Almada – Lisbon (Portugal)

The recent rise in conflicts across the world have led to a sharp rise in migration toward European countries, resulting in an influx of students with languages and cultures not historically present in Europe.

During the rapid rise of migrants  and refugees in the last decade, schools and civil society had to adapt their approaches to education and inclusion in order to build sustainable futures for all students and their families.  The challenge is ongoing, not least through the task of maintaining refugees from Ukraine.

The Almada is situated just across the city centre of Lisbon, at the south bank of the river Tejo (Tagus). Until the 80’s Almada used to have a lot of heavy industry and was the living place of people with a lower socio-economic status. Meanwhile Almada upgraded and developed a lot. However it stayed a place where ‘new commers’ still are finding their first  ‘place to settle’. Almada is hosting more than 140 different nationalities. At the schools in Almada  you can find a mix of cultures, languages, religions, socio-economic backgrounds, … The local and national authorities invested in several programmes to support the migrants and refugees and lead them to a better and durable situation. Language teaching and social emancipation are at the core of those programmes.

To have an idea on Almada: ‘Almada, Território de Muitos’
click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwX5htTtiDs

Join us for an intensive course on the policies and educational practices for multilingual and migrant students getting included in the school system and local community in Portugal.   The course is designed to allow the participants to engage in discovering and meeting people, rather than offering long theoretical  lectures.

This structured course combines school visits, visits to supporting organisations,  discussions with experienced teachers in the field and lectures by experts in the field of inclusion and teaching of non-native speakers, seeking to present the historical development of inclusive education and Portuguese  answers to the challenge of migration and cross-cultural understanding in the ongoing challenge to implement sustainable solutions for all students, including those with Portuguese as a second language.

After completing this course, you will have gained insight into the specific cultural and educational contexts of including students with migrant backgrounds for whom Portuguese used to be a foreign language. You will have discussed pro’s and con’s with experts and practitioners and developed enriched insights for future lesson plans in collaboration with other participants in the course.