Child Language Brokering - Multilingualism and Multiculturalism in Schools

What is this event about?

Children and young people can play an important role in the migration to a new country by translating and interpreting for family, peers and the local community. This is sometimes known as child language brokering. School is frequently mentioned as an important context of multilingualism, where translating and interpreting takes place.

The EYLBID (Empowering Young Language Brokers for Inclusion in Diversity) project sought to celebrate multilingualism and raise awareness of young people’s translating and interpreting activities. The team have developed a Teachers Handbook to use in secondary schools covering a variety of topics related to the practice of child language brokering and multilingualism and contains both useful information and various classroom activities teachers can do with their own students. We have also created a video game that can be used within schools to explore the social and emotional dilemmas that young language brokers might face.

At this event we will discuss both of these outputs, as well as taking the opportunity to talk through the challenges of English as an Additional Language support, multilingualism and the use of child language brokers (young translators) in schools.

This event is aimed at school educators, EAL coordinators and academic scholars and students interested working in these areas.

Event Talks

• Dr. Tony Cline (University College London, UK): ‘Child Language Brokering – why does it matter?
• Dr. Marta Arumi Ribas (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain) 
• Professor Sarah Crafter (The Open University, UK)
• Dr Evangelia Prokopiou (University of Northampton, UK): ‘Presenting the EYLBID Resources for Teachers to support Multilingualism in School’
• Catherine Mason (EAL Coordinator at Biddenham International School and Sport College, Bedford, UK): ‘EAL provision, how this has changed in recent years and where we are now’

All talks will be followed by a Q&A discussion

About the Speakers

Tony Cline was an Educational Psychologist before working in Higher Education. His expertise is in Special Educational Needs, Education of Bilingual Children, Child Language Brokering and Selective Mutism.

Catherine Mason is an EAL Coordinator at Biddenham International School and Sports College in Bedford. In her talk she will discuss EAL provision, how this has changed in recent years and where we are now.