06.05.2023

Teachers from Beacon participate in book about bilingual education

Teachers Marcos Vinicius Celestini and Sonia Cristina Amaral had the opportunity to individually write a chapter in the book “Práticas na Educação Bilíngue”. Released today by Editora BOC, the work aims to be a kind of guide for professionals interested in entering the world of bilingual education. Drawing from the exercise of revisiting their careers as educators, the publication brings together the most practical aspects that these teachers have adopted in their years of working in bilingual environments.

In addition to the individual experiences of the 30 participating teachers, the project also shares some tips on educational materials and study platforms that have been useful for the training of these professionals. Reflecting on their careers was accompanied by a critical look at the practices they adopted, which enabled the development of new models for bilingual education. The exchange of experiences in the classroom was beneficial not only for the maturity of the book’s content but also for the personal growth of each involved teacher.

A significant topic for both teachers from Beacon was teaching English in subjects that are not necessarily language-related. Marcos sought to show how he managed to incorporate the English language into his math classes and the path he took to become a bilingual teacher. Sonia, following her postgraduate thesis, wrote from the perspective of planning, discussing how to develop reading and comprehension skills in English across different subjects. The Primary Years Programme (PYP) was addressed as a common and challenging context for teachers to think about ways to improve students’ English proficiency without compromising their understanding of the concepts in the Units of Inquiry.

The world is increasingly globalized, and as a result, the presence of an additional language in schools has become a reality. The current challenge is the implementation and training of professionals who can handle bilingual education. This is a valuable read for teachers, coordinators, and directors of bilingual schools in different contexts in Brazil, contributing to the expansion of their repertoire and curriculum planning.