Drawing on other fields of knowledge (FoK) in visual arts: a case study of a Finnish CLIL classroom

Subject-specific knowledge has increasingly been foregrounded in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) research, particularly in subjects such as history and chemistry. However, the focus on subject-specificity may render invisible the potential impact of interdisciplinary knowledge resources in shaping, scaffolding, or extending knowledge-building in CLIL classrooms. Against this background, the present study investigates how a teacher refers to other disciplinary fields of knowledge (FoK) while constructing legitimate arts knowledge in a Finnish CLIL visual arts classroom, an under-explored subject area in CLIL. Methodologically, we combine multimodal Conversation Analysis (CA) with the Autonomy dimension of Legitimation Code Theory to analyse video-recorded lessons from both micro- and macro-sociological perspectives. The analysis focuses on two interactional environments: (1) teacher explanations and (2) teacher-initiated question-answer sequences. We demonstrate how the teacher mobilises references to other disciplinary fields to scaffold understanding of visual arts-specific knowledge, and how these multimodal practices involve movement across autonomy codes. In doing so, we illustrate the underlying principles governing the transition between disciplinary domains during knowledge-building. The study offers pedagogical implications for CLIL classroom discourse and teacher education, particularly concerning how teachers strategically draw upon other disciplinary fields to support students’ learning of visual arts concepts.