Multilingual Learning In International Education

“Die Grenzen meiner Sprache bedeuten die Grenzen meiner Welt.”

“The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” Ludwig Wittgenstein

Alison has a Bachelor of Arts degree in TESOL and German from the University of Wolverhampton, UK. Once qualified as a teacher, she left the UK and joined the International School of Düsseldorf as an ELL and German teacher. Following this, she worked in international schools in Thailand, China, Tanzania, and is now in her third year of teaching at Luanda International School in Angola. Alison’s husband is a trilingual Tanzanian and they have two multilingual, multicultural children. Alison has taught ELL to all age levels but most of her teaching has been at the primary level, which is where she currently is, supporting 3-7 year old ELL students and their teachers. In addition to her ELL role, Alison is the Whole School Language Coordinator, empowering students, teachers and parents to use their full linguistic repertoires to socialise in, learn from and explore our diverse world.
CONTACT

Deborah has been a teacher and advisory teacher in multilingual schools all her professional life –both in the UK and in the Netherlands. She taught in UK state education before moving to the Netherlands and working in international school education. She worked with schools with very different student communities, refugees, faith schools, ‘bilingual’ in composition and those with a mix of nationalities.

An advocate for cultural and linguistic inclusion in schools for student well-being and affirmation of identity underpins her work.

Whilst teaching full time in the UK, she gained a Master’s in Education that focused on Language and Literacy and Child Development in a Social Context. She feels fortunate to have trained in Partnership Teaching and Collaborative Learning by Stuart Scott early on in her career, as both have been invaluable in teaching ELLs and working with colleagues.

Deborah has been a member of other associations that advocate for multilingualism and inclusive education and is keen to develop new links and partnerships with the ECIS MLIE SIG.

In her time at the British School in the Netherlands, the school has grown into a multi-campus school in three different locations. Deborah leads a team of ELA teachers across the 3-18 campus. She teaches across the age range of primary and secondary.

Translanguaging as a teaching and learning strategy is a key development priority, one that Deborah believes should be an expectation and not a choice.

Although not bilingual herself, she continues to aspire to this with her two additional languages of French and Dutch.

The experience of being a migrant and living in a culture and language other than the home language is a daily reminder of what many children and their families’ experience. Understanding the cultural differences that make us all individual is an ongoing learning experience for Deborah.
CONTACT

“Un linguaggio diverso è una diversa visione della vita.”

“A different language is a different vision of life.”

Federico Fellini

Patience holds a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish language and literature and an MA in Bilingual / English as a Second Language Education. She has taught in schools in the Washington, D.C. area and internationally in Bonn, Brussels, Leipzig, and Berlin. Her teaching has included roles as an EAL, upper primary homeroom, and middle school English teacher. As passionate about working with educators as with young learners, Patience is also a qualified TYCEMC and TESMC tutor. She currently serves as the Primary School Literacy and Home Languages Coordinator at the Berlin Brandenburg International School, responsible for EE-3 to Grade 5. Her particular interest is in ways to weave language throughout the curriculum to promote confident, joyful, capable, and multiliterate learners.

كل من افترق عن من يتحدثون لغته، ظل بلا لسان، وإن كان لديه ألف صوت” – جلال الدين الرومي”

“Anyone who parts from those who speak his language remains without a tongue, even if he has a thousand voices.” – Jalaluddin Rumi

“Cualquiera que se aparte de aquellos que hablan su idioma permanece sin lengua, incluso si tiene mil voces.” – Jalaluddin Rumi

Mohamed has spent 15 years enriching Arabic language education in international schools. He worked for 11 years at El Alsson British & American International School and 4 years at Cairo American College. Mohamed’s goal is to modernize the teaching of Arabic to meet 21st-century demands by integrating technology into the process.

As a part-time mental health coach at ELSA Academy, Mohamed has conducted workshops for children on anti-harassment and anti-bullying.

Certified as a Microsoft Educator Expert and a Google Certified Educator, Mohamed incorporates real-life applications into his teaching methodologies. His academic credentials include a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and various certifications in Positive Discipline and child safeguarding. Additionally, he holds certificates in Adaptive School, Make the PYP Happen, and Evidence of Learning. Mohamed has also participated in numerous seminars and conferences in education, presenting sessions on the use of technology and AI in language teaching.

Matt has been working in education with bilingual and multilingual learners since his career began in 2006 as a volunteer teacher at an orphanage in Honduras. He has worked in a variety of schools with varying language models from subtractive to dual language. He has had the privilege of working in international schools in the USA, Honduras, Colombia, Brazil, and Belgium.

Matt has worked as a homeroom teacher, EAL teacher, instructional coach, Director of Teaching and Learning and Director of Bilingualism/Language Development. Matt currently works as the Head of Primary School at Atlanta International School in the USA – a school with four dual language/bilingual pathways (English paired with Spanish, French, German, or Chinese). He watched his Polish grandparents assimilate into the United States and make the difficult decision to not pass along their language and the impact this had on family culture within a generation. Therefore, Matt is passionate about translanguaging as an equitable practice to leverage student learning and sustaining identity. He is always inspired by the deep connections that are formed between two humans who can tell their stories through a shared language.

Mariana is a Language Acquisition Specialist who earned her college degree in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning in Argentina, where is originally from. She has a passion for language learning and is a strong supporter of home language development as a strong predictor of academic success.

She has worked as an English language acquisition specialist and international school administrator in various contexts in Argentina, the United States, and Spain. Her leadership focuses on academic policy writing, curriculum mapping, accreditation, and staff and program development. She has also been an active member of the IBEN global community in various capacities including professional development, accreditation, and curriculum review. Additionally, she has collaborated with IB-related Language B publications: Toddle, Kognity, and Pearson as editor, content creator and content lead advisor.

In 2023, she moved to Saudi Arabia to join The KAUST School as K-12 World Language Coordinator. Over the past year, she has been collaborating closely with teachers, staff, and administrators to promote the Host Country Culture and Language and further develop and align the World Language Program in terms of philosophy and beliefs, pedagogy, and content. She also collaborates closely with other Leadership Team members in policy writing, strategic planning, accreditation, and designing and offering evidence-based workshops for teachers, staff, and parents on the importance of maintaining the home language and how to support multilingual learners in their journey toward academic language proficiency.