It is an honour to announce that the results of Ginkgo-Educa’s project on the importance of science in the education of bilingual students was published in ESERA2019 Proceedings Book.
What was the project about?
To tackle social integration issues, Swiss authorities strongly support initiatives that promote the teaching of heritage languages along with the regular education system to motivate students to proceed to further studies while developing their bilingual identity. Can hands-on science activities in a pedagogical context increase students’ self-esteem through the appreciation of their heritage language and culture?
To test this hypothesis, Luso-descendant students with ages between 7 and 16 years old were asked to formulate hypothesis, design experiments, test ideas, observe results and draw conclusions using their heritage language as an instrument for questioning, communicating and thinking.
What where our main findings?
Our results point to positive implications in terms of acquiring knowledge, understanding the scientific process, destroying preconceived notions related to science, and the broadening of students’ expectations for the future.
Introducing the scientific method through the use of experimentation, and practices centred on “learning by doing”, in multidisciplinary educational contexts such as in Portuguese Heritage Language learning, have the potential to bring benefits to the students.
The full publication can be found here. Enjoy your reading! :)
About ESERA
ESERA (European Science Education Research Association) is an institution funded in 1995 that promotes a collaborative forum for science education researchers and policymakers. It is a reference in the field of science education worldwide and helps enhancing the range and quality of research and research training in science education in Europe.
What was the project about?
To tackle social integration issues, Swiss authorities strongly support initiatives that promote the teaching of heritage languages along with the regular education system to motivate students to proceed to further studies while developing their bilingual identity. Can hands-on science activities in a pedagogical context increase students’ self-esteem through the appreciation of their heritage language and culture?
To test this hypothesis, Luso-descendant students with ages between 7 and 16 years old were asked to formulate hypothesis, design experiments, test ideas, observe results and draw conclusions using their heritage language as an instrument for questioning, communicating and thinking.
What where our main findings?
Our results point to positive implications in terms of acquiring knowledge, understanding the scientific process, destroying preconceived notions related to science, and the broadening of students’ expectations for the future.
Introducing the scientific method through the use of experimentation, and practices centred on “learning by doing”, in multidisciplinary educational contexts such as in Portuguese Heritage Language learning, have the potential to bring benefits to the students.
The full publication can be found here. Enjoy your reading! :)
About ESERA
ESERA (European Science Education Research Association) is an institution funded in 1995 that promotes a collaborative forum for science education researchers and policymakers. It is a reference in the field of science education worldwide and helps enhancing the range and quality of research and research training in science education in Europe.
