Webinar: The role of language for inclusion – How can we strengthen language development in the Nordic languages among students from foreign backgrounds?
Maahanmuuttajien integraatio
What measures are currently in place across the Nordic countries to support language learning among children and youth from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds? How can these systems be further developed to better promote inclusion?
Many migrant children and youth demonstrate multilingual competence. However, limited skills in the local language can restrict opportunities and hinder full participation in society – with long-lasting consequences. The webinar highlights the importance of addressing Nordic language development to ensure that individual potential is not lost, benefiting both the individual and the Nordic societies.
Join us at the webinar to hear more from leading researchers in the field. They will share insights from across the Nordics on how to develop language teaching and learning based on the latest academic and policy-oriented studies.
Programme:
Moderator: Mikaela Sonck, Nordic Welfare Centre
13:00 Introduction and welcoming words
Language development and participation: barriers and opportunities for newly arrived students in the Nordics
Professor Nihad Bunar, Department of Special Education, Stockholm University, SWE
Facilitating second language acquisition in the Nordic countries. Results from a Nordic research review.
PhD Sabine Wollscheid, researcher, NIFU
Next steps: comment from the Nordic Council of Ministers
Multilingual classrooms: from policy to practice in Finland
Docent Maria Ahlholm, Senior Lecturer, University of Helsinki
Family, school and educational policies for multilingual students in Iceland
PhD Renata Emilsson Pesková, Associate Professor, University of Iceland
Panel discussion: learnings and the way forward
Final words
15:00 Webinar ends