Bilingual Schools Programme
The British Council is working in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Science, Direção-Geral da Educação on a Bilingual Schools Programme in Portugal.
From 2011–15 the British Council worked in partnership with the Direção-Geral da Educação (DGE) on the Bilingual Schools Project. In a bilingual school, part of the curriculum is delivered through the medium of the English language. This means that while the children are learning a subject such as estudo de meio, they are also acquiring the English language. Research from many countries has shown that this is a far more effective means of acquiring a foreign language than through traditional language lessons and brings about other benefits for children’s learning.
The pilot project involved a number of primary schools across the country. Primary teachers were supported by English teachers in teaching part of the subjects estudo de meio and expressões artisticas through English. The British Council worked closely with DGE on delivering training courses, carrying out school monitoring visits and providing teaching resources
A full external evaluation study was carried out in the autumn of 2014 and the results of this study were presented at a conference in April 2015.
Read the report:
http://www.dge.mec.pt/estudo-de-avaliacao-do-projeto-ensino-bilingue-precoce-no-1o-ciclo-do-ensino-basico
In July 2016 DGE invited applications from preschools and primary schools (1º and 2º Ciclo) to join the new Bilingual Schools Programme. This will see over the coming years a larger number of schools across the country providing a bilingual curriculum for the pupils, thus enhancing the pupils’ learning experience and English language proficiency. The British Council will continue its work with DGE to support the programme.
More information
For further details about the bilingual schools programme, please contact Julie Tice or contact DGE (see link below).