughout the last decades, it was noticeably increasing the number of kindergarten schools in our country. It has expanded, in the same proportion, the number of kindergarten classes in regular schools, since LDB (Lei de Diretrizes e Bases) considers this scope of teaching as part of the primary education. In order to add some particularities in its curricula, classes of English as a foreign language has been inserted in hundreds of institutions, in many different approaches: thirty-minute or one hour classes once a week, sometimes twice a week and also in bilingual projects, with everyday classes, in several workloads. So, the aim of this search is to hold a critical analysis on the teaching of English as a foreign language to very young learners. The use of language, the promotion of literacy in the target language and the beliefs of teacher, students’ parents and schools coordinators were selected as the focus of this work. In order to generate the data, two kindergarten schools, two primary schools and three language schools were visited. Classes were observed and interviews with the teachers of English, with the students’ parents and with the schools coordinators were conducted. It was verified that, independently of the workload offered by the school, using less or more English in the classroom was an option made by the teacher, in accordance to the school’s coordination. It was also observed that the most communicative the approach was, the more space to literacy was given. And it was checked that parents’, teachers’, and coordinators’ beliefs are pertinent but need to be heard in the context of the school in order to offer an effective and pleasant learning environment for the pupils.

Ao longo das últimas décadas, foi crescente e notório o aumento de escolas de educação infantil em nosso país. Expandiu-se, em igual proporção, o número de turmas da educação infantil em escolas regulares, já que a própria LDB considera esse âmbito de ensino como parte integrante da educação básica. A fim de agregar um diferencial em sua grade curricular, aulas de língua inglesa como língua adicional são inseridas no currículo de um sem número de instituições nas mais variadas modalidades: aulas de 30 minutos ou 1 hora uma vez por semana, às vezes duas vezes por semana e, até mesmo, em propostas bilíngues, com aulas todos os dias da semana, em cargas horárias das mais diversas. Assim, este estudo propõe-se a uma análise crítica do ensino de língua inglesa como língua adicional para crianças de educação infantil. Foram selecionados como foco de pesquisa o uso da linguagem, a promoção do letramento na língua alvo e as crenças de professores, pais de alunos e coordenadores das instituições de ensino. Para a geração dos dados, duas escolas exclusivamente de educação infantil, duas escolas de educação básica e três escolas de idiomas foram visitadas. Procederam-se observações de aulas, entrevistas com os professores de língua inglesa, com pais de alunos e com as coordenadoras das escolas. Verificou-se que, independentemente da carga-horária oferecida pela escola, usar mais ou menos inglês em sala de aula era uma opção do professor, em acordo com as coordenações das escolas. Observou-se, também, que quanto mais comunicativa a abordagem de ensino, mais havia espaço para a promoção do letramento. E constatou-se que as crenças de pais, professoras e coordenadoras de escolas são pertinentes mas precisam ser ouvidas no contexto escolar de forma a produzir um ensino efetivo e prazeroso para os alunos. / Throughout the last decades, it was noticeably increasing the number of kindergarten schools in our country. It has expanded, in the same proportion, the number of kindergarten classes in regular schools, since LDB (Lei de Diretrizes e Bases) considers this scope of teaching as part of the primary education. In order to add some particularities in its curricula, classes of English as a foreign language has been inserted in hundreds of institutions, in many different approaches: thirty-minute or one hour classes once a week, sometimes twice a week and also in bilingual projects, with everyday classes, in several workloads. So, the aim of this search is to hold a critical analysis on the teaching of English as a foreign language to very young learners. The use of language, the promotion of literacy in the target language and the beliefs of teacher, students’ parents and schools coordinators were selected as the focus of this work. In order to generate the data, two kindergarten schools, two primary schools and three language schools were visited. Classes were observed and interviews with the teachers of English, with the students’ parents and with the schools coordinators were conducted. It was verified that, independently of the workload offered by the school, using less or more English in the classroom was an option made by the teacher, in accordance to the school’s coordination. It was also observed that the most communicative the approach was, the more space to literacy was given. And it was checked that parents’, teachers’, and coordinators’ beliefs are pertinent but need to be heard in the context of the school in order to offer an effective and pleasant learning environment for the pupils.

Ao longo das últimas décadas, foi crescente e notório o aumento de escolas de educação infantil em nosso país. Expandiu-se, em igual proporção, o número de turmas da educação infantil em escolas regulares, já que a própria LDB considera esse âmbito de ensino como parte integrante da educação básica. A fim de agregar um diferencial em sua grade curricular, aulas de língua inglesa como língua adicional são inseridas no currículo de um sem número de instituições nas mais variadas modalidades: aulas de 30 minutos ou 1 hora uma vez por semana, às vezes duas vezes por semana e, até mesmo, em propostas bilíngues, com aulas todos os dias da semana, em cargas horárias das mais diversas. Assim, este estudo propõe-se a uma análise crítica do ensino de língua inglesa como língua adicional para crianças de educação infantil. Foram selecionados como foco de pesquisa o uso da linguagem, a promoção do letramento na língua alvo e as crenças de professores, pais de alunos e coordenadores das instituições de ensino. Para a geração dos dados, duas escolas exclusivamente de educação infantil, duas escolas de educação básica e três escolas de idiomas foram visitadas. Procederam-se observações de aulas, entrevistas com os professores de língua inglesa, com pais de alunos e com as coordenadoras das escolas. Verificou-se que, independentemente da carga-horária oferecida pela escola, usar mais ou menos inglês em sala de aula era uma opção do professor, em acordo com as coordenações das escolas. Observou-se, também, que quanto mais comunicativa a abordagem de ensino, mais havia espaço para a promoção do letramento. E constatou-se que as crenças de pais, professoras e coordenadoras de escolas são pertinentes mas precisam ser ouvidas no contexto escolar de forma a produzir um ensino efetivo e prazeroso para os alunos. / Throughout the last decades, it was noticeably increasing the number of kindergarten schools in our country. It has expanded, in the same proportion, the number of kindergarten classes in regular schools, since LDB (Lei de Diretrizes e Bases) considers this scope of teaching as part of the primary education. In order to add some particularities in its curricula, classes of English as a foreign language has been inserted in hundreds of institutions, in many different approaches: thirty-minute or one hour classes once a week, sometimes twice a week and also in bilingual projects, with everyday classes, in several workloads. So, the aim of this search is to hold a critical analysis on the teaching of English as a foreign language to very young learners. The use of language, the promotion of literacy in the target language and the beliefs of teacher, students’ parents and schools coordinators were selected as the focus of this work. In order to generate the data, two kindergarten schools, two primary schools and three language schools were visited. Classes were observed and interviews with the teachers of English, with the students’ parents and with the schools coordinators were conducted. It was verified that, independently of the workload offered by the school, using less or more English in the classroom was an option made by the teacher, in accordance to the school’s coordination. It was also observed that the most communicative the approach was, the more space to literacy was given. And it was checked that parents’, teachers’, and coordinators’ beliefs are pertinent but need to be heard in the context of the school in order to offer an effective and pleasant learning environment for the pupils.