Microsoft Word - 4. Krivosh Schwartz_39-58 (1).docx


EuroAmerican	
  Journal	
  of	
  Applied	
  Linguistics	
  and	
  Languages	
  
Special	
  Issue,	
  Volume	
  7,	
  Issue	
  1,	
  January	
  2020,	
  39-­‐58	
  
ISSN	
  2376-­‐905X	
  	
  
DOI	
  http://dx.doi.org/10.21283/2376905X.11.196	
  
www.e-­‐journall.org	
  	
  

© Krivosh 2020. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. 

	
   	
  

	
   "To	
  be	
  able	
  to	
  understand	
  each	
  other":	
  Intercultural	
  interactions	
  in	
  the	
  
Arabic–Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  preschool	
  in	
  Israel	
  

	
  
	
  

	
  
LUDMILA	
  KRIVOSH	
  &	
  MILA	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

Oranim	
  College	
  of	
  Education	
  
	
   	
  
	
   Received	
  24	
  June	
  2019;	
  received	
  in	
  revised	
  form	
  20	
  September	
  2019;	
  accepted	
  2	
  November	
  2019	
  

 
ABSTRACT 

EN This ethnographic study expands prior understanding of the intercultural encounter process by focusing on 29 Jewish and Arab 
children attending bilingual preschool and two preschool teachers during 16 class sessions. The findings shed light on a 
developmental stage at which the seeds of intercultural interaction begin to appear along the separation between Arab and 
Jewish children in terms of their social preferences. The presence of second language (L2) experts in the classroom prompted 
the formation of two groups based on children’s bilingual competence, an experts’ group and a novice one. On the one hand, 
some experts positioned themselves as competent bilinguals and teachers, willing to assume the role of L2 mediators and 
interpreters. On the other hand, the relative L2 competence prompted novice learners to be flexible and go beyond their ethnic 
identity in order to establish new social relationships. The data show that the process of L2 acquisition might play a catalytic role 
in activating a social mechanism for intercultural interaction and that, despite differences in the patterns of social adaptation, all 
children showed developmental intercultural changes. 
 
Key words: EARLY LANGUAGE LEARNING, INTERCULTURAL INTERACTIONS, BILINGUALISM, INTERACTIONAL COMPETENCIES 
 

ES Este estudio etnográfico profundiza en la comprensión del proceso de encuentro intercultural y se enfoca en 29 niños judíos y 
árabes en una escuela infantil bilingüe y dos docentes durante 16 sesiones de clase. Los resultados muestran un estadio de 
desarrollo en el que aparecen las semillas de la interacción intercultural junto con la separación entre niños árabes y judíos en 
función de sus preferencias. La presencia de dos expertos de segundas lenguas (L2) en el aula determinó la creación de dos 
grupos según la competencia lingüística d los niños, un grupo de expertos y un grupo de principiantes. Por una parte, algunos 
expertos se posicionaron como hablantes e instructores bilingües competentes, asumiendo el rol de mediadores e intérpretes. 
Por otra parte, la competencia lingüística limitada de los principiantes les empujó a ser más flexibles e ir más allá de su 
identidad étnica para establecer nuevas relaciones sociales. Los datos muestran que el proceso de adquisición de la L2 puede 
facilitar la activación de mecanismos sociales de interacción intercultural y que, a pesar de las diferencias en los patrones de 
adaptación social, todos los niños experimentaron cambios interculturales.  
 
Palabras clave:	
  APRENDIZAJE TEMPRANO DE UNA LENGUA, INTERACCIÓN INTERCULTURAL, BILINGÜISMO, COMPETENCIAS INTERACCIONALES 
 

IT Questo studio etnografico approfondisce la comprensione del processo di incontro interculturale e si concentra su 29 bambini 
ebrei e arabi che frequentano la scuola materna bilingue e due insegnanti nel corso di 16 lezioni. I risultati fanno luce su una 
fase di sviluppo in cui i semi dell'interazione interculturale iniziano a comparire insieme alla separazione tra bambini arabi ed 
ebrei in termini di preferenze sociali. La presenza di esperti di seconda lingua (L2) in classe ha indotto alla formazione di due 
gruppi basati sulla competenza bilingue dei bambini, un gruppo di esperti e uno di principianti. Da un lato, alcuni esperti si sono 
affermati come bilingui e insegnanti competenti, disposti ad assumere il ruolo di mediatori e interpreti L2. Dall’altro, la 
competenza linguistica limitata ha spinto i principianti ad essere flessibili e andare oltre la propria identità etnica al fine di stabilire 
nuove relazioni sociali. I dati mostrano che il processo di acquisizione di L2 potrebbe svolgere un ruolo catalizzatore 
nell'attivazione di un meccanismo sociale per l'interazione interculturale e che, nonostante le differenze nei modelli di 
adattamento sociale, tutti i bambini hanno mostrato cambiamenti dello sviluppo interculturali. 
 
Parole chiave: APPRENDIMENTO INIZIALE DELLA LINGUA, INTERAZIONE INTERCULTURALE, BILINGUISMO, COMPETENZE INTERAZIONALI 

  
	
  
* 	
  	
  Ludmila	
  Krivosh,	
  Oranim	
  College	
  of	
  Education	
  
	
  	
  	
  	
  	
  	
  	
  	
  	
  Ludmilk@gmail.com 



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 40	
  

1.	
  Early	
  childhood	
  bilingual	
  education	
  and	
  intercultural	
  interaction:	
  Introduction	
  
Early	
  childhood	
  bilingual	
  education	
  has	
  a	
  central	
  role	
  in	
  promoting	
  a	
  child’s	
  life-­‐long	
  love	
  of	
  language	
  

and	
   bilingual	
   proficiency	
   (European	
   Commission,	
   2011),	
   and	
   the	
   cognitive	
   and	
   linguistic	
   benefits	
   of	
   early	
  
bilingual	
   development	
   and	
   education	
   have	
   been	
   widely	
   researched	
   during	
   recent	
   years	
   (e.g.,	
   Barnett,	
  
Lambert,	
   &	
   Fry,	
   2008;	
   Hamann,	
   Rinke,	
   &	
   Genevska-­‐Hanke	
   2019;	
   Hoff,	
   2017;	
   Montrul,	
   2018;	
   Rolstad,	
  
Mahoney,	
  &	
  Glass,	
   2008).	
  Early	
   language	
   learning	
  has	
   enormous	
  potential	
   for	
   the	
  development	
  not	
  only	
  of	
  
children’s	
   cognitive	
   and	
   linguistic	
   skills	
   but	
   also	
   of	
   their	
   identity,	
   values,	
   empathy,	
   and	
   respect.	
   Children’s	
  
encounters	
   in	
   bilingual	
   early	
   education	
   settings	
   “can	
   shape	
   the	
   way	
   they	
   develop	
   their	
   attitudes	
   towards	
  
other	
   languages	
   and	
   cultures	
   by	
   raising	
   awareness	
   of	
   diversity	
   and	
   of	
   cultural	
   variety,	
   hence	
   fostering	
  
understanding	
  and	
  respect”	
  (European	
  Commission,	
  2011,	
  p.	
  7).	
  	
  

Since	
  bilingual	
  classrooms	
  are	
  also	
  bicultural	
  due	
  to	
  the	
  impact	
  of	
  both	
  the	
  children’s	
  and	
  teachers’	
  
home	
   and	
   community	
   values	
   (e.g.,	
   Baker,	
   2006;	
   Saxena,	
   2008;	
   Skutnabb-­‐Kangas,	
   2008),	
   policy	
   makers	
  
consider	
   this	
   diversity	
   as	
   a	
   resource.	
   The	
   bicultural	
   nature	
   of	
   bilingual	
   schools	
  might	
   then	
   be	
   established	
  
purposefully	
   in	
   locations	
   where	
   two	
   or	
  more	
   cultural-­‐ethnic	
   groups	
   are	
   living	
   in	
   a	
   state	
   of	
   tension,	
   in	
   an	
  
attempt	
   to	
   initiate	
   peace,	
  work	
   for	
   the	
   sake	
  of	
   humanity,	
   live	
   cooperatively,	
   and	
  maintain	
   respect	
   for	
   each	
  
other’s	
  cultures	
  and	
  languages	
  (Gundara	
  &	
  Portera,	
  2008).	
  This	
  need	
  for	
  intercultural	
  communicative	
  skills	
  is	
  
particularly	
  relevant	
  for	
  the	
  Jewish	
  and	
  Arab	
  communities	
  in	
  Israel.	
  Similar	
  to	
  the	
  English	
  and	
  French	
  context	
  
in	
  Canada,	
  in	
  Israel,	
  Hebrew	
  and	
  Arabic	
  are	
  host-­‐community	
  languages	
  (as	
  opposed	
  to	
  immigrant	
  languages)	
  
with	
  an	
  official	
  status.	
  However,	
  living	
  in	
  the	
  same	
  country	
  does	
  not	
  necessarily	
  mean	
  coexistence.	
  Unlike	
  in	
  
other	
  host	
  communities,	
  Arabs	
  and	
   Jews	
   live	
   in	
  separate	
  communities	
  and	
  can	
  at	
   times	
  experience	
   tension.	
  
Bearing	
  in	
  mind	
  that	
  living	
  together	
  in	
  mutual	
  acceptance	
  and	
  respect	
  is	
  not	
  an	
  innate	
  characteristic,	
  children	
  
need	
  to	
  be	
  taught	
  coexistence,	
  and	
  schools	
  serve	
  as	
  the	
  primary	
  institutions	
  for	
  this	
  purpose.	
  	
  

Recent	
   studies	
   revealed	
   that,	
   in	
   intercultural	
   communications,	
   children	
   can	
   display	
   a	
   strong	
  
orientation	
  towards	
  the	
  majority	
  group’s	
  language,	
  while	
  marginalizing	
  others	
  who	
  are	
  not	
  proficient	
  enough	
  
(Cekaite	
  &	
  Björk-­‐Willén,	
  2013;	
  Drury,	
  2000;	
  Puskas	
  &	
  Björk-­‐Willén,	
  2017),	
  for	
  example,	
  by	
  pretending	
  not	
  to	
  
understand	
   L2	
   novices’	
   talk	
   (Bernstein,	
   2016).	
   However,	
   these	
   challenges	
   were	
   documented	
   mostly	
   in	
  
monolingual	
  preschool	
  settings	
  and	
  the	
  question	
  of	
  how	
  the	
  intercultural	
   interactions	
  between	
  children	
  are	
  
built	
   in	
   a	
   bilingual	
   preschool	
   context	
   remains	
   under-­‐researched.	
   The	
   current	
   research	
   focuses	
   on	
   peers’	
  
intercultural	
  interactions	
  in	
  a	
  bilingual	
  preschool	
  with	
  a	
  high	
  number	
  of	
  children	
  with	
  immigrant	
  background.	
  
The	
   aim	
  of	
   this	
   study	
   is	
   to	
   explore	
   the	
  main	
   aspects	
   of	
   intercultural	
   interaction	
  during	
   the	
   first	
   year	
   in	
   an	
  
Arabic–Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  preschool	
  classroom	
  in	
  Israel.	
  Our	
  focus	
  was	
  on	
  the	
  dual-­‐language	
  program	
  that,	
  as	
  
a	
  model	
   of	
   bilingual	
   education,	
   has	
   a	
   language	
  as	
   a	
   resource	
   orientation,	
   viewing	
   languages	
  other	
   than	
   the	
  
majority	
  language	
  as	
  resources	
  to	
  be	
  developed	
  (Ruiz,	
  1984).	
  	
  

Bilingual,	
   bicultural	
   societies	
   develop	
   shared	
   values	
   and	
   increase	
   their	
   democratic	
   interactions	
  
through	
   intercultural	
   education	
   (Gundara,	
   2008).	
   In	
   contrast,	
   separate	
   schooling	
   in	
   a	
   bi-­‐	
   or	
   multicultural	
  
society	
  hinders	
  social	
  cohesion	
  (Gundara,	
  2008).	
  Thus,	
  in	
  the	
  case	
  at	
  hand,	
  bilingual	
  education	
  may	
  give	
  the	
  
Israeli	
   population	
   the	
  opportunity	
   of	
   exposure	
   to	
   the	
  other	
   official,	
   but	
   less	
   familiar,	
   language	
   and	
   culture.	
  
Knowledge	
  of	
  each	
  other’s	
  languages	
  and	
  cultures	
  may	
  lead	
  to	
  mutual	
  recognition.	
  In	
  this	
  study,	
  we	
  sought	
  to	
  
explore	
  the	
  onset	
  of	
  this	
  knowledge	
  development	
  by	
  drawing	
  on	
  the	
  theoretical	
  perspectives	
  presented	
  in	
  the	
  
following	
  section.	
  	
  

	
  
2.	
   Intercultural	
   communication	
   in	
   early	
   childhood	
   under	
   personal	
   and	
   external	
  
forces:	
  The	
  theoretical	
  models	
  of	
  the	
  study	
  	
  

The	
  unique	
  value	
  of	
  this	
  study	
  lies	
  in	
  the	
  examination	
  of	
  social	
  interaction	
  between	
  the	
  majority	
  and	
  
minority	
  language	
  speakers,	
  who	
  were	
  preschool	
  children	
  and	
  representatives	
  of	
  two	
  population	
  groups	
  that,	
  
in	
  most	
   cases,	
   live	
   separately.	
   In	
   this	
   study,	
  we	
   examined	
   the	
   behavior	
   and	
   interactions	
   of	
   children	
   in	
   the	
  
Arabic–Hebrew-­‐speaking	
   preschool	
   from	
   a	
   multidisciplinary	
   perspective,	
   enabling	
   a	
   comprehensive	
   and	
  
simultaneous	
   analysis	
   of	
   various	
   aspects	
   of	
   the	
   phenomenon.	
   For	
   this	
   purpose,	
   we	
   drew	
   on	
   theoretical	
  
models	
   from	
   different	
   research	
   disciplines	
   (psychology,	
   sociology,	
   and	
   child	
   development),	
   based	
   on	
   a	
  
common	
   conceptual	
   idea	
   of	
   shaping	
  human	
  behavior	
   and	
   interactions	
  under	
   the	
   influence	
  of	
   personal	
   and	
  
external	
  forces.	
  	
  

First,	
   we	
   drew	
   on	
   Bronfenbrenner’s	
   ecological	
   theory	
   (Bronfenbrenner,	
   1994),	
   which	
   sees	
  
individuals’	
  behavior	
  and	
  development	
  as	
  dynamic	
  and	
  changing	
   in	
  accordance	
  with	
  the	
  way	
   in	
  which	
  they	
  
understand	
  and	
  relate	
  to	
  their	
  environment	
  and	
  according	
  to	
  their	
  ability	
  to	
  control	
  their	
  environment.	
  The	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 41	
  

theory	
   holds	
   that	
   the	
   interactions	
   between	
   children	
   and	
   their	
   environment	
   are	
   expressed	
   in	
   the	
   circles	
  
surrounding	
  them.	
  On	
  the	
  micro	
  level,	
  these	
  interactions	
  take	
  place	
  in	
  interpersonal	
  relationships,	
  and	
  on	
  the	
  
macro	
   level,	
   in	
   relation	
   to	
   ethnic	
   groups,	
   either	
   people	
   living	
   in	
   a	
   particular	
   region	
   or	
   any	
   other	
   type	
   of	
   a	
  
broad	
  social	
  structure.	
  	
  

In	
  addition,	
  we	
  utilized	
  Berry’s	
  theory	
  of	
  acculturation	
  (Berry,	
  2005),	
  according	
  to	
  which,	
  individuals’	
  
behavior	
   in	
   a	
   multicultural	
   society	
   is	
   dependent	
   on	
   four	
   acculturation	
   strategies,	
   which	
   are	
   based	
   on	
   the	
  
distinction	
  between	
  orientations	
  toward	
  one’s	
  own	
  group	
  and	
  toward	
  other	
  groups.	
  The	
  theory	
  holds	
  that	
  a	
  
continuous	
  cultural	
  encounter	
  between	
  people	
  of	
  diverse	
  cultural	
  origins	
  leads	
  to	
  cultural	
  and	
  psychological	
  
change	
  of	
  these	
  strategies,	
  among	
  representatives	
  of	
  both	
  the	
  minority	
  and	
  the	
  majority	
  group.	
  	
  

Finally,	
  our	
  study	
  was	
  inspired	
  by	
  Robinson’s	
  theory	
  of	
  intercultural	
  development	
  (Robinson,	
  2007)	
  
that	
  claims	
  the	
  intercultural	
  behavior	
  of	
  representatives	
  of	
  diverse	
  cultures	
  is	
  determined	
  by	
  education	
  and	
  
choice	
   and	
   is	
   characterized	
   by	
   the	
   ability	
   to	
   change,	
   reflected	
   on	
   all	
   levels	
   of	
   the	
   child’s	
   development:	
  
emotional,	
  cultural	
  and	
  social.	
  

Based	
   on	
   these	
   theories,	
   in	
   this	
   study,	
   we	
   analyzed	
   interactions	
   between	
   the	
   L1	
   Arabic-­‐	
   and	
   L1	
  
Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  children	
  in	
  the	
  bilingual	
  classroom	
  with	
  regard	
  to	
  the	
  following	
  three	
  factors:	
  their	
  innate	
  
inclination	
   to	
   learning	
   and	
   connecting,	
   their	
   parents’	
   educational	
   environment	
   tendencies,	
   and	
   their	
  
willingness	
  to	
  become	
  familiar	
  with	
  another	
  culture.	
  We	
  conducted	
  this	
  analysis	
  in	
  accordance	
  with	
  the	
  level	
  
of	
  the	
  children’s	
  intercultural	
  communication	
  and	
  development,	
  including	
  their	
  degree	
  of	
  social	
  suitability	
  to	
  
the	
   new	
   educational	
   framework.	
   In	
   the	
   following	
   subsection,	
   we	
   briefly	
   address	
   the	
   existing	
   data	
   on	
  
intercultural	
  communication	
  in	
  dual	
  language	
  education	
  from	
  a	
  sociological	
  perspective.	
  	
  

	
  
2.1.	
  The	
  sociological	
  context	
  of	
  the	
  study:	
  Intercultural	
  communication	
  and	
  bilingual	
  education	
  	
  

In	
   recent	
   years,	
   an	
   increasing	
  number	
  of	
   studies	
   in	
   the	
   field	
  of	
   L2	
   learning	
  are	
   shifting	
   their	
   focus	
  
from	
  linguistic	
  and	
  cognitive	
  aspects	
  towards	
  cultural	
  and	
  social	
  aspects	
  (Brown	
  2007;	
  Norton,	
  2000).	
  With	
  
growing	
   awareness	
   in	
   the	
   education	
   field	
   that	
   learning	
   and	
   cognition	
   are	
   fundamentally	
   social	
   in	
   nature,	
  
sociocultural	
  interactions	
  in	
  the	
  classroom	
  may	
  be	
  examined	
  in	
  this	
  context.	
  This	
  social	
  type	
  of	
  learning	
  was	
  
theorized	
  in	
  the	
  concept	
  community	
  of	
  practice	
  (CoP)	
  (Lave	
  &	
  Wenger,	
  1991,	
  Wenger,	
  2006),	
  and	
  defined	
  as	
  
“groups	
  of	
  people	
  who	
  share	
  a	
  concern	
  or	
  a	
  passion	
  for	
  something	
  they	
  do	
  and	
  learn	
  how	
  to	
  do	
  it	
  better	
  as	
  
they	
  interact	
  regularly"	
  (Wenger,	
  2006,	
  p.	
  1).	
  Wenger	
  (2006)	
  noted	
  that	
  a	
  CoP	
  can	
  vary	
  in	
  terms	
  of	
  group	
  size,	
  
location,	
  status	
  of	
  the	
  individuals	
  involved	
  and	
  format	
  for	
  interaction.	
  According	
  to	
  Lave	
  and	
  Wenger	
  (1991),	
  
in	
   CoPs,	
   less	
   experienced	
  members	
   learn	
   from	
   interacting	
  with	
  more	
   experienced	
  members	
   (experts)	
   and	
  
with	
   each	
   other.	
   To	
   illustrate	
   this,	
   in	
   an	
   ethnographic	
   study,	
   Angelova,	
   Gunawardena,	
   and	
   Volk	
   (2006)	
  
addressed	
   intercultural	
   interactions	
  by	
  examining	
  peer	
  mediation	
   in	
  L2	
  by	
  young	
  L2	
  experts	
   in	
   a	
  bilingual	
  
classroom,	
   in	
   a	
   dual	
   Spanish–English	
   language	
   program	
   in	
   the	
  United	
   States.	
   Angelova	
   et	
   al.	
   (2006)	
   found	
  
that,	
  through	
  their	
  interaction	
  with	
  L2	
  experts,	
  the	
  novices	
  develop	
  linguistic,	
  cultural	
  and	
  social	
  competence	
  
in	
   L2.	
   Thus,	
   in	
   addition	
   to	
   their	
   role	
   as	
   language	
   teachers,	
   the	
   experts	
   might	
   also	
   play	
   the	
   role	
   of	
   social	
  
mediators	
   in	
   the	
   bilingual	
   classroom.	
   Blum-­‐Kulka	
   and	
   Snow	
   (2004)	
   also	
   defined	
   language	
   learning	
  
classrooms	
  as	
  CoPs,	
  referring	
  to	
  children	
  learning	
  the	
  L2,	
  who	
  are	
  more	
  competent	
  in	
  L2	
  than	
  their	
  peers	
  and	
  
can	
  play	
  the	
  role	
  of	
  L2	
  teachers,	
  as	
  language	
  experts.	
  	
  	
  

Current	
  research	
  points	
  to	
  many	
  possible	
  effects	
  that	
  L2	
  learning	
  in	
  classroom	
  as	
  a	
  potential	
  CoP	
  may	
  
have	
  on	
  individuals’	
  development,	
  from	
  changes	
  in	
  worldview	
  and	
  ways	
  of	
  thinking	
  to	
  how	
  they	
  communicate	
  
with	
   others	
   on	
   personal,	
   cultural,	
   and	
   social	
   levels	
   (Norton	
   &	
   Toohey,	
   2011;	
   Razmeh	
   &	
   Davoodi,	
   2015).	
  
Furthermore,	
  L2	
  learning	
  enables	
  a	
  reexamination	
  of	
  people’s	
  original	
  culture,	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  of	
  their	
  roles	
  in	
  the	
  
group	
   and	
   in	
   the	
   social	
   hierarchy	
   of	
   the	
   larger	
   community	
   in	
  which	
   they	
   live	
   (Pishghadam	
  &	
   Ordoubody,	
  
2011;	
   Ricento	
   2005).	
   These	
   findings	
   underscore	
   the	
   importance	
   of	
   intercultural	
   and	
   social	
   interactions	
  
provided	
   by	
   bilingual	
   education	
   during	
   the	
   early	
   years	
   of	
   children’s	
   intensive	
   social	
   development	
   in	
  
multicultural	
  societies.	
  	
  

Nonetheless,	
  only	
  few	
  studies	
  to	
  date	
  have	
  addressed	
  the	
  intercultural	
  aspects	
  of	
  early	
  dual	
  language	
  
education.	
  One	
  example	
   is	
  Freeman	
   (1996)	
  who,	
   in	
  her	
   comprehensive	
  ethnographic	
   study,	
  described	
  how	
  
the	
   minority	
   and	
   majority	
   language	
   groups	
   in	
   a	
   Spanish–English-­‐speaking	
   bilingual	
   school	
   in	
   the	
   United	
  
States	
  “collaborate	
  in	
  their	
  efforts	
  to	
  define	
  linguistic	
  and	
  cultural	
  differences	
  not	
  as	
  problems	
  to	
  be	
  overcome	
  
but	
   as	
   resources	
   to	
   be	
   developed”	
   (Freeman,	
   1996,	
   p.	
   564).	
   Freeman	
   showed	
   that,	
   by	
  means	
   of	
   thorough	
  
planning	
   of	
   curriculum	
   and	
   social	
   interactions	
   in	
   cooperation	
  with	
   policymakers,	
   administrators,	
   teachers,	
  
parents	
  and	
  children,	
  the	
  school	
  promoted	
  collaboration	
  between	
  the	
  majority	
  and	
  minority	
  language	
  groups	
  
toward	
  bilingualism	
  and	
  cultural	
  pluralism.	
  



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 42	
  

In	
   light	
   of	
   the	
   limited	
   data	
   on	
   intercultural	
   interactions	
   between	
   young	
   majority-­‐	
   and	
   minority-­‐
language	
  speaking	
  children	
  in	
  dual	
  language	
  programs,	
  this	
  study	
  sought	
  to	
  broaden	
  our	
  understanding	
  of	
  the	
  
phenomenon	
   through	
   children’s	
   ecological	
   contexts	
   (Bronfenbrenner,	
   1994),	
   acculturation	
   strategies,	
  
encouragement	
   of	
   their	
   cultural	
   environment	
   (Berry,	
   2005)	
   and	
   characteristics	
   of	
   their	
   intercultural	
  
development	
  (Robinson,	
  2007).	
  Bearing	
  in	
  mind	
  that	
  one	
  widely-­‐recognized	
  benefit	
  of	
  CoPs	
  is	
  their	
  members’	
  
ability	
   to	
   comprise	
   a	
   community	
  by	
  means	
  of	
  building	
   relationships	
   and	
   regularly	
   interacting	
   and	
   learning	
  
together	
  by	
  shared	
  practice	
  (Wenger,	
  2006),	
  we	
  sought	
  to	
  explore	
  how	
  the	
  young	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐	
  and	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐
speaking	
  children	
  build	
  their	
  CoP	
  through	
  intercultural	
  relations	
  and	
  with	
  the	
  support	
  of	
  their	
  teachers.	
  

	
  
2.2.	
  Arabic–Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  bilingual	
  education	
  in	
  Israel	
  

When	
  this	
  study	
  was	
  conducted,	
  the	
  official	
  state	
  language	
  policy	
  in	
  Israel	
  acknowledged	
  two	
  official	
  
languages	
  (Hebrew	
  and	
  Arabic).	
  Yet,	
  while	
  Arabic	
  was	
  recognized	
  as	
  the	
  second	
  official	
   language	
  in	
  Israel	
  by	
  
force	
   of	
   legislation	
   in	
   1948,	
   it	
   is	
   not	
   a	
   competing	
   partner	
   in	
   a	
   dyadic	
   bilingual	
   state	
   because	
  Hebrew	
   is	
   the	
  
dominant	
  language	
  in	
  Israeli	
  public	
  spheres.	
  Arabic	
  is	
  a	
  minority	
  language	
  and	
  is	
  the	
  main	
  language	
  for	
  most	
  
Arabs	
   (including	
  Muslims,	
   Christians	
   and	
  Druze),	
  who	
   comprise	
   20%	
  of	
   the	
   population.	
   Israel	
   has	
   separate	
  
Hebrew-­‐speaking	
   and	
   Arabic-­‐speaking	
   education	
   systems,	
   and	
   Arab	
   and	
   Jewish	
   children	
   are,	
   therefore,	
  
educated	
   in	
   different	
   schools.	
   Hebrew	
   is	
   studied	
   as	
   a	
   second	
   language	
   in	
   Arab	
   schools	
   and	
   is	
   part	
   of	
   their	
  
curriculum	
  from	
  first	
  or	
  second	
  to	
  twelfth	
  grade.	
  Most	
  Arab-­‐Israelis	
  understand	
  and	
  speak	
  Hebrew	
  and	
  use	
  it	
  
at	
  work	
  and	
  in	
  other	
  settings.	
  At	
  the	
  same	
  time,	
  the	
  level	
  of	
  Jewish	
  children’s	
  competence	
  in	
  Arabic	
  is	
  relatively	
  
low,	
  even	
  though	
  the	
  study	
  of	
  Arabic	
  is	
  obligatory	
  in	
  the	
  Jewish	
  secular-­‐school	
  curriculum	
  from	
  fifth	
  grade	
  on.	
  

In	
   1997,	
   the	
   Center	
   for	
   Bilingual	
   Education	
   was	
   established	
   to	
   promote	
   bilingual	
   and	
   bicultural	
  
education	
  and	
   the	
  development	
  of	
   both	
   Jewish	
   and	
  Arab	
  ethnic	
   communities.	
  The	
  Center	
  believes	
   in	
   equal	
  
representation	
  of	
  both	
   language	
  groups	
   in	
  schools	
  on	
  all	
   levels.	
  From	
  the	
  outset,	
   the	
  Center’s	
  policymakers	
  
have	
   consistently	
   chosen	
   a	
   teaching	
   and	
  management	
   staff	
   that	
   represents	
   both	
   groups	
   equally,	
  with	
   each	
  
class	
  having	
  two	
  homeroom	
  teachers—one	
  Arab	
  and	
  one	
  Jewish.	
  	
  

	
  	
  	
   Several	
  studies	
  on	
  bilingual	
  schools	
   in	
   Israel	
  have	
  revealed	
  their	
  main	
  objectives	
  (e.g.,	
  Bekerman	
  &	
  
Tatar,	
  2009;	
  Hertz-­‐Lazarowitz	
  et	
  al.,	
  2008).	
  The	
  first	
   is	
  to	
  help	
  the	
  Arab	
  and	
  Jewish	
  children	
  develop	
  a	
  high	
  
level	
  of	
  mutual	
  tolerance,	
  respect	
  and	
  acknowledgment,	
  taking	
  into	
  consideration	
  that	
  these	
  children	
  belong	
  
to	
  two	
  groups	
  with	
  a	
  longstanding	
  history	
  of	
  mutual	
  intolerance.	
  The	
  second	
  is	
  to	
  provide	
  the	
  children	
  with	
  a	
  
setting	
   that	
   offers	
   the	
   two	
   cultures	
   an	
   opportunity	
   to	
   meet,	
   in	
   contrast	
   to	
   what	
   happens	
   in	
   the	
   external	
  
society.	
  The	
  third	
  objective	
  is	
  to	
  provide	
  the	
  children	
  with	
  both	
  Arabic	
  and	
  Hebrew—the	
  languages	
  they	
  need	
  
to	
  live	
  in	
  Israel.	
  The	
  fourth	
  is	
  to	
  help	
  familiarize	
  the	
  children	
  with	
  customs	
  and	
  cultural	
  traditions	
  of	
  a	
  second	
  
ethnic	
  group.	
  The	
  fifth	
  objective	
  is	
  to	
  strengthen	
  their	
  self-­‐identity,	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  their	
  pride	
  and	
  loyalty	
  regarding	
  
their	
  own	
  culture.	
  	
  

	
  
2.3.	
  The	
  sociolinguistic	
  context	
  of	
  the	
  study:	
  bilingual	
  communication	
  and	
  identity	
  

In	
   addition	
   to	
   the	
   sociological	
   and	
  developmental	
   context	
   of	
   CoP,	
   the	
  present	
   study	
  dealt	
  with	
   the	
  
sociolinguistic	
   context	
   of	
   a	
   community	
   of	
   bilingual	
   kindergarten	
   children.	
   According	
   to	
   Cooley	
   (1922)	
   and	
  
Mead	
  (1934),	
  socialization	
  is	
  a	
  process	
  whereby	
  individuals	
  shape	
  their	
  identities,	
  develop	
  their	
  personalities,	
  
and	
   learn	
  to	
  be	
  members	
  of	
  society,	
   in	
  our	
  case,	
   in	
  bilingual	
  kindergarten	
  communities.	
   In	
   this	
  process,	
   the	
  
children	
  adopt	
  values,	
  norms,	
  and	
  skills	
   that	
  enable	
   them	
  to	
   integrate	
  socially	
   through	
   interaction	
  with	
   the	
  
teacher	
  and	
  the	
  other	
  kindergarten	
  children,	
  through	
  interpersonal	
  communication	
  with	
  them	
  and	
  the	
  social	
  
learning	
  that	
  ensues.	
  Interaction,	
  or	
  mutual	
  influence,	
  among	
  children,	
  comparison	
  with	
  the	
  other	
  and	
  test	
  of	
  
belonging,	
   are	
   described	
   in	
   the	
   theory	
   as	
   expressed	
   in	
   a	
   variety	
   of	
   ways,	
   reproduced	
   in	
   the	
   children’s	
  
thoughts	
   when	
   choosing	
   a	
   relevant	
   response.	
   Thus,	
   interpersonal	
   communication—discussion—is	
   created	
  
with	
   other	
   children	
   and	
   with	
   the	
   teacher	
   in	
   the	
   kindergarten	
   and	
   is	
   essential	
   for	
   an	
   intact	
   socialization	
  
process.	
  Interpersonal	
  communication	
  is	
  made	
  possible	
  through	
  signs,	
  symbols	
  and	
  other	
  symbolic	
  systems,	
  
including	
  language.	
  

Sociolinguistics	
  perceives	
  language	
  as	
  social	
  activity	
  and	
  a	
  key	
  instrument	
  of	
  socialization	
  (Paulston	
  
&	
  Tucker,	
  2003).	
  Language	
  characterizes	
  both	
  the	
  society’s	
  culture	
  and	
  the	
  individuals	
  within	
  it—their	
  status,	
  
gender,	
  values,	
  and	
   their	
  ethnic,	
   social	
  and	
  religious	
   identities	
   (Pavlenko	
  &	
  Norton,	
  2007;	
  Sidnell	
  &	
  Stivers,	
  
2013).	
  The	
  choice	
  of	
  one	
  language	
  or	
  another	
  as	
  a	
  socialization	
  tool	
  within	
  the	
  community	
  of	
  practice	
  of	
  the	
  
bilingual	
   kindergarten	
   constitutes	
   a	
   choice	
   of	
   a	
   system	
   of	
   accepted	
   codes	
   for	
   thinking,	
   expression	
   and	
  
interpersonal	
   communication.	
   The	
   bilingual	
   speaker’s	
   choice	
   of	
   a	
   specific	
   language	
   derives	
   from	
   a	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 43	
  

combination	
  of	
  socialization	
  components	
  such	
  as	
  identity,	
  interaction,	
  interpersonal	
  communication,	
  learning	
  
and	
  their	
  social	
  and	
  cultural	
  context	
  (Pavlenko	
  &	
  Norton,	
  2007).	
  	
  

	
  
2.4.	
  Research	
  questions	
  

The	
   main	
   research	
   question	
   of	
   this	
   study	
   was	
   as	
   follows:	
   How	
   are	
   the	
   intercultural	
   interactions	
  
between	
   bilingual	
   children	
   built	
   during	
   the	
   first	
   year	
   of	
   dual	
   language	
   education?	
   To	
   answer	
   the	
   main	
  
research	
   question,	
   we	
   formulated	
   three	
   secondary	
   questions:	
   (1)	
   How	
   are	
   intercultural	
   relations	
   formed	
  
between	
   the	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐	
  and	
   the	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  children?	
   (2)	
  How	
  do	
  preschool	
   teachers	
   support	
   the	
  
intercultural	
   relations	
   in	
   the	
   classroom?	
   (3)	
   How	
   does	
   early	
   bilingual	
   education	
   contribute	
   to	
   the	
  
acculturation	
  process	
  in	
  the	
  classroom?	
  

	
  
3.	
  Method	
  

This	
   longitudinal	
   ethnographic	
   study	
   was	
   part	
   of	
   a	
   large-­‐scale	
   project	
   aimed	
   at	
   examining	
   early	
  
bilingual	
  Arabic–Hebrew	
  education	
  in	
  Israel	
  with	
  a	
  focus	
  on	
  teacher–children	
  and	
  peer	
  interactions	
  and	
  their	
  
role	
  in	
  L2	
  acquisition.	
  	
  

	
  
3.1.	
  The	
  target	
  bilingual	
  preschool	
  

The	
  setting	
  for	
  this	
  study	
  is	
  a	
  bilingual	
  preschool,	
  established	
  in	
  2004	
  as	
  an	
  integral	
  part	
  of	
  a	
  bilingual	
  
Arabic–Hebrew-­‐speaking	
   school	
   located	
   in	
   central	
   Israel.	
   The	
   preschool	
   has	
   a	
   dual	
   language	
   program	
  
incorporating	
   classroom	
   instruction	
   in	
   the	
  majority	
   (Hebrew)	
   and	
  minority	
   (Arabic)	
   languages.	
  The	
   teachers	
  
coordinate	
  their	
  daily	
   instructional	
  practices	
  and	
  share	
  responsibilities.	
  They	
  share	
  the	
  same	
  classroom	
  space	
  
and	
  teach	
  both	
  languages	
  together.	
  Time	
  is	
  not	
  allocated	
  separately	
  for	
  each	
  individual	
  language.	
  Even	
  though	
  
each	
   teacher	
   acts	
   as	
   a	
   language	
   model	
   for	
   her	
   designated	
   languages	
   and	
   is	
   responsible	
   for	
   delivery	
   in	
   this	
  
language	
   as	
   a	
   medium	
   of	
   instruction,	
   both	
   teachers	
   sometimes	
   use	
   Hebrew	
   and	
   Arabic	
   and	
   apply	
   flexible	
  
language	
   practices.	
   During	
   their	
   co-­‐teaching,	
   the	
   teachers	
   do	
   not	
   build	
   on	
   translating	
   each	
   other,	
   but	
   on	
  
elaborating,	
  extending	
  and	
  continuing	
  each	
  other’s	
  speech	
  in	
  their	
  designated	
  language	
  (Schwartz	
  &	
  Asli,	
  2014).	
  	
  

	
  
3.2.	
  Participants	
  	
  
3.2.1.	
  Children	
  

The	
  children	
  were	
  5-­‐to-­‐6-­‐year-­‐olds	
  who	
  had	
  entered	
  the	
  target	
  preschool	
  at	
  age	
  5	
  (one	
  year	
  before	
  
entry	
  into	
  elementary	
  school	
  at	
  age	
  6)	
  and	
  were	
  observed	
  by	
  the	
  researchers	
  during	
  one	
  year	
  (for	
  details,	
  see	
  
the	
   Procedure	
   section).	
   There	
  were	
   29	
   children	
   in	
   the	
   class,	
   of	
  whom	
  19	
  were	
   L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
   and	
  10	
  
were	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking.	
  We	
  noticed	
  six	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  children,	
  three	
  girls	
  and	
  three	
  boys,	
  who	
  spoke	
  
Hebrew	
  well	
  and	
  could	
  be	
  defined	
  as	
  L2	
  experts.	
  The	
  three	
  girls	
  had	
  entered	
  the	
  preschool	
  with	
  a	
  relatively	
  
high	
  level	
  of	
  competence	
  in	
  spoken	
  L2	
  Hebrew	
  (speech	
  understanding	
  and	
  production)	
  (Blum-­‐Kulka	
  &	
  Snow,	
  
2004).	
  Two	
  of	
  them,	
  who	
  were	
  cousins,	
  had	
  spent	
  two	
  years	
  at	
  a	
  monolingual	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  kindergarten	
  
before	
   entering	
   the	
   target	
   setting.	
   As	
   reported	
   by	
   the	
   L1	
   Arabic-­‐speaking	
   teacher,	
   Lillian,	
   the	
   other	
   four	
  
experts	
  had	
   received	
   early	
   exposure	
   to	
  L2	
  Hebrew	
   through	
  TV	
  and	
   radio	
   at	
   home.	
  The	
  presence	
  of	
   the	
  L2	
  
experts	
  in	
  this	
  classroom	
  was	
  a	
  phenomenon	
  that	
  could	
  be	
  attributed	
  partly	
  to	
  their	
  (Arab)	
  parents’	
  language	
  
policy	
   of	
   taking	
   practical	
   steps	
   to	
   promote	
   their	
   children’s	
   exposure	
   to	
   L2.	
   Some	
   of	
   their	
   family	
   language	
  
policy	
  might	
  be	
  attributed	
  to	
  their	
  belief	
  that	
  their	
  children's	
  competence	
  in	
  Hebrew	
  is	
  a	
  primary	
  predictor	
  of	
  
their	
  future	
  academic	
  and	
  economic	
  success	
  in	
  Israel	
  (Bekerman	
  &	
  Tatar,	
  2009).	
  

In	
  addition,	
  one	
  boy	
  in	
  this	
  classroom	
  was	
  from	
  an	
  ethnically	
  mixed	
  family,	
  in	
  which	
  the	
  mother	
  was	
  
an	
   L1	
   Hebrew	
   speaker	
   and	
   the	
   father	
   was	
   an	
   L1	
   Arabic	
   speaker.	
   Since	
   the	
   dominant	
   language	
   of	
  
communication	
   in	
   this	
   family	
   was	
   Hebrew,	
   the	
   child	
   self-­‐identified	
   as	
   an	
   L1	
   Hebrew	
   speaker	
   and	
   at	
   the	
  
beginning	
  of	
   the	
  academic	
  year,	
  his	
  Arabic	
  understanding	
  skills	
  were	
  much	
  better	
   than	
  his	
  Arabic	
  speaking	
  
skills.	
  In	
  the	
  course	
  of	
  time,	
  he	
  showed	
  willingness	
  to	
  communicate	
  in	
  Arabic	
  with	
  his	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  peers	
  
and	
  teacher,	
  and,	
  as	
  will	
  be	
  presented	
  later,	
  excelled	
  in	
  his	
  L2-­‐expert	
  role.	
  	
  

	
  
3.2.2.	
  Teachers	
  

The	
  study	
  participants	
  were	
  two	
  preschool	
  teachers:	
  one	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  teacher,	
  Dina,	
  and	
  one	
  
L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher,	
  Lillian.	
  The	
  teachers	
  expressed	
  their	
  willingness	
  to	
  participate	
  in	
  the	
  study.	
  Dina	
  
was	
   a	
   novice	
   teacher,	
   who	
   had	
   joined	
   the	
   preschool	
   in	
   September	
   2013,	
   and	
   did	
   not	
   have	
   any	
   previous	
  
knowledge	
   of	
   Arabic.	
   Prior	
   to	
   entering	
   the	
   preschool,	
   Dina	
   had	
   obtained	
   a	
   bachelor’s	
   degree	
   in	
   preschool	
  



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 44	
  

education,	
  and	
  then	
  gained	
  rich	
  pedagogical	
  and	
  bilingual	
  teaching	
  experience	
  as	
  an	
  L2	
  Hebrew	
  teacher	
  for	
  
adults	
   and	
   as	
   a	
   teacher	
   in	
   a	
   monolingual	
   preschool.	
   Lillian	
   was	
   an	
   Arabic-­‐speaking	
   teacher,	
   who	
   had	
   a	
  
bachelor’s	
   degree	
   in	
   preschool	
   and	
   first-­‐grade	
   teaching.	
   She	
   had	
   been	
   teaching	
   in	
   the	
   preschool	
   since	
   its	
  
establishment	
  in	
  2004,	
  had	
  more	
  than	
  10	
  years	
  of	
  professional	
  experience,	
  and	
  spoke	
  fluent	
  Hebrew.	
  	
  

	
  
3.3.	
  Procedure	
  	
  

Data	
  were	
  collected	
  during	
  one	
  academic	
  year,	
   from	
  October	
  2013	
  through	
   June	
  2014.	
  Throughout	
  
the	
   research	
   period,	
   16	
   observational	
   sessions	
  were	
   conducted	
   (two	
   to	
   three	
   times	
   each	
  month	
   for	
   seven	
  
months)	
   including	
   six	
   sessions	
   of	
   field	
  note	
   taking	
   from	
  October	
  2013	
   to	
   January	
  2014	
  and	
  10	
   sessions	
   of	
  
video	
  recording	
  from	
  February	
  to	
  June	
  2014.	
  Interviews	
  with	
  the	
  children	
  were	
  held	
  between	
  October	
  2013	
  
and	
  May	
   2014.	
   Interviews	
  with	
   the	
   teachers	
   took	
   place	
   in	
   November	
   2013	
   and	
   in	
  March	
   2014.	
  We	
   chose	
  
observation	
  as	
  a	
  method	
  in	
  order	
  to	
  see	
  the	
  children	
  in	
  their	
  natural	
  setting,	
  while	
  interacting	
  in	
  situations	
  of	
  
language	
  acquisition	
  and	
  play,	
  since	
  it	
  has	
  been	
  shown	
  that	
  the	
  urge	
  to	
  create	
  interpersonal	
  relationships	
  and	
  
the	
  need	
  to	
  share	
  emotionally	
  with	
  other	
  children	
  encourages	
  acquisition	
  of	
  another	
  language	
  (Blum-­‐Kulka	
  &	
  
Snow,	
  2004).	
  	
  

Each	
  observation	
  session	
  lasted	
  about	
  four	
  hours,	
  from	
  early	
  morning	
  to	
  midday.	
  The	
  process	
  of	
  data	
  
collection	
  included	
  selected	
  focus	
  of	
  the	
  video	
  recordings	
  on	
  a)	
  group	
  interactions	
  between	
  the	
  experts	
  and	
  
the	
   novices	
   while	
   engaged	
   in	
   joint	
   play	
   in	
   various	
   areas	
   of	
   the	
   classroom,	
   and	
   b)	
   expert-­‐novice-­‐teacher	
  
interactions	
  during	
  classroom	
  activities	
  and	
  spontaneous	
  communications.	
  	
  

	
  
3.4.	
  Instrumentation,	
  data	
  generation,	
  transcription,	
  and	
  analysis	
  	
  

To	
   investigate	
   the	
  phenomenon	
  of	
  L2	
  experts’	
  mediation,	
  we	
  used	
  multiple	
  sources	
  of	
  data	
   (video-­‐
recorded	
   observations,	
   field	
   notes	
   and	
   semi-­‐structured	
   interviews	
   with	
   the	
   children	
   and	
   teachers).	
   We	
  
applied	
  methodological	
  triangulation,	
  which	
  entails	
  a	
  comparison	
  of	
  the	
  findings	
  derived	
  from	
  different	
  data	
  
sources	
  to	
  interpret	
  the	
  phenomenon	
  under	
  study	
  and	
  to	
  reduce	
  observer	
  or	
  interviewer	
  bias.	
  In	
  addition,	
  the	
  
methodological	
   triangulation	
   increased	
   the	
   scope,	
   the	
   validity	
   and	
   the	
   consistency	
   of	
   our	
   data	
   (Shenton,	
  
2004).	
  	
  

	
  
3.4.1.	
  Field	
  notes	
  and	
  video	
  recordings	
  and	
  their	
  transcriptions	
  	
  

We	
   received	
   permission	
   to	
   perform	
   video	
   recordings	
   in	
   the	
   preschool	
   from	
   the	
   Israeli	
  Ministry	
   of	
  
Education.	
   We	
   informed	
   the	
   teachers	
   that	
   the	
   purpose	
   of	
   the	
   cross-­‐cultural	
   project	
   was	
   to	
   examine	
  
characteristics	
   of	
   the	
   children’s	
   intercultural	
   interactions	
  within	
   everyday	
   preschool	
   situations.	
   They	
  were	
  
asked	
   to	
   allocate	
   a	
   suitable	
   time-­‐point	
   for	
   observation	
   that	
   included	
   diverse	
   daily	
   planned	
   activities	
   (e.g.,	
  
circle	
  time)	
  and	
  unplanned	
  activities	
  (e.g.,	
  free	
  play).	
  	
  

The	
   video-­‐recorded	
   observations	
   were	
   transcribed	
   in	
   detail,	
   in	
   table	
   form,	
   which	
   allowed	
   for	
   the	
  
inclusion	
  of	
  nonverbal	
  information	
  from	
  the	
  videos.	
  Each	
  transcription	
  was	
  made	
  by	
  two	
  transcribers,	
  a	
  native	
  
Hebrew	
  speaker	
  and	
  a	
  native	
  Arabic	
  speaker.	
  A	
  second	
  transcription	
  was	
  made,	
  following	
  conversation	
  analysis	
  
transcription	
  conventions,	
  to	
  permit	
  a	
  detailed	
  microanalysis	
  of	
  the	
  transcriptions.	
  This	
  served	
  as	
  the	
  basis	
  for	
  
our	
  understanding	
  and	
  interpretation	
  of	
  the	
  observed	
  interactions	
  (Hamo,	
  Blum-­‐Kulka,	
  &	
  Hacohen,	
  2004).	
  	
  

	
  
3.4.2.	
  Semi-­‐structured	
  interviews	
  with	
  the	
  L2	
  experts	
  and	
  their	
  teachers	
  	
  

During	
   the	
   research	
   project,	
   we	
   conducted	
   semi-­‐structured	
   interviews	
   with	
   each	
   child	
   and	
   each	
  
teacher	
  individually.	
  The	
  interviews	
  with	
  the	
  children	
  were	
  held	
  in	
  a	
  quiet	
  area	
  of	
  the	
  classroom.	
  They	
  were	
  
conducted	
   by	
   the	
   second	
   author	
   and	
   a	
   research	
   assistant	
   in	
   Hebrew	
   and	
   in	
   Arabic.	
   Each	
   interview	
   lasted	
  
approximately	
  20	
  minutes.	
  Our	
  goal	
  was	
  to	
  examine	
  the	
  children’s	
  social	
  preferences	
  (who	
  their	
  friends	
  were	
  
and	
  which	
   languages	
   they	
  spoke)	
  and	
   their	
  awareness	
  of	
   their	
   social	
   role	
   in	
   the	
  classroom.	
   In	
  addition,	
  we	
  
asked	
  them	
  about	
  the	
  advantages	
  of	
   learning	
   languages,	
   the	
  similarities	
  and	
  differences	
  between	
  the	
  use	
  of	
  
Arabic	
  at	
  home	
  and	
  in	
  the	
  environment,	
  and	
  about	
  the	
  children’s	
  ideas	
  on	
  the	
  best	
  way	
  to	
  teach	
  L2.	
  In	
  the	
  case	
  
of	
   the	
   language	
   experts,	
   we	
   sought	
   to	
   obtain	
   their	
   reflections	
   on	
   the	
   sociolinguistic	
   behavior	
   patterns	
  
observed	
  during	
  the	
  study	
  and,	
  in	
  particular,	
  on	
  how	
  they	
  acted	
  as	
  L2	
  mediators	
  for	
  their	
  novice	
  peers.	
  	
  

The	
   second	
   author	
   conducted	
   two	
   interviews	
   in	
   Hebrew	
  with	
   the	
   teachers.	
   Each	
   interview	
   lasted	
  
approximately	
  60	
  minutes	
  and	
  was	
  audio-­‐recorded	
  with	
  the	
  interviewees’	
  consent.	
  Regarding	
  our	
  study	
  aims,	
  
the	
  teachers	
  were	
  asked	
  to	
  reflect	
  on	
  their	
  role	
  of	
  encouraging	
  intercultural	
  interaction	
  in	
  the	
  classroom	
  and	
  
specifically	
  on	
  their	
  strategies	
  observed	
  by	
  the	
  researchers.	
  	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 45	
  

3.4.3.	
  Data	
  generation	
  and	
  analysis	
  
Based	
  on	
  Braun	
  and	
  Clarke	
  (2006),	
  we	
  applied	
  a	
  theoretical	
  thematic	
  analysis	
  of	
  the	
  collected	
  data.	
  

We	
   analyzed	
   the	
   classroom	
   observations	
   and	
   the	
   interviews	
  with	
   the	
   children	
   and	
   the	
   teachers	
   using	
   the	
  
following	
  thematic	
  analysis	
  steps:	
  

	
  
1) Transcribing	
   the	
   data	
   corpus	
   (all	
   observations	
   and	
   interviews	
   collected	
   for	
   the	
   study),	
   which	
  

comprised	
  a	
  first	
  transcription	
  version.	
  	
  
2) Familiarizing	
   ourselves	
   with	
   the	
   data	
   by	
   reading	
   and	
   rereading	
   the	
   classroom	
   observation	
  

transcriptions	
  and	
   interviews	
  and	
  discussing	
   them	
  between	
   the	
   researchers.	
  During	
   the	
  discussion	
  
meetings,	
  we	
  began	
  to	
  search	
  for	
  the	
  data	
  set	
  that	
  addresses	
  the	
  topic	
  of	
  the	
  current	
  study.	
  	
  	
  

3) Identifying	
   teachers’	
   strategies	
   aimed	
  at	
   encouraging	
   the	
   intercultural	
   interactions	
   and	
  patterns	
  of	
  
intercultural	
  behavior.	
  

4) Coding	
   teachers’	
   possible	
   strategies	
   and	
   children’s	
   behavior	
   patterns	
   and	
   organizing	
   all	
   relevant	
  
extracts	
  of	
  the	
  entire	
  data	
  set	
  into	
  a	
  table.	
  	
  

5) Reviewing	
   the	
   coding	
   and	
   the	
   relevant	
   extracts	
   through	
   an	
   interrater	
   to	
   enhance	
   the	
   analysis	
   by	
  
defining	
  and	
  naming	
  the	
  thematic	
  categories.	
  	
  

	
  
The	
  thematic	
  tree	
  (Figure	
  1)	
  presents	
  the	
  defined	
  categories	
  and	
  subcategories	
  for	
  the	
  analysis:	
  	
  
	
  

-­‐ Educational	
  environment	
  
-­‐ Teachers’	
  mediation	
  in	
  construction	
  of	
  intercultural	
  interactions	
  
-­‐ Teachers’	
  behavioral	
  modeling	
  	
  
-­‐ Encouraging	
  intercultural	
  interaction	
  	
  
-­‐ Acculturation	
  strategies	
  of	
  the	
  L2	
  experts	
  
-­‐ Acculturation	
  strategies	
  of	
  the	
  language	
  novices	
  

	
  

 
 
Figure 1. Thematic tree with categories and subcategories for the analysis 



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 46	
  

4.	
  Results	
  	
  
4.1.	
  Educational	
  environment:	
  Teachers'	
  mediation	
  in	
  constructing	
  intercultural	
  interactions	
  

In	
  this	
  study,	
  we	
  observed	
  the	
  first	
  stage,	
  an	
  emergent	
  process	
  of	
  intercultural	
  interactions	
  between	
  
the	
   L1	
   Arabic-­‐	
   and	
   the	
   L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
   children.	
   At	
   this	
   stage,	
   the	
   children’s	
   familiarity	
  with	
   another	
  
culture	
   and	
   language	
   occurred	
   in	
   parallel	
   to	
   the	
   identification	
   of	
   their	
   social	
   preferences	
   and,	
   as	
   a	
   result,	
  
contributed	
   to	
   their	
   rejection	
   of	
   involvement	
  with	
   peers	
   from	
   another	
   ethnic	
   group	
   (Barkan,	
   2003;	
   Berry,	
  
2005;	
  Wright,	
  Stetson,	
  Rourke,	
  &	
  Zubernis,	
  2003).	
  However,	
  after	
  nearly	
  a	
  year	
  of	
  encounters	
  between	
  two	
  
ethnic	
  groups	
  of	
  children,	
  we	
  found	
  some	
  initial	
  signs	
  of	
  intercultural	
   interaction	
  between	
  the	
  Arab	
  and	
  the	
  
Jewish	
  children.	
  During	
  this	
  emergent	
  process,	
  the	
  teachers	
  considered	
  themselves	
  as	
  representatives	
  of	
  the	
  
bilingual	
   educational	
   environment	
   (Schwartz,	
   Mor-­‐Sommerfeld,	
   &	
   Leikin,	
   2010),	
   who	
   should	
   facilitate	
   a	
  
process	
   for	
   the	
   children’s	
   acculturation.	
  Two	
  main	
   types	
  of	
   support	
   emerged	
   from	
   the	
   findings:	
  behavioral	
  
modeling	
  and	
  encouraging	
  intercultural	
  interaction.	
  

	
  
4.1.1.	
  Teachers’	
  behavioral	
  modeling	
  

The	
  study	
  showed	
  that	
  the	
  teachers	
  strove	
  to	
  be	
  personal	
  examples	
  for	
  the	
  children	
  in	
  terms	
  of	
  their	
  
intercultural	
   and	
  bilingual	
  behavior.	
  They	
  were	
   interested	
   in	
   the	
  other	
   language,	
  used	
  both	
   languages,	
   and	
  
sought	
   similar	
   and	
   common	
   features	
   in	
   the	
   languages	
   and	
   cultures.	
  More	
   specifically,	
   from	
   the	
   interviews	
  
with	
  the	
  teachers,	
  it	
  appeared	
  that	
  both	
  of	
  them	
  conveyed	
  the	
  message	
  of	
  L2	
  significance	
  to	
  the	
  children	
  and,	
  
in	
  the	
  case	
  of	
  Dina,	
  the	
  willingness	
  for	
  L2	
  acquisition,	
  as	
  illustrated	
  by	
  the	
  testimony	
  by	
  Lillian	
  in	
  Excerpt	
  1.	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  1.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Look,	
  we	
  also	
  serve	
  as	
  a	
  model	
  for	
  the	
  children.	
  For	
  example,	
  Dina	
  serves	
  as	
  a	
  kind	
  of	
  model	
  for	
  the	
  Jewish	
  
children	
   [...]	
   and	
   if	
   she	
   speaks	
   Arabic	
   and	
   shows	
   them	
   that	
   she	
   is	
   learning	
   just	
   like	
   them,	
   they	
  will	
   start	
  
thinking	
  that	
  it	
  is	
  good,	
  which	
  is	
  encouraging.	
  	
  

	
  
In	
  Dina’s	
  view,	
  this	
  message	
  motivated	
  children’s	
  L2	
  learning,	
  despite	
  the	
  inevitable	
  mistakes,	
  and	
  helped	
  

them	
  to	
  understand	
  the	
  rules	
  of	
  the	
  social	
  system	
  for	
  the	
  present	
  and	
  for	
  the	
  future,	
  as	
  shown	
  in	
  Excerpt	
  2.	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  2.	
  (Dina,	
  L1	
  Hebrew	
  speaking	
  teacher)	
  
The	
  goal	
  of	
  the	
  society	
  is	
  that	
  they	
  will	
  grow	
  up	
  and	
  be	
  good	
  citizens.	
  So	
  how	
  do	
  you	
  show	
  [the	
  children]	
  that	
  
you	
  are	
  learning	
  the	
  language,	
  show	
  the	
  Jewish	
  children	
  that	
  you	
  are	
  interested	
  in	
  Arabic?	
  And	
  they	
  see	
  me	
  
asking	
  Lillian	
  how	
  to	
  write	
  in	
  Arabic	
  [...]	
  The	
  message	
  [to	
  the	
  children]	
  is	
  that	
  it	
  is	
  OK	
  to	
  make	
  mistakes,	
  that	
  
it	
  is	
  OK	
  to	
  learn,	
  that	
  the	
  teacher	
  does	
  not	
  say	
  “I	
  know	
  everything.”	
  On	
  the	
  contrary,	
  she	
  is	
  saying:	
  “I	
  want	
  to	
  
you	
  to	
  know	
  that	
  I	
  still	
  don’t	
  know	
  what	
  you	
  already	
  know.”	
  [...]	
  It	
  gives	
  them	
  a	
  terrific	
  boost.	
  	
  
	
  

The	
   observational	
   findings	
   show	
   how	
   interaction	
   among	
   children,	
   who	
   spoke	
   different	
   native	
  
languages,	
   was	
   characterized	
   by	
   the	
   linguistic	
   behavior	
   that	
   they	
   learned	
   from	
   their	
   teachers.	
   Thus,	
   in	
   a	
  
spontaneous	
  conversation	
  as	
  Situation	
  1,	
  when	
  sitting	
  out	
  on	
   the	
   terrace,	
   the	
  children	
  offered	
   to	
  help	
  each	
  
other	
  with	
  learning	
  both	
  languages:	
  

	
  
Situation	
  1.	
  Free	
  play	
  outside	
  the	
  classroom.	
  	
  
Ofra	
  (L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  girl):	
   [speaking	
  in	
  Hebrew]	
  You	
  will	
  teach	
  me;	
  you	
  will	
  teach	
  me	
  Arabic,	
  and	
  

I	
  will	
  teach	
  you	
  Hebrew.	
  
Bassal	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  boy):	
   [speaking	
  in	
  Hebrew]	
  But	
  I	
  know	
  Hebrew.	
  
Ofra:	
   [speaking	
  in	
  Hebrew]	
  Yes,	
  but	
  you	
  don’t	
  know	
  everything.	
  
	
  

Through	
   her	
   desire	
   to	
   learn	
   Arabic,	
   Dina	
   expressed	
   her	
   deep	
   interest	
   in	
   the	
   Arabic	
   culture	
   and	
  
language.	
   Indeed,	
   our	
   observations	
   attested	
   to	
   the	
   effect	
   of	
   this	
   modeling	
   on	
   the	
   L1	
   Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  
children’s	
  openness	
   to	
   the	
  novel	
   language,	
  Arabic.	
   For	
  example,	
  we	
   frequently	
  observed	
  evidence	
  of	
  Dina’s	
  
efforts	
   to	
   understand	
   Lillian	
   based	
   on	
   the	
   context	
   and	
   gestures,	
   when	
   she	
   addressed	
   Dina	
   in	
   Arabic.	
   The	
  
fruitfulness	
   of	
   these	
   efforts	
   was	
   manifest	
   through	
   the	
   children’s	
   reactions	
   to	
   Dina’s	
   modeling	
   and	
   their	
  
imitation	
  of	
  her	
  behavior,	
  demonstrating	
  their	
  significant	
  efforts	
  to	
  understand	
  Arabic.	
  Thus,	
  it	
  appeared	
  that	
  
the	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  children	
  were	
  accustomed	
  to	
  word-­‐for-­‐word	
  repetition	
  of	
  Dina’s	
  slogan:	
  “I	
  did	
  not	
  
understand	
  but	
   I	
   think	
  that	
  you	
  said	
   that…”	
  This	
  modeling	
  behavior	
  reflected	
  Vygotsky’s	
   (1978)	
  concept	
  of	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 47	
  

the	
  adult	
  as	
  children’s	
  mental	
  development	
  mediator,	
  not	
  only	
  as	
  a	
  source	
  of	
  knowledge	
  but	
  also	
  as	
  a	
  model	
  
for	
  children’s	
  linguistic	
  behavior.	
  	
  

This	
  idea	
  is	
  reflected	
  in	
  many	
  observations	
  of	
  interactions	
  among	
  the	
  children.	
  Throughout	
  the	
  day,	
  
the	
   children	
   not	
   only	
   imitated	
   the	
   teachers’	
   behavior,	
   but	
   also	
   felt	
   proud	
   that	
   they	
   succeeded	
   in	
  
understanding	
   what	
   was	
   said	
   in	
   both	
   languages	
   and	
   that	
   they	
   were	
   able	
   negotiate	
   the	
   novice	
   learners’	
  
comprehension	
  by	
  translating.	
  Both	
  teachers	
  emphasized	
  that	
  the	
  dynamics	
  between	
  them	
  also	
  characterized	
  
mutual	
  intercultural	
  familiarity	
  (Excerpt	
  3).	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  3.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Dina	
  worked	
   in	
   Jewish	
  kindergartens,	
   so	
   she	
  wants	
   to	
  bring	
   in	
   everything	
   she	
  knows	
  and	
  everything	
   she	
  
used	
   to	
  do.	
  For	
  example,	
  now,	
  during	
  Passover	
   she	
  wanted	
   to	
  make	
  wine	
   for	
   them.	
   I	
   told	
  her:	
   “Sorry,	
  but	
  
wine	
  is	
  forbidden	
  here.”	
  The	
  good	
  thing	
  about	
  her	
  is	
  that	
  she	
  is	
  interested	
  in	
  culture.	
  For	
  example,	
  she	
  learns	
  
about	
  every	
  holiday.	
  	
  
	
  

The	
  dialogue	
  in	
  Excerpt	
  3	
  between	
  Dina	
  and	
  Lillian	
  regarding	
  the	
  different	
  cultures	
  was	
  pleasant	
  and	
  
friendly,	
  indicating	
  willingness	
  to	
  learn	
  about	
  and	
  accept	
  another	
  culture,	
  without	
  relinquishing	
  their	
  original	
  
culture.	
  This	
  set	
  an	
  example	
  to	
  the	
  children,	
  as	
  shown	
  in	
  Excerpt	
  4.	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  4.	
  (Dina,	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
It	
  is	
  fantastic	
  how	
  we	
  work	
  with	
  Lillian	
  simultaneously	
  on	
  the	
  material.	
  It	
  makes	
  the	
  child	
  and	
  me—me	
  first	
  
of	
   all—learn	
   about	
   patience	
   and	
   tolerance.	
   It	
   means	
   taking	
   a	
   deep	
   breath,	
   working	
   on	
   delaying	
  
gratification—which	
  is,	
  in	
  fact,	
  what	
  we	
  are	
  educating	
  here.	
  	
  

	
  
As	
   behavioral	
  models,	
   the	
   teachers	
   used	
   both	
   languages,	
   Hebrew	
   and	
   Arabic,	
   both	
   of	
   which	
  were	
  

heard	
  regularly	
  in	
  the	
  preschool	
  during	
  the	
  learning	
  sessions	
  and	
  during	
  the	
  day	
  (Excerpt	
  5).	
  	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  5.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
[The	
   children]	
   are	
   interested	
   in	
   the	
   language.	
   They	
   hear	
   the	
   language	
   and	
   constantly	
   think	
   about	
   the	
  
language.	
  	
  
	
  

	
   The	
   children	
   cooperated	
   with	
   the	
   use	
   of	
   both	
   languages	
   and	
   tried	
   to	
   help	
   each	
   other,	
   both	
   with	
  
pronunciation	
  and	
  with	
  understanding	
  either	
  unclear	
  words	
  or	
  sentences	
  in	
  the	
  other	
  language.	
  For	
  example,	
  
in	
  Situation	
  2,	
  Nur	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  girl)	
  took	
  the	
  initiative	
  to	
  teach	
  Oded	
  (L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  boy)	
  some	
  
Arabic	
  words.	
  
	
  
Situation	
  2.	
  Free	
  play,	
  Nur	
  teaches	
  Oded	
  the	
  words	
  in	
  Arabic.	
  
Nur:	
  	
   [gesturing	
  with	
  her	
  hands	
  while	
  learning	
  to	
  say	
  the	
  word	
  heart	
  in	
  Arabic]	
  

[speaking	
  Hebrew]	
  Lev,	
  Lev	
  [speaking	
  Arabic]	

	قلب    that	
  is	
  Lev	
  in	
  Arabic.	
  
Oded:	
  	
   [repeats	
  after	
  Nur	
  in	
  Arabic]	

	قلب    	
  
	
  

In	
  addition,	
  the	
  teachers	
  looked	
  for	
  shared	
  features	
  in	
  the	
  target	
  languages	
  and	
  cultures	
  to	
  show	
  the	
  
children.	
   Some	
  of	
   the	
   two	
   target	
   cultures’	
   traditions	
  and	
   religious	
  narratives	
  have	
   similarities,	
   and	
   there	
   is	
  
considerable	
   linguistic	
   proximity	
   (semantic	
   and	
   grammatical)	
   between	
   the	
   two	
   Semitic	
   languages.	
   The	
  
teachers	
   believed	
   that	
   they	
   brought	
   the	
   two	
   groups	
   of	
   children	
   closer	
   together	
   by	
   highlighting	
   these	
  
similarities.	
  	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  6.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
If	
  there	
  are	
  similar	
  words,	
  we	
  keep	
  on	
  saying:	
  “Like	
  in	
  Hebrew	
  [...]	
  like	
  in	
  Arabic.”	
  We	
  keep	
  repeating	
  it.	
  This	
  
is	
  common.	
  We	
  are	
  constantly	
  looking	
  for	
  the	
  common	
  ground	
  because	
  through	
  the	
  common	
  we	
  can	
  learn	
  
everything	
  and	
  bring	
  the	
  cultures	
  together.	
  They	
  [the	
  children]	
  talked	
  about	
  the	
  common	
  stories	
  we	
  heard	
  
about	
   the	
   holidays,	
   that	
   Muhammad	
   was	
   a	
   shepherd	
   like	
   Moses,	
   that	
   the	
   Prophet	
   Muhammad	
   was	
   also	
  
persecuted	
  and	
  unwanted	
  at	
  first	
  when	
  he	
  brought	
  the	
  religion.	
  	
  
	
  



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 48	
  

This	
  finding	
  is	
  consistent	
  with	
  the	
  Hand	
  in	
  Hand	
  educational	
  model,	
  which	
  advocates	
  for	
  bilingualism	
  
as	
  a	
  means	
  of	
  introducing	
  and	
  respecting	
  another	
  culture,	
  while	
  preserving	
  the	
  original	
  one.	
  According	
  to	
  this	
  
model,	
  L2	
  is	
  a	
  tool	
  for	
  breaking	
  cultural	
  and	
  linguistic	
  barriers	
  between	
  the	
  two	
  ethnic	
  groups	
  (Amara,	
  Azaiza,	
  
Hertz-­‐Lazarowitz,	
  &	
  Mor-­‐Sommerfeld,	
  2009).	
  	
  

Finally,	
   the	
   observed	
   teachers’	
   behavioral	
   modeling	
   and	
   its	
   role	
   in	
   the	
   children’s	
   intercultural	
  
development	
   is	
   in	
   line	
  with	
   findings	
   of	
   developmental	
   psychology	
   studies,	
   stressing	
   the	
   importance	
   of	
   the	
  
educational	
   environment	
   and	
   the	
   impact	
   of	
   teachers’	
  modeling	
   behavior	
   on	
   the	
   development	
   of	
   preschool	
  
children’s	
  social	
  abilities	
  (Dehart,	
  2004;	
  Solberg,	
  2012).	
  	
  

	
  
4.1.2.	
  Encouraging	
  interactions	
  

The	
   findings	
   show	
   that	
   the	
   teachers	
   actively	
   supported	
   intercultural	
   communication	
   and	
   that	
  
supporting	
   intercultural	
   interactions	
   among	
   children	
   required	
   special	
   attention	
   to	
   their	
   individual	
   and	
  
cultural	
  differences.	
  They	
  encouraged	
  interactions	
  between	
  the	
  children	
  of	
  the	
  two	
  ethnic	
  groups	
  by	
  adjusting	
  
activities	
  to	
  each	
  child,	
  managing	
  the	
  seating	
  order	
  and	
  promoting	
  intercultural	
  group	
  activities.	
  	
  

	
  
4.1.2.1.	
  Adjusting	
  activities	
  to	
  each	
  child	
  	
  

The	
   teachers	
   arranged	
   activities	
   while	
   considering	
   the	
   differences	
   in	
   the	
   children’s	
   individual	
  
developmental	
   and	
   adaptation	
  patterns	
   (Excerpts	
   7	
   and	
  8)	
   and	
  paid	
   attention	
   to	
   gender	
  differences	
   in	
   the	
  
intercultural	
  communication	
  patterns	
  (Excerpt	
  9).	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  7.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
This	
   year,	
   the	
   children	
   are	
   very	
   special.	
   Both	
   the	
   Arabs	
   and	
   the	
   Jews.	
   They	
   need	
   a	
   lot	
   of	
   help,	
   a	
   lot	
   of	
  
mediation,	
   a	
   lot	
   of	
   attention.	
   There	
   are	
   children	
  with	
   social	
   problems,	
   there	
   are	
   children	
  with	
   emotional	
  
problems,	
  and	
  these	
  things	
  take	
  a	
  lot	
  of	
  time.	
  	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  8.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
This	
   year,	
  many	
   of	
   the	
   children	
  who	
   came	
   to	
   us,	
   both	
   Arabic	
   speakers	
   and	
   Hebrew	
   speakers,	
   studied	
   in	
  
bilingual	
   frameworks	
   or	
   in	
   a	
   Jewish	
   kindergarten,	
   especially	
   the	
   Arab	
   children.	
   So,	
   this	
   really	
   brings	
   the	
  
Jewish	
  and	
  Arab	
  children	
  very,	
  very	
  close	
  together.	
  	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  9.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
It	
  is	
  hard	
  for	
  the	
  boys	
  [to	
  create	
  intercultural	
  interactions].	
  For	
  the	
  girls,	
  not	
  so	
  much.	
  Not	
  for	
  all	
  of	
  them.	
  	
  
	
  

In	
  addition,	
  they	
  were	
  aware	
  of	
  the	
  cultural	
  differences	
  between	
  the	
  Jewish	
  and	
  Arab	
  children	
  with	
  
respect	
  to	
  adults	
  and	
  acceptance	
  of	
  authority	
  (Excerpts	
  10	
  and	
  11),	
  and	
  regarding	
  boundaries,	
  discipline	
  and	
  
order	
  (Excerpt	
  12).	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  10.	
  (Dina,	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Arab	
   children	
   address	
  me	
   as	
   “mualema”	
   [teacher].	
   The	
   Jewish	
   children	
   address	
  me	
   as:	
   “Dinahhhh!”	
   They	
  
don’t	
  call	
  me	
  “teacher”	
  or	
  anything	
  else.	
  “Dinahhhh!	
  Come	
  here	
  now!”	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  11.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
An	
  [Arab]	
  child	
  would	
  not	
  come	
  to	
  me	
  and	
  say:	
  “You	
  cannot	
  decide	
  for	
  me.”	
  Among	
  the	
  Arab	
  children,	
  there	
  
is	
  less	
  impudence.	
  	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  12.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
For	
  the	
  Arab	
  children,	
  discipline	
  is	
  a	
  clearer	
  concept,	
  displayed	
  more,	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  respect,	
  and,	
  I	
  would	
  say,	
  a	
  
little	
  order.	
  Because	
  we	
  raise	
  children	
  to	
  be	
  organized,	
  with	
  better	
  organization,	
  with	
  respect	
  for	
  adults.	
  For	
  
instance,	
  food	
  or	
  appearance.	
  Children	
  are	
  always	
  neat	
  and	
  tidy,	
  the	
  food	
  is	
  always	
  presented	
  in	
  an	
  orderly	
  
way;	
  with	
  Jews,	
  it’s	
  less	
  orderly.	
  	
  

	
  
Moreover,	
   the	
   teachers	
   reflected	
   on	
   differences	
   between	
   the	
   groups	
   regarding	
   how	
   they	
   made	
  

requests	
  and	
  expressed	
  their	
  feelings	
  (Excerpt	
  13)	
  and	
  addressed	
  the	
  differences	
  between	
  the	
  Arabs	
  and	
  the	
  
Jews	
  in	
  their	
  manner	
  of	
  play	
  (Excerpt	
  14).	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 49	
  

Excerpt	
  13.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
The	
   Jewish	
   children	
  come	
  and	
  say	
  everything.	
  With	
  a	
   sort	
  of	
   confidence.	
  They	
  know	
  what	
   they	
  need.	
  They	
  
know	
  what	
  they	
  want.	
  They	
  know	
  what	
  to	
  ask	
  for.	
  Among	
  Arab	
  children,	
  shyness	
  is	
  also	
  a	
  matter	
  of	
  honor.	
  Do	
  
not	
  talk	
  about	
  your	
  feelings	
  too	
  much;	
  do	
  not	
  express	
  yourself.	
  It’s	
  something	
  cultural.	
  	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  14.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
They	
  play	
  in	
  a	
  completely	
  different	
  way.	
  With	
  the	
  Arab	
  children,	
  the	
  play	
  is	
  always	
  accompanied	
  by	
  a	
  physical	
  
game,	
   for	
   example,	
   running,	
   soccer.	
   It	
   requires	
   more	
   physical	
   activity.	
   With	
   the	
   Jewish	
   children,	
   there	
   is	
  
dialogue,	
  a	
  lot	
  of	
  tabletop	
  games,	
  assembly	
  games,	
  construction.	
  	
  

	
  
4.1.2.2.	
  Managing	
  the	
  seating	
  order	
  

The	
   findings	
   show	
   that	
   considering	
   the	
  differences	
   in	
   the	
  children’s	
   intercultural	
  development,	
   the	
  
teachers	
  elaborated	
  on	
  diverse	
  strategies	
  to	
  increase,	
  in	
  Lillian’s	
  words:	
  “the	
  opportunity	
  for	
  more	
  interaction	
  
between	
   the	
   Arab	
   and	
   the	
   Jewish	
   children.”	
   For	
   example,	
   during	
   the	
   academic	
   year,	
   they	
   reorganized	
   the	
  
seating	
   arrangements	
   by	
   placing	
   the	
   Jewish	
   and	
   Arab	
   children	
   together	
   at	
   the	
   dining	
   table	
   or	
   during	
   the	
  
small-­‐group	
  table	
  activities.	
  The	
  results	
  of	
  this	
  reorganization	
  were	
  intriguing	
  and	
  not	
  unambiguous.	
  On	
  one	
  
hand,	
  mixed-­‐seating	
   initiated	
  bridging	
  between	
   the	
  speakers,	
  via	
   children	
  who	
  understood	
   the	
   instructions	
  
and	
  translating	
  them	
  into	
  the	
  other	
  language	
  for	
  children	
  who	
  did	
  not,	
  as	
  in	
  Situation	
  3.	
  
	
  
Situation	
  3.	
  Classroom	
  table	
  painting	
  activity	
  run	
  by	
  Dina.	
  
Dina	
   (L1	
   Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  
teacher):	
  

[in	
  Hebrew]	
  Rolla,	
  would	
  you	
  like	
  to	
  take	
  some	
  paints?	
  

Rolla	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  girl):	
   [Nods	
  her	
  head]	
  
Dina:	
   [in	
  Hebrew]	
  Wash	
  your	
  hands	
  very,	
  very	
  well,	
  and	
  then	
  come	
  to	
  Dina.	
  
Rolla:	
  	
   [Does	
  not	
  move	
  and	
  stares	
  at	
  Dina]	
  
Zohar	
  (L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  boy):	
   [realizes	
  that	
  Rolla	
  has	
  not	
  understood	
  Dina	
  and	
  translates	
  into	
  Arabic]	
  

Wash	
  your	
  hands	
  very,	
  very	
  well.	
  
Rolla:	
   [Goes	
  wash	
  her	
  hands]	
  

	
  
On	
   the	
   other	
   hand,	
   we	
   noticed	
   in	
   our	
   observations	
   that	
   during	
   a	
  mixed	
   seating	
   arrangement,	
   the	
  

children	
  who	
  had	
  been	
  separated	
  from	
  their	
   friends	
  from	
  the	
  same	
  ethnic	
  group	
  continued	
  to	
   interact	
  with	
  
them	
  across	
   the	
   tables,	
  by	
  moving	
   the	
   tables	
   closer	
   together	
   to	
   facilitate	
   communication.	
  The	
  children	
  also	
  
began	
  to	
  eat	
  more	
  quickly,	
  to	
  reduce	
  the	
  amount	
  of	
  time	
  in	
  which	
  they	
  were	
  separated	
  from	
  their	
  friends,	
  and	
  
then	
  went	
   out	
   to	
   the	
   yard,	
  where	
   they	
  were	
   free	
   to	
   choose	
   their	
   activities	
   and	
  whom	
   to	
   play	
  with.	
   These	
  
findings	
  were	
  consistent	
  with	
  developmental	
  psychology	
  research,	
  stressing	
  the	
  importance	
  of	
  belonging	
  to	
  
the	
   peer	
   group.	
   This	
   belonging	
   develops	
   a	
   sense	
   of	
   high	
   self-­‐esteem	
   (Barkan,	
   2003;	
   Wright	
   et	
   al.,	
   2003).	
  
However,	
  over	
  time,	
  the	
  observations	
  also	
  showed	
  initial	
  signs	
  of	
  intercultural	
  interaction	
  in	
  Hebrew	
  between	
  
the	
  Arab	
  children,	
  as	
  novice	
  Hebrew	
  speakers	
  and	
  the	
  Jewish	
  children.	
  	
  

	
  
4.1.2.3.	
  Promoting	
  intercultural	
  group	
  activities	
  	
  

The	
   observations	
   showed	
   that	
   the	
   teachers	
   applied	
   a	
   strategy	
   aimed	
   at	
   promoting	
   intercultural	
  
integration	
  and	
  socialization	
  by	
  engaging	
   the	
  children	
   in	
  certain	
  activities.	
  For	
  example,	
   in	
  Excerpt	
  15	
   they	
  
tried	
  to	
  forge	
  a	
  connection	
  between	
  the	
  children,	
  based	
  on	
  a	
  common	
  hobby	
  or	
  activity	
  of	
  shared	
  interest.	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  15.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
We	
  try	
  to	
  find	
  out	
  what	
  two	
  children	
  have	
  in	
  common.	
  A	
  type	
  of	
  game,	
  kind	
  of	
  [...]	
  it	
  can	
  be	
  anything;	
  either	
  a	
  
hobby,	
   or	
   a	
   child	
  who	
  has	
  not	
   really	
   found	
  his	
   niche	
   and	
   this	
   is	
   also	
   an	
   opportunity	
   to	
   find	
  him	
  or	
   her	
   a	
  
friend.	
  Whether	
  through	
  a	
  game,	
  a	
  joint	
  activity,	
  a	
  task;	
  when	
  it	
  happens,	
  it	
  keeps	
  going,	
  it	
  keeps	
  happening.	
  
Meanwhile,	
  the	
  goal	
  is	
  to	
  connect	
  them	
  more,	
  to	
  get	
  them	
  to	
  play	
  with	
  each	
  other	
  more,	
  to	
  enjoy	
  each	
  other’s	
  
company.	
  	
  

	
  
As	
  found	
  in	
  the	
  developmental	
  research,	
  at	
  the	
  age	
  of	
  5	
  or	
  6,	
  children	
  understand	
  the	
  rules	
  of	
  play,	
  

adhere	
  to	
  them,	
  and	
  even	
  explain	
  them	
  to	
  others	
  (Lawhon	
  &	
  Lawhon,	
  2000).	
  As	
  shown	
  in	
  Situation	
  4,	
  during	
  
language	
   acquisition,	
   the	
   children	
  made	
   rules	
   that	
   enabled	
   learning	
   and	
   understanding	
   both	
   languages.	
   In	
  



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 50	
  

Situation	
  4,	
   the	
   teachers’	
   efforts	
   to	
  encourage	
  L2	
  use	
  was	
   supported	
  by	
  Ahmed,	
   the	
   simultaneous	
  bilingual	
  
child,	
  who	
   through	
   his	
   clear	
   claim	
   about	
   language	
   choice,	
   searched	
   to	
   establish	
   classroom	
   language	
   policy	
  
concerning	
  languages’	
  use.	
  	
  	
  

	
  
Situation	
  4.	
  Circle	
  time	
  (teachers	
  worked	
  as	
  a	
  team	
  to	
  promote	
  the	
  use	
  of	
  the	
  Arabic	
  language	
  by	
  the	
  L1	
  
Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  children)	
  
Ahmed,	
  (Arabic-­‐	
  and	
  Hebrew-­‐
speaking	
  boy):	
  

[in	
  Hebrew]	
  Arabic	
  speakers	
  will	
  say	
  it	
  in	
  Hebrew	
  and	
  Hebrew	
  speakers	
  
will	
  say	
  it	
  in	
  Arabic.	
  

	
  
In	
   addition,	
   it	
   has	
   been	
   found	
   that	
   shared	
   interests	
   and	
   play	
   activities	
   create	
   an	
   opportunity	
   for	
  

interpersonal	
   communication	
   and	
   accumulation	
   of	
   new	
   social	
   and,	
   in	
   our	
   case,	
   intercultural	
   experiences	
  
(Ding	
  &	
  Littleton,	
  2005).	
  This	
   leads	
   to	
  openness	
   to	
  a	
  novel	
   language	
   through	
  a	
   social	
  partnership.	
   In	
  other	
  
words,	
   listening	
   to	
   the	
   otherness	
   leads	
   to	
   an	
   interest	
   in	
   learning	
   the	
   language	
   because	
   it	
   brings	
   a	
   social	
  
reward,	
  as	
  in	
  Situation	
  5.	
  
	
  
Situation	
  5.	
  Circle	
  time	
  (the	
  language	
  instruction	
  topic	
  was	
  Israeli	
  flora;	
  teachers	
  discuss	
  protected	
  flowers	
  in	
  
Israel	
  with	
  the	
  children)	
  	
  	
  
Abed	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  boy):	
   [in	
   Arabic]	
   These	
   are	
   protected	
   flowers.	
   We	
   are	
   not	
   allowed	
   to	
   pick	
  

them.	
  
Lillian	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  
teacher):	
  	
  

[in	
  Arabic]	
  Excellent,	
  Abed,	
  say	
  that	
  again.	
  

Dina	
  (L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  
teacher):	
  

[in	
  Hebrew]	
  Abed,	
  I	
  didn’t	
  understand	
  everything,	
  can	
  you	
  maybe	
  tell	
  me	
  
a	
  little	
  in	
  Hebrew?	
  

Abed:	
  	
   [in	
  Hebrew]	
  The	
  flowers,	
  the	
  flowers	
  that	
  we’re	
  not	
  allowed	
  to	
  pick.	
  
Dina:	
   [in	
   Hebrew]	
   Oh,	
   thank	
   you!	
   I	
   thought	
   I	
   understood,	
   but	
   now	
   I	
  

understand	
  much	
  better.	
  Did	
  you	
  [all]	
  hear?	
  
Jewish	
  children:	
   [in	
  Hebrew]	
  We’re	
  not	
  allowed	
  to	
  pick	
  them!	
  

	
  
Notably,	
   the	
   findings	
   of	
   our	
   study	
   are	
   inconsistent	
   with	
   Bernstein’s	
   (2016)	
   data	
   regarding	
  

misunderstandings	
  or	
   erroneous	
   interpretations	
   in	
   intercultural	
   interactions,	
  which	
  may	
  be	
   an	
  outcome	
  of	
  
either	
   political	
   or	
   social	
   power	
   relations.	
   This	
   is	
   apparently	
   due	
   to	
   the	
   uniqueness	
   of	
   the	
   present	
   study	
  
population,	
   in	
   which	
   majority–minority	
   relations	
   differ	
   from	
   in	
   the	
   external	
   reality.	
   Even	
   though	
   the	
  
kindergarten	
   is	
   in	
   Israel,	
   where	
   Arabs	
   are	
   a	
   minority,	
   within	
   the	
   kindergarten,	
   the	
   Arab	
   children	
   are	
   the	
  
majority,	
   and	
   both	
   these	
   facts	
   are	
   clear	
   to	
   the	
   participants.	
   Thus,	
   the	
   study	
   findings	
   support	
   those	
   of	
  
Bernstein’s	
  (2016)	
  research,	
  which	
  claim	
  that	
  all	
  participants	
  in	
  the	
  sociocultural	
  interaction	
  are	
  required	
  to	
  
make	
  an	
  effort	
  to	
  bring	
  the	
  sides	
  closer	
  together	
  and	
  to	
  prevent	
  misunderstandings.	
  

Hence,	
   the	
   findings	
   point	
   to	
   the	
   existence	
   of	
   three	
   main	
   actors,	
   who	
   interact	
   in	
   the	
   intercultural	
  
process	
   in	
   this	
   bilingual	
   preschool:	
   teachers	
   as	
   representatives	
   of	
   the	
   educational	
   environment	
   and	
   two	
  
groups	
  of	
  children	
  as	
  representatives	
  of	
  two	
  ethnic	
  groups	
  in	
  society.	
  Keeping	
  in	
  mind	
  the	
  sociocultural	
  and	
  
linguistic	
  distance	
  between	
  these	
  ethnic	
  groups,	
  through	
  their	
  agentic	
  behavior,	
  the	
  teachers	
  encouraged	
  the	
  
intercultural	
  interactions	
  between	
  the	
  children	
  by	
  applying	
  diverse	
  and	
  creative	
  strategies.	
  Within	
  the	
  field	
  of	
  
social	
  theory,	
  Emirbayer	
  and	
  Mische	
  (1998)	
  defined	
  agency	
  as	
  “the	
  capacity	
  of	
  actors	
  to	
  critically	
  shape	
  their	
  
own	
  responsiveness	
  to	
  problematic	
  situations”	
  (Emirbayer	
  &	
  Mische,	
  1998,	
  p.	
  971).	
  This	
  implies	
  that	
  agency	
  
occurs	
  within	
  a	
  social	
  framework	
  (Biesta,	
  Priestley	
  &	
  Robinson,	
  2015).	
  Biesta	
  et	
  al.	
  (2015)	
  argue	
  that	
  people’s	
  
agentic	
   behavior	
   needs	
   to	
   be	
   linked	
   to	
   a	
   particular	
   situation	
   and	
   that	
   agency	
   is	
   achieved	
   in	
   a	
   particular	
  
ecology	
  (Biesta	
  et	
  al.,	
  2015).	
  Our	
  study	
  revealed	
  that	
  the	
  teachers’	
  observable	
  partnership	
  and	
  a	
  keen	
  interest	
  
in	
  each	
  other’s	
  language	
  and	
  culture	
  created	
  an	
  ecological	
  condition	
  for	
  shared	
  thinking	
  and	
  promotion	
  of	
  the	
  
children’s	
  intercultural	
  interactions.	
  	
  

	
  
4.2.	
  Acculturation	
  strategies	
  of	
  the	
  L2	
  experts	
  	
  

As	
  mentioned	
  above,	
  the	
  presence	
  of	
  the	
  L2	
  experts	
  in	
  the	
  classroom	
  indicated	
  the	
  formation	
  of	
  two	
  
groups	
  based	
  on	
  the	
  children’s	
  bilingual	
  competence;	
  namely,	
  the	
  L2	
  experts’	
  group,	
  comprising	
  11	
  bilingual	
  
L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  children,	
  and	
  the	
  novice	
  group,	
  comprising	
  18	
  children	
  without	
  prior	
  L2	
  knowledge.	
  We	
  
found	
   that	
   some	
   of	
   the	
   L2	
   experts	
   not	
   only	
   positioned	
   themselves	
   as	
   competent	
   bilinguals	
   but	
   also	
   as	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 51	
  

teachers,	
  who	
  were	
  willing	
   to	
   assume	
   the	
   role	
   of	
   L2	
   teachers,	
  mediators	
   and	
   interpreters,	
   and	
   as	
   a	
   result,	
  
became	
  leaders	
  in	
  the	
  classroom	
  (Excerpts	
  16,	
  17,	
  and	
  18).	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  16.	
  (Dina,	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Ahmad	
  took	
  on	
  the	
  role	
  of	
  a	
  teacher,	
  a	
  leader.	
  This	
  kid	
  is	
  a	
  real	
  leader,	
  I	
  would	
  say.	
  He	
  always	
  has	
  to	
  have	
  
the	
  last	
  word.	
  We	
  always	
  have	
  to	
  listen	
  to	
  him.	
  	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  17.	
  (Nur,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  and	
  L2	
  expert	
  girl)	
  
I	
  taught	
  Lynn	
  to	
  sing	
  the	
  song	
  [Shana	
  Tova	
  –	
  Happy	
  New	
  Year]	
  in	
  Arabic,	
  and	
  she	
  sang…	
  After	
  Lynn,	
  I	
  taught	
  
Amira	
  Hebrew.	
  
	
  
Excerpt	
  18.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
These	
  children	
  are	
  mediating.	
  They	
  are	
  very	
  helpful	
  because	
  they	
  manage	
  to	
  speak	
  both	
  Arabic	
  and	
  Hebrew,	
  
telling	
  some	
  children	
  what	
  he	
  (she)	
  is	
  saying	
  and	
  telling	
  others	
  what	
  he	
  (she)	
  means…	
  Ahmad	
  helps	
  in	
  the	
  
sessions	
  when	
  I	
  speak,	
  and	
  he	
  translates.	
  He	
  helps	
  children.	
  He	
  connects	
  them	
  all	
  together.	
  This	
  is	
  amazing.	
  
He	
  is	
  amazing.	
  	
  

	
  
These	
  findings	
  are	
  consistent	
  with	
  the	
  descriptions	
  of	
  the	
  experts’	
  social	
  role	
  in	
  the	
  research	
  on	
  the	
  

“others,”	
  emphasizing	
  the	
  importance	
  of	
  the	
  experts	
  as	
  leading	
  classroom	
  mediators,	
  their	
  readiness	
  to	
  help	
  
peers,	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  the	
  model	
  they	
  provide	
  for	
  other	
  children	
  (Langman,	
  Hansen-­‐Thomas,	
  &	
  Bayley	
  2005;	
  Nehm	
  
&	
  Ridgway,	
   2011).	
   In	
   this	
   study,	
   Lillian	
   recognized	
   that	
   the	
   experts’	
  modeling	
   presented	
   bilingualism	
   as	
   a	
  
social	
  advantage	
  and	
  helped	
  the	
  teachers	
  to	
  encourage	
  the	
  novices	
  to	
  use	
  L2	
  (Excerpt	
  19).	
  	
  	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  19.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Children	
  who	
   speak	
   both	
   languages	
   demonstrate	
   this	
   to	
   the	
   [other]	
   children.	
   This	
   is	
  modeling.	
   And	
   that	
  
sparks	
  the	
  other	
  children’s	
  motivation	
  to	
  speak	
  the	
  language	
  as	
  well.	
  I	
  say	
  this	
  because	
  the	
  place	
  where	
  this	
  
[modeling]	
  really	
  helps	
  .	
  .	
  .	
  This	
  really	
  triggers	
  the	
  other	
  children’s	
  interest	
  in	
  the	
  language.	
  	
  

	
  
Indeed,	
  the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learners	
  asked	
  the	
  experts	
  for	
  help,	
  both	
  in	
  terms	
  of	
  negotiating	
  meanings	
  in	
  L2	
  

and	
  improving	
  their	
  social	
  competence,	
  as	
  shown	
  in	
  Excerpts	
  20	
  and	
  21.	
  
	
  

Excerpt	
  20.	
  (Abed,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  expert	
  boy)	
  
Once,	
  Joseph	
  [the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learner]	
  did	
  not	
  know	
  how	
  to	
  speak	
  Hebrew,	
  so	
  I	
  taught	
  him.	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  21.	
  (Mary,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  expert	
  girl)	
  
Once	
  they	
  [the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learners]	
  asked	
  me	
  how	
  they	
  say,	
  for	
  example,	
  if	
  someone	
  is	
  playing	
  on	
  the	
  swing	
  
and	
   Somia	
   [L1	
  Arabic	
   speaking	
   novice	
   girl]	
   is	
   counting	
   for	
   him,	
   and	
  Dina	
   [L1	
  Hebrew	
   speaking	
   teacher]	
  
comes	
  and	
  calls	
  her,	
  so	
  I	
  tell	
  Somia	
  how	
  to	
  say	
  [in	
  Hebrew]	
  “I’m	
  sorry”	
  or	
  “I	
  want	
  to	
  stay	
  longer.”	
  

	
  
Regarding	
  unstable	
  social	
  contacts	
  between	
  the	
  children	
  of	
   the	
   two	
  ethnic	
  groups	
  compared	
   to	
   the	
  

relatively	
  stable	
  social	
  contacts	
  inside	
  the	
  groups,	
  our	
  findings	
  show	
  that,	
  in	
  general,	
  the	
  experts	
  were	
  more	
  
open	
  to	
  new	
  social	
  experiences	
  (Excerpt	
  22).	
  	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  22.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Nur	
  [L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  expert	
  girl]	
  has	
  an	
  excellent	
  knowledge	
  of	
  Hebrew	
  and	
  she	
  did	
  not	
  go	
  to	
  a	
  Jewish	
  
kindergarten.	
   She	
   learned	
   from	
   the	
   television.	
   And	
   she	
   does	
   a	
   great	
   job,	
   this	
   girl.	
   She	
   plays	
   as	
   if	
   it’s	
  
something	
   normal,	
   as	
   if	
   she’s	
   always	
   done	
   it.	
   She	
   plays	
  with	
   both	
   the	
   Jewish	
   and	
   the	
   Arab	
   children	
   and	
  
connects	
  them,	
  and	
  they	
  plan	
  and	
  construct.	
  Amazing	
  to	
  see	
  it!	
  Really!	
  	
  

	
  
At	
   the	
  same	
  time,	
  despite	
  some	
  experts’	
  declarations	
   that	
   they	
  were	
   friends	
  with	
  all	
  children,	
   their	
  

reflections	
  on	
  relationships	
  with	
  the	
  second	
  ethnic	
  group	
  showed	
  some	
  ambiguity.	
  Thus,	
   in	
  parallel	
  to	
  their	
  
openness	
  to	
  initiating	
  intergroup	
  communication,	
  such	
  as	
  playing	
  together,	
  all	
  experts	
  except	
  one	
  (Situation	
  
6)	
   reported,	
   in	
   their	
   interviews,	
   facing	
  challenges	
   in	
  developing	
   friendships	
  with	
   the	
  members	
  of	
   the	
  other	
  
ethnic	
  group.	
  	
  



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 52	
  

Situation	
  6.	
  (Interview)	
  
Interviewer:	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  Do	
  you	
  have	
  friends	
  who	
  speak	
  Hebrew?	
  
Malek	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  expert	
  
boy):	
  

[in	
  Arabic]	
  No.	
  

Interviewer:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  So,	
  you	
  speak	
  Hebrew	
  to	
  Ofra,	
  Hila	
  and	
  Lynn,	
  but	
  they	
  are	
  not	
  
your	
  friends?	
  

Malek:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  Yes.	
  
Interviewer:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  I	
  understand;	
  why	
  are	
  they	
  not	
  your	
  friends?	
  
Malek:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  They	
  do	
  not	
  always	
  play	
  with	
  me.	
  
	
  
4.3.	
  Acculturation	
  strategies	
  of	
  the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learners	
  	
  

Our	
  observations	
  showed	
  that,	
  like	
  the	
  L2	
  experts,	
  the	
  novice	
  children	
  had	
  stable	
  relationships	
  within	
  
their	
  ethnic	
  group	
  of	
  belonging.	
  In	
  Excerpt	
  23,	
  Lillian	
  reflected	
  on	
  these	
  social	
  preferences.	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  23.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
They	
   are	
   a	
   group	
  of	
   boys	
   [the	
  Hebrew	
   speaking	
   group],	
  who	
   came	
   together.	
   They	
  do	
  not	
  wish	
   to	
   accept	
  
others	
  into	
  the	
  group;	
  they	
  are	
  occupied	
  among	
  themselves.	
  	
  
	
  

Similar	
   to	
  what	
  was	
   presented	
   above	
   about	
   the	
   L2	
   experts,	
   novice	
   L2	
   speakers	
   reported	
   having	
   a	
  
preference	
  for	
  friendships	
  with	
  the	
  children	
  from	
  their	
  own	
  ethnic	
  group	
  (Situation	
  7).	
  

	
  
Situation	
  7.	
  (Interview)	
  
Interviewer:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  Do	
  you	
  have	
  friends	
  who	
  speak	
  Hebrew?	
  
Rula	
   (L1	
   Arabic-­‐speaking	
   girl,	
  
novice	
  Hebrew	
  learner):	
  

[in	
  Arabic]	
  No,	
  I	
  have	
  none.	
  

Interviewer:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  Who	
  are	
  your	
  friends	
  in	
  the	
  preschool?	
  
Rula:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  Nur.	
  
Interviewer:	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  Does	
  Nur	
  not	
  speak	
  Hebrew?	
  
Rula	
  	
   [in	
  Arabic]	
  She	
  does,	
  but	
  she	
  is	
  an	
  Arab.	
  

	
  
These	
  similarities	
   in	
   the	
  acculturation	
  patterns	
  between	
   the	
  novice	
  L2	
   learners	
  and	
   the	
  L2	
  experts	
  

might	
  be	
  attributed	
  to	
  the	
  fact	
  that,	
  along	
  with	
  the	
  relatively	
  high	
  level	
  of	
  competence	
  in	
  spoken	
  L2	
  Hebrew,	
  
and	
   even,	
   in	
   some	
   cases,	
   a	
   higher	
   level	
   of	
   social	
   sensitivity,	
   the	
   tendency	
   to	
   build	
   friendships	
   with	
   group	
  
members	
  was	
  very	
  strong.	
  At	
  the	
  same	
  time,	
  the	
  study	
  shows	
  that	
  relative	
  competence	
  in	
  a	
  new	
  language	
  of	
  
the	
  “other”	
  was	
  a	
  condition	
  for	
  readiness	
  to	
  become	
  flexible	
  and	
  to	
  go	
  beyond	
  their	
  ethnic	
  identity	
  to	
  establish	
  
new	
   social	
   relationships.	
   This	
   tendency	
   is	
   reflected	
   in	
   Situation	
   8	
   from	
   our	
   classroom	
   observation	
   and	
   its	
  
interpretation	
  in	
  Excerpt	
  24	
  from	
  the	
  interview	
  with	
  Dina.	
  

	
  
Situation	
  8.	
  (Class	
  observation)	
  
Dina	
   (L1	
   Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  
teacher):	
  	
  

Maybe	
  Khaled	
   [L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  boy]	
  would	
   like	
   to	
   tell	
  us	
  what	
  he	
  
did	
  during	
  the	
  weekend?	
  

Khaled	
  (L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  boy):	
   [in	
  Hebrew]	
  I	
  visited	
  Hanna	
  [L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  girl].	
  
	
  

Excerpt	
  24.	
  (Dina,	
  L1	
  Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
Now	
   it	
   starts	
   happening	
   [the	
   intercultural	
   communication].	
   There	
   is	
   our	
  mediation	
   here	
   as	
   educators	
   in	
  
order	
  for	
  it	
  to	
  happen.	
  I	
  mean,	
  we	
  have	
  a	
  role	
  here,	
  and	
  once	
  you	
  are	
  persistent,	
  it	
  happens.	
  And	
  both	
  Khaled	
  
and	
  Hanna	
  are	
  very	
  strong	
  in	
  both	
  languages.	
  	
  

	
  
In	
   addition,	
   as	
   addressed	
   in	
   Excerpt	
   25	
   from	
   the	
   interview	
  with	
   Lillian,	
   a	
   gradual	
   progress	
   in	
   L2	
  

learning	
  results	
  in	
  intercultural	
  influences,	
  such	
  as	
  expanding	
  the	
  Arab	
  children’s	
  ability	
  for	
  self-­‐expression,	
  
which	
  shapes	
  their	
  personality.	
  

	
  
	
  
	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 53	
  

Excerpt	
  25.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
They	
   [the	
   L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
   children]	
   are	
   also	
   beginning	
   to	
   learn	
   how	
   to	
   express	
   [emotions].	
   Learning	
  
new	
   cultural	
   patterns.	
   I	
   think	
   they	
   [the	
   parents]	
   want	
   their	
   children	
   to	
   get	
   there.	
   Not	
   to	
   the	
   level	
   of	
  
impudence,	
   but	
   they	
   are	
   very	
   pleased	
   that	
   the	
   children	
   are	
  working	
   on	
   themselves	
   and	
   are	
   gaining	
   self-­‐
confidence.	
  	
  
	
  

The	
  children’s	
  intact	
  socialization	
  was	
  created	
  by	
  the	
  sociocultural	
  context	
  of	
  bilingualism	
  and	
  by	
  the	
  
integration	
  of	
  the	
  appropriate	
  language.	
  In	
  the	
  bilingual	
  kindergarten,	
  building	
  socialization	
  was	
  based	
  on	
  the	
  
children’s	
   sociocultural	
   attempts	
  as	
  a	
   result	
  of	
   their	
   interpersonal	
   communication	
  and	
   interaction	
  with	
   the	
  
teachers	
   and	
   the	
  environment.	
  Both	
  of	
   these	
   together	
   led	
   to	
   the	
   children’s	
   learning	
  or	
   to	
   changes	
   for	
   their	
  
adjustment	
   in	
  kindergarten.	
  An	
  outcome	
  of	
   this	
  process	
  was	
  that	
   the	
  children	
  began	
  to	
   form	
  their	
  personal	
  
identities,	
  which	
  were	
  maintained	
  through	
  negotiation	
  in	
  social	
  situations	
  or	
  through	
  their	
  internalized	
  social	
  
roles	
  (Pavlenko	
  &	
  Norton,	
  2007).	
  

Notably,	
  this	
  pattern	
  of	
  data	
  reinforces	
  the	
  previous	
  findings	
  indicating	
  a	
  link	
  between	
  L2	
  acquisition	
  
and	
  emotional,	
  cultural	
  and	
  social	
  changes	
  in	
  the	
  learner	
  (Barkhuizen,	
  2008;	
  Feger,	
  2009;	
  Norton	
  &	
  Toohey,	
  
2011).	
   According	
   to	
   the	
   literature,	
   these	
   changes	
   are	
   a	
   result	
   of	
   the	
   integrated	
   and	
   sometimes	
   conflicting	
  
activity	
   of	
   different	
   gender,	
   ethnic,	
   cultural	
   and	
   social	
   identities	
   during	
   the	
   learner’s	
   interactions	
  with	
   the	
  
target	
  language	
  speakers.	
  	
  

The	
   current	
   study	
   showed	
   that	
   the	
   L2	
   experts’	
   knowledge	
   of	
   both	
   languages,	
   in	
   addition	
   to	
   social	
  
mediation,	
  enhanced	
  their	
  self-­‐confidence	
  and	
  their	
  social	
  and	
  cultural	
   identity.	
  However,	
  due	
  to	
  their	
  fixed	
  
ethnic	
   and	
   gender	
   identity,	
   they	
   did	
   not	
   change	
   their	
  main	
  modes	
   of	
   play,	
  which	
  would	
   have	
   significantly	
  
undermined	
  their	
  sense	
  of	
  belonging	
  to	
  their	
  own	
  cultural	
  group.	
  Thus,	
  our	
  observations	
  provided	
  evidence	
  
that	
  the	
  expert	
  girls	
  were	
  more	
  open	
  than	
  the	
  expert	
  boys	
  to	
  new	
  intercultural	
  social	
  experiences,	
  whereas	
  
the	
  expert	
  boys	
  preferred	
  to	
  play	
  mostly	
  with	
  members	
  of	
  their	
  own	
  ethnic	
  group.	
  	
  

	
  
4.3.1.	
  Changes	
  in	
  the	
  novices’	
  acculturation	
  patterns	
  	
  

Interestingly,	
  the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learners	
  gradually	
  expanded	
  their	
  cultural	
  and	
  social	
  boundaries.	
  These	
  
changes	
  were	
  reflected	
  in	
  their	
  spontaneous	
  use	
  of	
  L2	
  with	
  the	
  teachers	
  and	
  the	
  peers	
  and	
  in	
  their	
  initiative	
  
of	
   interaction	
   with	
   the	
   peers	
   in	
   free	
   play	
   and	
   mealtime	
   contexts.	
   These	
   facts	
   were	
   observed	
   by	
   the	
  
researchers	
   and	
   were	
   reported	
   in	
   the	
   teachers’	
   interviews	
   (Excerpt	
   26)	
   after	
   three	
   months	
   of	
   intensive	
  
exposure	
  to	
  their	
  novel	
  language.	
  	
  

	
  
Excerpt	
  26.	
  (Lillian,	
  L1	
  Arabic-­‐speaking	
  teacher)	
  
There	
  is	
  a	
  breakthrough.	
  They	
  [the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learners]	
  remember	
  more	
  words	
  and	
  they	
  repeat	
  the	
  words.	
  
Words	
  are	
  not	
  sentences.	
  No	
  sentences	
  yet,	
  but	
  you	
  see	
  that	
  these	
  children	
  have	
  gone	
  through	
  a	
  process	
  of	
  
language	
  learning	
  …	
  I	
  think	
  they	
  got	
  together	
  more,	
  got	
  to	
  know	
  each	
  other,	
  learned	
  how	
  to	
  play	
  with	
  each	
  
other	
  more,	
  and	
  I	
  think	
  we	
  contributed	
  to	
  it	
  too…	
  I	
  see	
  more	
  interaction	
  in	
  free	
  activities.	
  In	
  the	
  yard,	
  in	
  the	
  
corners.	
   In	
   the	
   household	
   corner,	
   with	
   toy	
   blocks,	
   during	
   meals.	
   Many	
   children	
   connect	
   during	
   meals.	
  
Talking	
  about	
  all	
  sorts	
  of	
  things.	
  	
  
	
  

Thus,	
  we	
  found	
  a	
  reciprocal	
  and	
  circular	
  connection	
  between	
  L2	
  learning	
  and	
  changes	
  in	
  the	
  learner’s	
  
identity.	
  In	
  other	
  words,	
  the	
  more	
  the	
  learners	
  enriched	
  their	
  identity,	
  the	
  greater	
  was	
  their	
  command	
  of	
  L2,	
  
and	
  vice	
  versa	
  (Clarke,	
  2008;	
  Pavlenko	
  &	
  Norton,	
  2007).	
  

	
  
5.	
  Discussion	
  	
  

The	
   purpose	
   of	
   this	
   study	
  was	
   to	
   describe	
   the	
  ways	
   in	
  which	
   children	
   become	
   acquainted	
  with	
   a	
  
novel	
  culture.	
  We	
  sought	
  to	
  expand	
  our	
  understanding	
  of	
  the	
  process	
  of	
  the	
  intercultural	
  encounter	
  between	
  
young	
   children	
   from	
   two	
   different	
   ethnic	
   backgrounds,	
   Jewish	
   and	
   Arab,	
   who	
   attended	
   the	
   bilingual	
  
preschool	
  in	
  order	
  to	
  be	
  educated	
  together	
  and	
  to	
  create	
  the	
  CoP	
  (Wenger,	
  2006).	
  This	
  case	
  was	
  particularly	
  
fascinating	
   because	
   this	
   preschool	
   was	
   intended	
   to	
   create	
   a	
  micro	
  model	
   of	
   coexistence	
   between	
   the	
   two	
  
ethnic	
  groups,	
  who	
  experience	
  tension	
  within	
  the	
  wider	
  macro	
  context	
  of	
  Israel.	
  	
  	
  

Our	
   data	
   show	
   that	
   the	
   process	
   of	
   L2	
   acquisition	
  might	
   play	
   a	
   catalytic	
   role	
   in	
   activating	
   a	
   social	
  
mechanism	
   for	
   intercultural	
   interaction	
   and	
   comprising	
   community	
   (Pavlenko	
  &	
  Norton,	
   2007).	
   The	
  main	
  
findings	
  from	
  the	
  interviews	
  and	
  longitudinal	
  classroom	
  observations	
  point	
  to	
  the	
  combined	
  activation	
  of	
  the	
  



KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 54	
  

personal,	
   cultural	
   and	
   social	
   forces	
   in	
   shaping	
   the	
   children’s	
   interactions	
   in	
   the	
   bilingual	
   preschool.	
   Like	
  
studies	
   in	
  which	
   Berry	
   (2003,	
   2005)	
   examined	
   the	
   relationship	
   between	
   the	
   ethnic	
  minority	
   and	
  majority	
  
groups,	
   this	
   study	
   showed	
   that,	
   even	
   among	
   5-­‐year-­‐olds,	
   the	
   ongoing	
   intercultural	
   encounter	
   was	
   a	
  
longitudinal	
  process	
  aimed	
  to	
  achieve	
  acculturation	
  or	
  a	
  cultural	
  and	
  psychological	
  change.	
  The	
  findings	
  also	
  
supported	
  a	
   theoretical	
   claim	
  by	
  Bronfenbrenner	
   (1994)	
  and	
  Robinson	
   (2007)	
   that,	
   among	
  young	
  children	
  
who	
   undergo	
   their	
   natural	
   multidimensional	
   development	
   in	
   parallel	
   with	
   the	
   intercultural	
   encounter,	
   a	
  
variety	
  of	
  factors	
  influence	
  their	
  mode	
  and	
  degree	
  of	
  acculturation.	
  These	
  factors	
  can	
  be	
  defined	
  as	
  ecological	
  
(immediate	
  environment,	
  socioeconomic	
  situation,	
  ideology,	
  and	
  culture	
  of	
  the	
  society),	
  supportive	
  (teachers’	
  
encouragement	
   of	
   acculturation	
   in	
   the	
   educational	
   environment)	
   and	
   developmental	
   (specific	
   cognitive,	
  
emotional,	
   and	
   social	
   development	
   changes	
   during	
   the	
   intercultural	
   encounter)	
   (Bronfenbrenner,	
   1994;	
  
Robinson,	
  2007).	
  	
  

In	
  addition,	
  we	
  found	
  that	
  the	
  interactional	
  patterns	
  between	
  L2	
  experts	
  and	
  novices	
  are	
  consistent	
  
with	
   the	
   claim	
   by	
   Lave	
   and	
  Wenger	
   (1991)	
   about	
   the	
   role	
   of	
   experts	
   in	
   the	
   learning	
   of	
   less	
   experienced	
  
members	
   through	
   interaction	
   in	
   the	
  CoP	
  and	
  with	
  what	
  was	
   shown	
   in	
  previous	
   research	
  of	
  older	
   language	
  
mediators	
  (Angelova,	
  Gunawardena,	
  &	
  Volk	
  2006;	
  Kopke	
  &	
  Nespoulous,	
  2006;	
  Langman,	
  Hansen-­‐Thomas,	
  &	
  
Bayley,	
  2005).	
  Moreover,	
  the	
  findings	
  showed	
  that	
  the	
  ability	
  to	
  move	
  from	
  one	
  language	
  to	
  another	
  means	
  
the	
  ability	
  to	
  change	
  social	
  identities	
  and	
  thus	
  to	
  achieve	
  high	
  social	
  status	
  (Creese,	
  Bhatt,	
  Bhojani,	
  &	
  Martin,	
  
2006).	
  

The	
  special	
  status	
  of	
  “mediators,”	
  “helpers,”	
  and	
  “teachers,”	
  which	
  the	
  L2	
  experts	
  obtained,	
  created	
  a	
  
situation	
   in	
   which	
   bilingual	
   knowledge	
   becomes	
   worthwhile	
   and	
   promoted.	
   It	
   is	
   noteworthy	
   that	
   the	
  
innovation	
   of	
   our	
   findings	
   lies	
   in	
   identifying	
   similarities	
   as	
  well	
   as	
   differences	
   in	
   the	
  way	
   in	
  which	
   the	
   L2	
  
experts	
   and	
   their	
   L2	
   novice	
   peers	
   developed	
   their	
   intercultural	
   interactions.	
  More	
   specifically,	
   it	
   appeared	
  
that	
  despite	
  the	
  differences	
  observed	
  in	
  the	
  patterns	
  of	
  social	
  adaptation	
  to	
  the	
  bilingual	
  preschool	
  between	
  
the	
  expert	
  and	
   the	
  novice	
  L2	
   learners,	
  all	
   children	
  showed	
  developmental	
   intercultural	
   changes	
   (Robinson,	
  
2007).	
   These	
   changes	
   were	
   identified	
   in	
   the	
   three	
   main	
   developmental	
   areas:	
   cognitive	
   and	
   language	
  
development	
   (development	
   of	
   different	
   modes	
   of	
   thinking,	
   progress	
   in	
   L1	
   and	
   L2	
   acquisition),	
   social	
  
development	
   (emergence	
   of	
   interactions	
   within	
   and	
   outside	
   their	
   sociocultural	
   group	
   of	
   belonging)	
   and	
  
emotional	
   development	
   (expressing	
   empathy	
   and	
   caring	
   for	
   others).	
   These	
  developmental	
   changes	
   shaped	
  
the	
  children’s	
  acculturation	
  strategies	
  (Berry,	
  2003,	
  2005)	
  during	
  the	
  intercultural	
  encounters.	
  At	
  the	
  initial	
  
stage,	
   the	
   L2	
   experts	
   chose	
   the	
   integration	
   strategy,	
   initiating	
   intercultural	
   relations	
   while	
   preserving	
   the	
  
original	
  culture,	
  whereas	
  the	
  novice	
  L2	
   learners	
  maintained	
  their	
  original	
  culture	
  and	
  avoided	
   intercultural	
  
interaction.	
  However,	
  despite	
  the	
  initial	
  differences,	
  later	
  on,	
  both	
  the	
  L2	
  experts	
  and	
  the	
  novice	
  L2	
  learners	
  
showed	
  a	
  common	
  trend	
  toward	
   intercultural	
   integration.	
   In	
   light	
  of	
   these	
   findings,	
  we	
  can	
  conclude	
  that	
  a	
  
bilingual	
  preschool	
  experience	
  might	
  reduce	
   the	
   interpersonal,	
   linguistic	
  and	
  cultural	
  distance	
  between	
  the	
  
Jewish	
  and	
  Arab	
  children	
  when	
  mutual	
  accommodation	
  is	
  encouraged	
  by	
  the	
  educational-­‐social	
  environment,	
  
i.e.,	
  the	
  preschool	
  teachers.	
  

The	
  study	
  also	
  highlighted	
  that	
  while	
  acquiring	
  a	
  novel	
  culture	
  and	
  language,	
  the	
  children's	
  sense	
  of	
  
belonging	
   to	
   the	
  ethnic	
   group	
  was	
   strengthened.	
  Moreover,	
  both	
  ethnic	
   groups	
   showed	
  a	
   tendency	
   toward	
  
membership	
   categorization.	
   In	
   this	
   case,	
   Sacks’s	
   idea	
   (Sacks,	
   1972)	
   of	
   social	
   classification	
   is	
   especially	
  
relevant	
  to	
  the	
  analysis	
  of	
  these	
  intergroup	
  interactions.	
  According	
  to	
  Sacks,	
  the	
  tools	
  of	
  social	
  classification	
  
(resources	
   and	
   strategies)	
   allow	
   people	
   to	
   define	
   their	
   affiliation	
   groups.	
   Moreover,	
   as	
   in	
   the	
   case	
   of	
   our	
  
study,	
  membership	
   categorization	
   seems	
   to	
   consolidate	
   the	
   children’s	
   cultural	
   identity	
   (Norton	
   &	
   Toohey,	
  
2011).	
  

	
  
6.	
  Conclusions	
  and	
  implications	
  for	
  practice	
  

The	
  observed	
  process	
  of	
  intercultural	
  interaction	
  was	
  influenced	
  considerably	
  by	
  the	
  teachers,	
  who	
  
served	
  as	
  personal	
  models	
  of	
  fruitful	
  intercultural	
  communication	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  of	
  coexistence	
  between	
  the	
  two	
  
ethnic	
   groups.	
   Concerning	
   the	
   L2	
   early	
   learning	
   process,	
   Nikolov	
   (1999)	
   found	
   that	
   the	
   teachers’	
   own	
  
motivation	
  has	
  an	
   impact	
  on	
   the	
  children’s	
  motivation.	
   Indeed,	
  our	
  highly	
  motivated	
   teachers	
  played	
  a	
  key	
  
role	
  in	
  initiating,	
  developing	
  and	
  maintaining	
  the	
  children’s	
  enthusiasm	
  for	
  intercultural	
  interaction	
  through	
  
an	
   endless	
   reflective	
   process	
   and	
   implication	
   of	
   diverse	
   and	
   creative	
   strategies.	
   Their	
   reflections	
   and	
  
observed	
  behavioral	
  patterns	
  could	
  be	
  defined	
  as	
  an	
  expression	
  of	
   their	
  agency	
  enactment,	
  which	
   included	
  
teachers’	
  beliefs,	
  professional	
  and	
  personal	
  experience	
  and	
  identity.	
  



INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 55	
  

	
   Within	
   a	
   wider	
   international	
   framework,	
   the	
   observed	
   emergent	
   process	
   of	
   the	
   intercultural	
  
interactions	
  during	
  the	
  first	
  year	
  in	
  the	
  Arabic–Hebrew-­‐speaking	
  bilingual	
  classroom,	
  as	
  well	
  as	
  the	
  teachers’	
  
reflections	
  on	
  it,	
  could	
  provide	
  a	
  model	
  for	
  bilingual	
  educators	
  who	
  are	
  working	
  in	
  dual	
  language	
  education,	
  
to	
  promote	
  encounters	
  and	
  interaction	
  between	
  two	
  ethnic	
  groups	
  of	
  children.	
  Moreover,	
  the	
  examples	
  and	
  
their	
   analysis	
   might	
   help	
   policy	
   makers	
   and	
   educators	
   in	
   ethnic	
   majority–minority	
   contexts	
   to	
   view	
  
themselves	
  as	
  part	
  of	
  a	
  community	
  of	
  reciprocal	
  learning	
  and	
  repair.	
  	
  

Finally,	
   we	
   need	
   to	
   address	
   some	
   limitations	
   of	
   our	
   study.	
   First,	
   we	
   were	
   limited	
   in	
   obtaining	
   a	
  
representative	
  sample	
  in	
  our	
  ethnographic	
  study	
  (Nurani,	
  2008),	
  and	
  hence,	
  our	
  conclusions	
  can	
  be	
  defined	
  
as	
  preliminary.	
  In	
  addition,	
  we	
  need	
  to	
  address	
  the	
  fact	
  that	
  the	
  children	
  in	
  our	
  study	
  were	
  not	
  starting	
  their	
  
bilingual	
  education	
  from	
  the	
  same	
  point.	
  Among	
  29	
  children	
  in	
  the	
  class,	
  22	
  had	
  either	
  no	
  L2	
  knowledge	
  or	
  
very	
  low	
  L2	
  competence,	
  six	
  had	
  entered	
  the	
  preschool	
  with	
  a	
  relatively	
  high	
  level	
  of	
  spoken	
  L2	
  competence,	
  
and	
  one	
  boy	
  was	
   from	
  an	
  ethnically	
  mixed	
  family,	
   in	
  which	
  the	
  mother	
  was	
  an	
  L1	
  Hebrew	
  speaker	
  and	
  the	
  
father	
  was	
  an	
  L1	
  Arabic	
  speaker.	
  On	
  one	
  hand,	
   this	
  diversity	
  of	
   linguistic	
  histories	
  created	
  a	
  unique	
  case	
  of	
  
enquiry.	
  On	
  the	
  other	
  hand,	
  due	
  to	
  this	
  uniqueness,	
  we	
  must	
  be	
  cautious	
  when	
  generalizing	
  our	
  findings.	
  This	
  
notwithstanding,	
  we	
   hope	
   that	
   this	
   study	
  will	
   be	
   a	
   springboard	
   for	
   a	
  multidisciplinary	
   examination	
   of	
   the	
  
intercultural	
   and	
   social	
   interactions	
   between	
   preschool	
   children	
   from	
  majority	
   and	
  minority	
   groups.	
   This	
  
examination	
   also	
   has	
   implications	
   for	
   the	
   social	
   relations	
   between	
   the	
   ethnic	
   groups,	
   who	
   sometimes	
   live	
  
with	
  tension	
  and	
  with	
  limited	
  social	
  contact,	
  but	
  who	
  are	
  seeking	
  a	
  model	
  of	
  coexistence	
  in	
  their	
  lives.	
  

	
  
	
  

	
  
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INTERCULTURAL	
  INTERACTIONS	
  IN	
  THE	
  ARABIC–HEBREW-­‐SPEAKING	
  PRESCHOOL	
  IN	
  ISRAEL	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
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Pavlenko,	
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Pishghadam,	
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Priestley,	
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KRIVOSH	
  &	
  SCHWARTZ	
  

E-­‐JournALL	
  7(1)	
  (2020),	
  pp.	
  39-­‐58 58	
  

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Ludmila Krivosh, Oranim College of Education 
Ludmilk@gmail.com 

  
EN Ludmila Krivosh is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Sociology, Graduate Studies Faculty and Head of the Civics and 

Sociology Department at the Oranim College of Education. She is also Lecturer in the Department of Social Work at Emek 
Yizrael College (Israel). 

ES Ludmila Krivosh es profesora en el Departamento de Sociología, profesora de estudios graduados y jefa del departamento de 
Estudios cívicos y sociología de la Universidad de Educación Oranim. Además, es profesora en el Departamento de Trabajo 
Social de la Universidad Emek Yizrael (Israel). 
 

IT Ludmila Krivosh è professoressa nel Dipartimento di Sociologia, professoressa di studi post lauream e direttrice del 
dipartimento di Studi civici e sociologia dell’Oranim College of Education. Inoltre, è anche docente nel Dipartimento di 
Assistenza sociale all’Emek Yizrael College (Israele). 

	
  
	
  
	
  

Mila Schwartz, Oranim College of Education 
milasch@post.bgu.ac.il 

  
EN Mila Schwartz is Associate Professor in Language and Education and Head of the Language Program (M. Ed.) at the Oranim 

College of Education.  
 

ES Mila Schwartz es profesora titular de lengua y educación y directora del programa de lengua de maestría en la universidad de 
Educación Oranim.  
 

IT Mila Schwartz è professoressa associata di lingua ed istruzione e direttrice del programma di master di lingua dell’Università di 
Educazione Oranim.